Tonight Parliament will be lit up with the colors of the rainbow flag for LGBTI rights

The facade of the Parliament will be illuminated on Tuesday evening with the colors of the rainbow flag to mark the National and International Day against Homophobia, Transphobia and Biphobia, the President of the Assembly of the Republic determined.

In a dispatch that Lusa had access to, Augusto Santos Silva refers to the fact that at the last meeting of the parliamentary leaders, held on 10 May, “the Assembly of the Republic was invited to join this event, namely by hoisting the Rainbow Iris Flag.”

“This situation is deprived, however, of legal support due to the lack of rules for raising such flags in parliament, which, of course, does not prevent this date from being celebrated in alternative ways,” the message says.

“Under these circumstances, I order the Secretary General of the Assembly of the Republic to illuminate the façade of the São Bento Palace with the colors of the rainbow flag on the night of May 16-17, 2023, to celebrate the fight against prejudice and the protection of the rights of LGBTI people” (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex people) added Santos Silva.

The text recalls that May 17, National Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia, was consecrated in 2015 by a resolution of the Assembly of the Republic.

“On the same day, the International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia and Biphobia is celebrated, symbolically marking the decision to exclude homosexuality from the International Classification of Diseases of the World Health Organization in 1990 and aimed at valuing equality between people, regardless of their sexual orientation, and as well as raising awareness of discrimination against LGBTI people,” emphasizes the President of the Assembly of the Republic in his order.