80,000 Attend Belgium Pride in Support of LGBT Rights

According to police, more than 80,000 people braved the rain and took part in celebrations on Saturday to mark Gay Pride in Brussels, a festival which this year celebrates its twentieth edition in the Belgian capital.

The parade started at the Bourse(Belgium Stock Exchange Building), which was decorated for the occasion in the rainbow colors.

The event finished with a concert at night and rainbow confetti flowing freely across the streets of the capital.

Although the event has a festive character, event organizers recalled the political dimension of the event and the fact that it is “a demonstration against homophobia, lesbophobia and transphobia”.

One of the highlights of the “Belgian Pride” was the parade of floats, each one decorated with the colors of the rainbow, and attended by political representatives.

“This is the celebration of diversity and equality, and we are proud to march to show it,” said the president of the association The Belgian Pride, Chille Deman, and the event organizer, Alan De Bruyne to the local Belgium media.

They noted that on the occasion of the twentieth anniversary, the organisation took stock of how far they have come with gay rights and how much has been achieved but despite this, many remaining inequalities in social and legal level for the homosexual community still remain.

In particular, they alluded to the case of Ihsane Jarfi, murdered on the grounds of homophobia in the region of Liege (east) in 2012.

They also called for a change to the law in Belgium for trans-gender people, where they insisted, the law does not fully recognize their rights.

In this context, Deman and De Bruyne recalled that the Belgian Government is committed to renewing the Interfederal plan against homophobia which ended late last year.

“We hope that you stick to your promise and ask that the plan finally comes into force.”

Last Updated on May 17, 2015