“We are not here to divide, we are not here to judge the other point of view, the other assessment, the other perception and we are not here to divide Greek society, on an issue in which prejudices and stereotypes are exploited by some, only for electoral purposes,” he said the special buyer of PASOK Pavlos Christidisduring the debate on the Marriage Equality Bill.

“We are here to support another necessary step in equality and non-discrimination and visibility“, said PASOK’s special buyer who recognized that the bill is of great concern to public opinion, because “in the last several months, there has been intense debate about what it will include, what it attempts to regulate and what effects it will have on social reality”.

“It is certain that in the vast majority of public opinion there is a concern which is unfortunately reinforced by the exaggerations and reactions of a number of political and institutional bodies and a number of conservative MPs, inside and outside the New Democracy”, said Pavlos Christidis and he added: “The bill may not have ‘parent 1’ and ‘parent 2’ but there sure is ‘minister of State 1’ and ‘minister of State 2’.” Minister of State 1 comes here to support the bill and Minister of State 2 claims that the bill is unconstitutional. It is these pastimes that have intensified the division in society,” said PASOK’s special buyer

“Marriage, the political meaning of marriage, civil marriage in a modern state arises as a free decision of two adults, through which they acquire rights and obligations, one against the other and jointly against the state. And to this decision, since it is freely made, there can be no exceptions. There can be no discrimination, there can be no conditions, apart from of course the non-existence of another legal marriage”, said Pavlos Christidis and added: For us, for what we believe, discrimination on the basis of race, on the basis of religion does not fit in a bourgeois democracy or because of sexual orientation. And this very free decision of the two adults does not infringe on the freedom of anyone else.”