Prague protesters express support for LGBTQ community in Poland

Prague, Aug 9 (CTK) – About 200 people met in the center of Prague on Sunday to express support for the community of lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transgender people (LGBT) in Poland and post a rainbow flag on the Polish embassy building.

The police, who monitored the event, said the organizers failed to duly announce it in advance.

The demonstration follows the arrest of a female LGBT activist in Poland, who faces charges over posting rainbow flags on statues in Warsaw and damaging a vehicle with anti-LGBT slogans on it.

Her arrest provoked protests of thousands in Warsaw, with several dozens of protesters being detained by the Polish police.

The Prague meeting today called on Czech Foreign Minister Tomáš Petříček (Social Democrats, CSSD) and the Czech ambassador in Poland to officially comment on the situation.

“A rainbow is no crime. Our identity is not a crime. Nevertheless, one faces three years in prison for this fact in Poland,” a speaker told the crowd waving rainbow flags and fans and carrying banners with slogans in Czech, English and Polish.

The protesters also chanted “Free Margot” and “You never stand alone” in a reference to the accused Polish activist, Margot Malgorzata Szutowicz.

Margot is a trans nonbinary person who uses the pronoun she, the Prague meeting’s initiators have written on Facebook.

Szutowicz’s release was recently demanded by Dunja Mijatovic, the Council of Europe commissioner for human rights, who said her detention has sent an unfortunate signal about the freedom of speech and LGBT people’s rights in Poland.