Tag: legalization

A supreme court judge in Panama has reportedly ruled against two separate efforts to legalize same-sex marriage in the country. We first reported about gay Panamanian lawyer Iván Chanis Barahona's fight earlier this month. The highest court in the country heard arguments over the last two months and now, Justice Luis Ramón Fábrega has reportedly delivered a draft ruling against two cases that were combined into one: a suit filed by a gay couple who wed in the UK and...

Iván Chanis Barahona is a gay Panamanian lawyer who is working towards getting gay marriage legalized in the country. He is representing a couple that was legally married in the U.K. and is working to get their marriage recognized in Panama. Chanis is also working a second case that is challenging the country on the laws that keep same-sex couples from marrying. The Supreme Court heard oral arguments over the summer. The two cases have been rolled into one, and the...

Same-sex couples will hopefully be able to get married from October this year Germany’s president has signed a bill to make same-sex marriage legal. President Frank-Walter Steinmeier signed the legislation late yesterday (20 July). It will come into force on 1 October at the earliest. Lawmakers approved the bill on 30 June, with 393 politicians voting for marriage equality while 266 voted against. Chancellor Angela Merkel voted against same-sex marriage. However, she freed her Christian Democrats from the party whip on the issue calling...

Congratulations Malta! Malta has decided to make same-sex marriage legal today (12 July). The small southern European island, largely made up of Catholic people, now has one of the leading LGBTI rights laws in the world. The wording in civil ceremonies of ‘you are now husband and wife’ will now be changed to ‘you are now spouses’. There was only one voice of opposition in government, with one politician claiming it was ‘morally unacceptable’. A victory celebration of same-sex couples and LGBTI people is...

Congratulations Germany! Germany has voted to legalize same-sex marriage. 393 politicians voted for marriage equality, while 266 voted against. Chancellor Angela Merkel voted against same-sex marriage. However, she freed her Christian Democrats from the party whip on the issue calling for a ‘vote of conscience’. The reform gives same-sex couples full marital rights, and allows them to adopt children. The German legal code will now read: ‘Marriage is entered into for life by two people of different or the same sex’. ‘We are feeling really emotional,’...

It now means same-sex marriage is legal in every Nordic country. Denmark has approved the Faroe Islands’ vote to legalise same-sex marriage. The country had voted to legalise it last year, excluding religious ceremonies, but it required formal approval from Denmark, which voted to legalise same-sex marriage in 2012, to be brought into law. Eiler Fagraklett, head of LGBT Faroe Islands said: “It was an intense, exciting and unpredictable moment. When the MPs finally passed the amendment to the bill and thereby...

Court says ban on same-sex marriage unconstitutional; unless law is amended within two years, marriage equality becomes legal Taiwan is set to be the first country in Asia to legalize same-sex marriage. A top court in the country today ruled that the current law, banning same-sex marriage, is unconstitutional. Marriage equality can become law in two years The Council of Grand Justices in Taipei decreed that if a law amendment to change the constitution is not introduced with two years, the interpretation of...

A new Gallup poll has found that a record number of Americans support marriage equality! The survey found that 64% of American adults believe same-sex marriage should be legal. This is the highest percentage to date and continues the generally steady rise since Gallup's trend began in 1996. The survey also found that Republican support for same-sex marriage has also reached a record high. https://www.instagram.com/p/BUGcWpWjTuX/ In recent decades, many GOP leaders adamantly opposed gay marriage, but rank-and-file Republicans' support has nearly tripled since 1996....

The British overseas territory of Gibraltar has legalised same-sex marriage. Her Majesty’s Government of Gibraltar announced the news on Twitter, explaining that the Civil Marriage Amendment Bill 2016 was passed in parliament unanimously. https://twitter.com/GibraltarGov/status/791258837378539520?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw Felix Alvarez, Chairman of Equality Rights Group Gibraltar, said: “Today is a happy and long-awaited day for many in Gibraltar. Equality Rights Group extends a big thanks to all the LGBTI community and also to the very special people who have fought unfailingly alongside us. “There is still much...

The bill seeks to change the existing gendered terms in the marriage law, such as 'man and woman,' to 'the two parties.' As one of the most progressive Asian nations in terms of gay rights, is Taiwan finally ready for marriage equality? On Monday, ten legislators of the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) have announced that a proposal to amend the Civil Code to legalise same-sex marriage is currently in the works, according to Focus Taiwan. Yu Mei-nu, a convener of the Judiciary and Organic Laws and...

A South Australian MP has introduced a bill to offer protection to same-sex couples. It will give legal recognition to those in same-sex relationships, and also grant them next-of-kin status and offer some adoption rights, according to BuzzFeed News. The bill comes in response to the tragic story of a British man who was left unable to decide what should be done with his husband’s body after he died during their honeymoon in Adelaide at the beginning of the year. Same-sex marriage...

April 7, 2016 is a historical day for the LGBT community as The Constitutional Court of Colombia has ruled that beginning today same-sex couples can get married throughout the South American nation. The 6-3 ruling provides equal marriage rights for same-sex couples. Judges and notaries are have the legal duty to legalize same-sex unions. In 2011 the national Congress was ordered to create a law for same-sex marriage by 2013, but those in charge failed to gather and solve the problem. Instead they technically gave...