Italy's Communists Call For Gay Marriage

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Italy's Communists Call For Gay Marriage

(Rome) The Italian Communist Party on Wednesday called for the legalization of same-sex marriage. The party is a member of the center-left Union, the opposition in Italy's parliament.

The Communists want gay marriage rights to be part of the Union's platform in the next general election. Party Secretary Oliviero Diliberto made the announcement at a Rome news conference. He said the party also wants to have protections for sexual orientation included in the Constitution.

But, some members of the Union oppose gay marriage, including leader Romano Prodi who has spoken out against same-sex unions.

"We and Prodi, and some others in the center left, have different points of view on many questions," acknowledge Dilberto. "This is natural because otherwise we would be in the same party. The situation is more complex on delicate subjects such as this, but we don't want to renounce supporting a very advanced stance," he said.

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Italy's Communists Call For Gay Marriage