“This is an important step in the protection of the fundamental rights of all citizens in Bosnia. “I welcome the holding of the first pride parade in Sarajevo today and wish the organisers and participants a peaceful event!” EU enlargement commissioner Johannes Hahn wrote on Twitter. Sarajevo was the last capital city in the Balkans to host a gay pride march, reflecting the strength of right-wing political parties and religious groups among Bosnia’s Muslim Bosniaks, Orthodox Serbs and Catholic Croats.Ībout 1,000 people walked with flags, banners, drums and whistles through central Sarajevo, and sang anti-fascist songs as hundreds of police kept watch in a major security operation that included the deployment of anti-sniper officers on city rooftops.
The European Union has praised Bosnia for holding its first gay pride parade, which passed off peacefully on Sunday despite protests from opponents and after previous LGBT events in the socially conservative country were attacked.
