Several thousand people turned out Saturday for Cyprus' first gay-pride parade, exceeding the expectations of organizers, who said the event's popularity shows that Cypriots are shedding their conservative attitudes.
ACCEPT-LGBT Cyprus president Costas Gavrielides said he had expected just a few hundred people to attend the event in Nicosia, the capital. "This proves that Cypriot society has progressed much more than politicians say," he said.
A small group of Orthodox Christians demonstrated nearby to denounce the event. They scuffled with police while trying to break a cordon and approach the parade. - AP