LGBT rights in Slovakia

Slovakia, unlike its liberal counterpart Czech Republic, is more conservative on issues dealing with homosexuality.

Protection based on sexual orientation in law
Homosexual sex was legalised in 1962. The age of consent was equalized with the heterosexual age of 15 in 1990.

An Anti-Discrimination Act was adopted in 2004, in requirement with EU protocols on anti-discrimination in its member states. Although the act is quite long, it almost exclusively deals with other types of discrimination (especially ethnic discrimination) and the only two sentences where it bans discrimination (also) on the basis of sexual orientation are:


 * discrimination in connection with employment
 * discrimination of legal entities (i.e. basically firms)

In addition, the act prohibits "influencing" sexual orientation at schools. No details are given in the act and no further mentions of gay discrimination occur in the act. Also, these are the only three sentences dealing with discrimination of gay people in the whole Slovak legal system.

Political parties
The Christian Democratic Movement (KDH) - a conservative political party in government until February 2006 and responsible for the Slovak Ministry of Justice - is the strongest political group refusing a registered partnership of gay people. Other government parties prefer to postpone discussions on the issue.

Recognition of Same-sex Couples
There is no legal recognition of same-sex couples. Slovakia introduced same sex partnership bills two times, in 1997 and in 2000, but both proposals were quickly rejected. Some political parties support the idea of same-sex partnerships. The European Union have been seeking harmonisation of family law (including gay civil unions) although this has been fiercely opposed by Slovakia.

Gay life in Slovakia
There is a small gay scene. There are not many clubs, but most of those that do exist are in Bratislava. Migration of gay people, looking for a more liberal atmosphere, to other countries is common. In recent years society's attitude toward gays and lesbians has begun to be more favourable toward them.

For a Central European country, Slovakia is highly conservative (with a high percentage of Catholic people) and its rural regions can be intolerant to gay people. The situation is comparable to the one in Western Europe in the 1970s but is more favourable than the present situation in Poland. Gay pride or similar events are theoretically possible, but such major gatherings have yet to be held in Slovakia. There is however a reasonable gay scene in the Slovak republic with over 10 bars and clubs in Bratislava. A Pew Global Attitudes Project survey recorded that 68% of Slovaks believe that homosexuality should be accepted by society. An additional European Union poll shows 19% of Slovaks support gay marriage.