Next week, Ukraine will have a clear choice to make whether the basic rights of free speech and free assembly that are guaranteed in the Ukrainian Constitution, as well as in numerous international treaties that Ukraine has signed, are available for all Ukrainian citizens or just for some.

On May 20, a group of 200 activists are hoping to hold the first gay pride parade in Kyiv. In most of Europe, this would hardly be a newsworthy event. Berlin, Amsterdam and other cities have huge Gay Pride parades for decades with thousands of participants dancing and celebrating in the center of the city.

Every country in the European Union guarantees that homosexuals have equal rights under the law, including free speech and freedom of assembly. Article 21 of the European constitution states clearly: "Any discrimination based on any ground such as sex, race, color, ethnic or social origin, genetic features, language, religion or belief, political or any other opinion, membership of a national minority, property, birth, disability, age or sexual orientation shall be prohibited."

Even countries that recently joined Europe and have a similar history to Ukraine, such as Poland or the Czech Republic, support allowing all citizens the right to free speech and free assembly.

Poland held its first gay pride event in July 2010. Despite the fact that Poland is a heavily Catholic country and many Poles have religious objections to homosexuality, the Polish government ensured that homosexuals were able to exercise their rights and Polish citizens realized that free speech means allowing persons you disagree with the right to exercise their opinion also.

In contrast to Poland and Europe, Russia has actively banned any attempts to organize a Parade of Homosexuals in Moscow or St Petersburg. Not only has the government denied all petitions filed for a parade over the past seven years, but the Russian police have failed to protect members of the parade when they were attacked in 2006 and other years.

Additionally, numerous organizers were arrested and interrogated by the police. In fact, the Russian government was fined $40,000 by the European Court of Human Rights as a result. Despite the court verdict, numerous leading Russian politicians have confirmed that they intend to continue to crack down on any attempts at organizing a gay pride parade in Moscow.

Since Ukraine gained its independence in 1991, the Ukrainian government has built an honorable record of guaranteeing freedoms for its citizens. Freedom of religion is guaranteed in the Ukrainian Constitution and each Ukrainian president from, Leonid Kravchuk to Viktor Yanukovych, have ensured that religious freedom is respected for all Ukrainians, whether they are Orthodox, Catholic, Jewish, Muslim or any other belief. Similarly, the rights of ethnic minorities in Ukraine are honored and respected as according to the Ukrainian constitution and European standards.

While Ukraine deserves credit for guaranteeing freedom of religion for all its citizens, it is now facing a stark choice to see if it will guarantee freedom of speech for all its citizens.

Recently, the Verkhovna Rada accepted for the first reading Bills 8711 and 10290. They enshrine discrimination against homosexuals into law in Ukraine. Even more worrying, the legislation provides for criminal offenses for anyone who is convicted of “propagandizing” homosexuality. The scope of this bill is unprecedented and clearly if the government can start arresting homosexuals for exercising their rights to free speech, it would limit the freedom of all Ukrainians.

Additionally, numerous groups, from religious organization to neo-Nazis and thugs, have openly spoken about disrupting any attempts to organize a gay rights parade in Kyiv. While some groups aim to use the courts and other legal methods to try and stop the parade, others speak openly about resorting to violence. If so, the Ukrainian government has a chance to show that all of its citizens deserve protection from violence.

I believe Ukraine can be a strong European country which guarantees freedom for all its citizens. Despite facing possible violence and arrest, the participants in the gay rights parade on May 20 are doing their share to help expand freedom in Ukraine for all Ukrainians.

Jed Sunden is an American citizen and former owner of the Kyiv Post.