Gay Parade Gets Ready to Rock Split, Croatia

Under the motto "Come out into a safer Split!," an LGBT Pride parade is set to take place on Saturday in the Croatian coastal city of Split.

The fifth annual Split Pride, organised by the local LGBT association Rispet, decided on the motto in order to shed light on the violence to which the LGBT community in Split is exposed on a daily basis.

Rispet emphasized that although legal measures for prosecuting hate crimes now exist, no one has been prosecuted in Split for gay-related hate crimes even though cases of physical violence are far from rare.

Organizers blame "homophobia in state institutions" for the lack of convictions for these hate crimes in Split, which they say result in mistrust felt for the system among the city's LGBT community.

Scenes from the first Split Pride in 2011, when around 10,000 anti-Pride protesters threw rocks, bottles and tear gas at some 300 participants, still echo in memory.

The parade will start early in the evening, going through the centre of Split, ending at the Djardin park, where a special program will be organized.

Hundreds of participants are expected to join the parade along with the Swedish ambassador to Croatia and the staff of the British embassy.

Police will secure the event. Since the 2011 events, all Pride parades in Split have passed off without violence, often receiving the sympathetic attention of the numerous tourists wondering around the city centre.

As an introduction into Split Pride, an exhibition "Queering Sami" will be opened in the old city hall on Friday.

Supported by Swedish Embassy, the Swedish NGO Qub Forlag, the City of Split and the Croatian Culture Ministry, the exhibition will show gays and lesbians living in the traditional and indigenous Saami...