A petition in support of the draft law on registered civil partnerships was created on 28 March 2023. It defines registered partnerships as a consensual family union of two adults of the same or different sex.

The draft law gained the required 25,000 votes in less than a month. Now it must be considered by the President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

Ukrainian soldier Petro Zherukha created the petition. In the text, he noted that without this status, same-sex partners are not officially considered relatives, so they cannot decide on the treatment of their partner if he or she is injured. In case of their death, the partner does not have the right to dispose of his or her body, receive an inheritance on preferential terms or social protection from the state, as is provided for families of defenders or war victims.

“This problem has existed in Ukraine since independence, but after Russia’s full-scale invasion on 24 February 2022, it has only become more acute, as Ukrainians and Ukrainian women are in danger every day, both civilian and military. Couples who do not want to or cannot get married are unable to enjoy the same rights as married people. In particular, this applies to same-sex couples, including LGBT+ military couples,” he posted.

In addition, the author referred to the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, a treaty of which Ukraine is a member. Therefore, the absence of legal recognition of same-sex couples in the country violates Article 8 of the Convention, enshrining the right to respect for private and family life.

  • On 10 April, the draft law on civil partnerships was supported by the first committee of the Verkhovna Rada, the Youth and Sports Committee. Andrii Kozhemiakin, Olha Saladukha, and Zhan Beleniuk voted in favor. There was only one ‘against’ and one abstention.
  • On 21 April, a document from the Ministry of Defence was published with proposals for the draft law. The document explains that draft law No. 9103 “On the Institute of Registered Partnerships” equates registered partnerships with marriage, contrary to the Constitution of Ukraine.

See also

Kharkiv pride march went underground in September 2022. The event dedicated to gender and marriage equality was organized at the metro stations, out of reach of possible Russian attacks. The activists attended all three Kharkiv metro lines, unfurling the rainbow flags and calling for legalizing same-sex marriages.