The city of Warsaw documented its first same-sex marriage Thursday, following through on European court decisions that mandate Poland acknowledge same-sex unions performed in other European Union member states.
The EU’s top court ruled in November that Poland must recognize same-sex marriages conducted in other EU nations, despite Polish domestic law currently prohibiting such unions. Poland’s Supreme Administrative Court referenced that decision in March when directing officials to acknowledge a German marriage between two Polish men.
“This morning we issued the first transcription of a marriage certificate for a same-sex couple, in accordance with the court rulings,” Warsaw Mayor Rafał Trzaskowski announced.
The mayor additionally pledged that his city would actively acknowledge other Polish same-sex marriages performed elsewhere in the EU without requiring individual court orders.
Prime Minister Donald Tusk stated Tuesday that his administration would work to carry out the court decisions quickly, and spoke directly to same-sex couples, saying he was sorry “to all those who, for many years, felt rejected and humiliated.”
Tusk urged Polish officials, regardless of their personal views, “to respect the dignity of each individual and to remember that these people live around us, among us, near us, and that they deserve the same feelings of respect, dignity and love as any other person.”
LGBTQ+ advocates have spent decades pushing for equal treatment in Poland, where same-sex marriage and civil partnerships remain prohibited. The court decisions do not require Poland to make same-sex marriage legal domestically.
Tusk’s administration took office promising to authorize civil unions for same-sex couples. However, opposition from conservative members within his governing coalition and resistance from President Karol Nawrocki, a devout Catholic, have blocked those initiatives.
