Latvians' attitude to sexual minorities among most negative in EU - survey

RIGA - Latvians' attitude to sexual minorities is among the most negative in the European Union (EU), a new Eurobarometer survey shows.

Asked whether same-sex relationships can be consider normal, only 25 percent of the polled people in Latvia agreed that such relationships are normal, while 68 percent said they found such relationships unacceptable. Seven percent of respondents were undecided about the issue.

Bulgaria is the only EU member state where public attitude to sexual minorities is even more negative than in Latvia as only 20 percent of the surveyed population there regard same-sex unions as normal and 71 reject them as unacceptable.

Across the EU, same-sex relationships are acceptable to 72 percent of the population, with Sweden showing the highest level of tolerance (95 percent), followed by the Netherlands (92 percent) and Denmark (90 percent).

In Lithuania, same-sex relationships are acceptable to 35 percent of respondents and unacceptable to 59 percent of the polled people. In Estonia, 49 percent of respondent consider same-sex relationships normal and 44 percent see such relationships as unacceptable. 

Latvians' attitude to same-sex marriages is roughly the same as to same-sex relationships, with 24 percent ready to accept them, 70 rejecting such marriages as unacceptable and 6 percent having now particular opinion.

In the EU, 69 percent of respondents believe same-sex marriages should be permitted by law and 26 percent believe such marriages should not be permitted.