A Russian lesbian couple, Irina Fedotova, right, and Irina Shipitko kiss each other by a marriage registry office in central Moscow, May 12, 2009.

AP- Russian lesbian couple was denied a marriage license by an government official. They were handed a written rejection from an official in a registry office in central Moscow. The office director said Russian law recognizes a marriage “only” between a man and a woman. Despite the rejection, the couple said they would not give up. “We won’t stop in midstream,” Fedotova told journalists later, adding that she and her partner plan to get married in Canada. She said Russia recognizes marriages registered abroad.

Despite the rejection, the couple wearing suits and bow-ties and holding flowers, said they would continue to fight for recognition of gay rights in Russia. Russia decriminalized homosexuality in 1993, but opposition to gay rights remains widespread. Russian spiritual leaders have claimed that homosexuality threatens the country’s traditional values. (more…)