Monday, July 13, 2015
TAIPEI, Taiwan –
Thousands of gay rights supporters marched through Taipei on Saturday, months
ahead of elections that are likely to usher in a pro-gay party and could make
Taiwan the first place in Asia to legalize same-sex marriage.
Protesters waved rainbow flags, lit candles and shouted “gay
votes are still votes” as they marched between parliament and the headquarters
of Taiwan’s two main political parties.
The recent US Supreme Court decision legalizing gay marriage
has given a renewed push to the movement in Taiwan, where a marriage bill has
been held up in parliament ahead of January elections.
- According to a protester Rafael Tsai, Taiwan society has
reached the point of acceptance of gay marriage. Unfortunately, the politicians don’t seem to be on the same level
as the people.
- Taiwan is one of Asia’s most gay-friendly places, boasting a
vibrant social scene and little overt discrimination.
Polls show a majority in
favor of gay marriage, and a recent study commissioned by the Ministry of Justice
advocated legalization.
There is no formal recognition of same-sex couples, however,
and many young people are still reluctant to come out to their parents.
There’s a huge generational split on issue, said Mei Nu Yu; author of the stalled marriage bill.
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Sunday, March 30, 2014
While 15 countries have legalised gay marriage and another three allow
it in some areas, homosexuals remain persecuted in many parts of the
world.
Gay couples across England and
Wales said “I do” Saturday as a law authorising same-sex marriage came
into effect at midnight, the final stage in a long fight for equality.
Following the first marriages
amid a supposed race to wed, Prime Minister David Cameron tweeted:
“Congratulations to all same-sex couples getting married today — I wish
you every possible happiness for the future.”
The Conservative party leader
also described the change as an “important moment for our country”, and
a rainbow flag flew above government offices in London in celebration.
In London, John Coffey, 52, and Bernardo Marti, 48, exchanged vows as
the clock struck midnight, before being pronounced "husband and
husband".
They were among several couples bidding to be first to take advantage of last year's Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Act.
In
Brighton on England's south coast, Neil Allard and Andrew Wale(photo) exchanged vows and rings in the opulent splendour of the Royal Pavilion
in front of about 100 guests.
Wearing velvet-collared three-piece
suits with white flowers in their buttonholes, the smiling couple of
seven years hugged and kissed after sealing their marriage.
Source: Agencies
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Wednesday, February 24, 2010
Gay men exchanging rings at their wedding. Clerics from the Anglican church in England on Tuesday
LONDON – Clerics from the Anglican church in England on Tuesday called for an end to rules that stop gay couples marrying in religious venues such as churches or synagogues. - In a letter to the Times newspaper, they said the civil partnership act -which allows same-sex couples to tie the knot is discriminatory as it denies homosexual partners the same choices as straight ones.
- "Straight couples have the choice between civil marriage and religious marriage," said the clerics' letter."Gay couples are denied a similar choice.
- "To deny people of faith the opportunity of registering the most important promise of their lives in their willing church or synagogue, according to its liturgy, is plainly discriminatory.
- "Waheed Alli, a lawmaker sitting in Britain's upper house of parliament, will propose an amendment to equality legislation currently being debated, which would allow gay marriages on religious premises.
- It would also remove the ban on religious language in the civil partnership ceremony, the newspaper said. Alli was the first openly gay lawmaker in Britain's upper house of parliament, the House of Lords, when he took up the position in 1998.
Source: AFP
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Tuesday, December 29, 2009
BUENOS AIRES, Argentina – Two Argentine men were joined Monday in Latin America's first same-sex marriage, traveling to the southernmost tip of the Americas to find a welcoming spot to wed.Gay rights activists Jose Maria Di Bello and Alex Freyre were married in Ushuaia, the capital of Argentina's Tierra del Fuego state, exchanging rings at an informal ceremony witnessed by state and federal officials.- "My knees didn't stop shaking," said the 41-year-old Di Bello. "We are the first gay couple in Latin America to marry."
- The slim, dark-haired couple previously tried to marry in the Argentine capital of Buenos Aires but were thwarted by city officials citing conflicting judicial rulings. Argentina's Constitution is silent on whether marriage must be between a man and a woman, effectively leaving the matter to state and city officials.
- This time around, they traveled to a remote seaside fishing village at the end of South America that is closer to Antarctica than Buenos Aires. The ceremony took place during the region's brief summer thaw.
- Tierra del Fuego Gov. Fabiana Rios said in a statement that gay marriage "is an important advance in human rights and social inclusion and we are very happy that this has happened in our state."
- An official representing the federal government's antidiscrimination agency, Claudio Morgado, attended the wedding in the city of Ushuaia and called the occasion "historic."
- Many in Argentina and throughout Latin America remain opposed to gay marriage, particularly the Roman Catholic Church.
Source:
AP
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Tuesday, December 22, 2009
Lawmakers in Mexico City have passed legislation paving the way for the Mexican capital to become the first city in Latin America to legalise gay marriage.In a vote on Monday the city's government passed a bill changing the definition of marriage from a union of a man and a woman to a union of two people.The changes will give gay couples more rights, including allowing them to adopt children.- The city's leftist mayor, Marcelo Ebrard of the Democratic Revolution Party, was widely expected to sign the measure into law.
- However, the conservative Nation Action Party of Mexico's president, Felipe Calderon, has vowed to challenge the gay marriage law in the courts.
- Many people in Mexico and elsewhere in Latin America remain opposed to gay
- marriage, and the dominant Roman Catholic Church has announced its opposition.
- "They have given Mexicans the most bitter Christmas," said Armando Martinez, the president of the College of Catholic Attorneys.
- "They are permitting adoption [by gay couples] and in one stroke of the pen have erased the term 'mother' and 'father.'"
- But Victor Romo, a city lawmaker and a member of the mayor's party, called the vote an historic day.
- "For centuries unjust laws banned marriage between blacks and whites or Indians and Europeans," he said.
Source:
The Agencies
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