The Situation of Homosexuality in Greece; A Brief Survey


The following questionaire was issued by the ILGA and was forwarded on several mailing lists, in May 1996. The questionaire was prompted to request and gather information in order to be included in the forthcoming update of the "Pink Book". (The ILGA Pink Book is a country-by-country survey of the situation of homosexuals around the world).

The answers for the part concerning Greece, were provided (on June 10 1996) by the "Cooperation to Fight Homophobia", who kindly responded to the request for filling up the questionaire for RozMov.


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QUESTIONNAIRE ABOUT THE SITUATION OF HOMOSEXUALITY IN GREECE:                                             
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1.: Are homosexual relationships officially recognised?             No
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2.: A) What is the  legal status of  sexual contacts between men?   Legal 
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    B) What is the legal status of sexual contacts between women?   Legal
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    C) Is there a law governing homosexuality or are there other
       existing laws (such as public morality laws) that regulate 
       homosexuality? 						    No


       Article(s), content(s), penalty(ies):                        article 347 of the penal law 
                                         			    (19th chapter of the "crimes 
								    against the sexual freedom 
								    and the financial exploration 
								    of the sexual life". It speaks 
								    about "debauchery": 
								    a) embezzle of dependence 
								    relationship, 
								    b)age of 17 years for men 
								    and c) speculation (prostitution)).
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    D) Is there  an age of consent for sexual contacts? 	    Yes                         
 
       Is it the same for homosexuals as for heterosexuals?         No (see 2C)

       the age of consent is:					    for:

                         					    homo male   17                   
								    homo female   15             
                         					    hetero male 16                  
								    hetero female 15             
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    E) What is the extent of enforcement of the existing laws?

       a) against men prostitution                                 (there are testimonies 
                    						   of police officers on TV)
                                                                    
       b) for under aged persons				    few			
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3.: A) Are there any organisations of homosexuals in the country?   Yes
                                                                     
       If yes, what kind are they:
        							    *in two cities 
        							    *homo/lesbian/bisexual  
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    B) Is there any gay/lesbian press?                              No 
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    C) Are there any other gay/lesbian services?  		    Yes                          

        *If yes, what kind of?   				    SOS-telephone,               
								    homo-library                   
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4.: A) Does anti-discrimination legislation exist in your country?   Yes                        

       Do provinces, states, major cities have such protection?      Yes                         
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    B) Are violations of human rights of  homosexuals recorded?      Yes                        

       If you happen to know of any recent violations,
       please write them down: 
								     discrimination in the work, 
								     in hotels again tourists, 
								     in TV                       
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5.: A) Is same-sex partnership registration  possible?  	     No                         
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    B) Do homosexuals have access to the military?		     Yes                        
											 
								     but the military don't ask 
								     the soldiers if they are 
								     homosexual, usually the 
								     officers don't like 
								     to know about it because 
								     in this case they have to 
								     do something. It is not 
								     known what happens with 
								     the gay/lesbian officers!   
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    C) Is asylum possible for those facing persecution  
       on grounds of sexuality?                                      A  case like that 
								     is not known.
    D) Do homosexual couples have the same rights as
       heterosexual couples in the following areas?                  They are not registered at 
        							     all, so they don't exist.           
                  
              				*Pensions?                   No                        

              				*Adoption?         	     No                        

              				*Artificial insemination?    No                          
 								     (according to European 
								     Community rules there is 
								     not allowed for a women 
								     to have an artificial 
								     insemination if there is
								     no a man who gives 
								     the paternity to the 
								     embryon (baby). It is not 
								     known, if this rule is 
								     applied in the praxis in 
								     the many private clinics).

              			       *Immigration rights?          No 
								     (The country is not obliged 
								     to recognise acts which are 
								     done in an other country 
								     and they are in contrary 
								     to the laws in this country)
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    E) What about homosexual prostitution?   			     Illegal
								     (men prostitution)         
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    F) Are there restrictions for HIV+ people to get in the country? No, but it happened         
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    G) Any other special things? Please tell us:                     Important is what kind of 
								     laws exist, but more 
								     important is how the 
								     existing laws are 
								     interpreted and how the 
								     "clever" conservative 
								     majority discriminates 
								     without to do something 
								     against the law.           
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