Twelve years ago, the Thai couple headed to the marriage registrar’s office to take part in a mass wedding ceremony on Valentine’s Day in Bangkok.
Rungtiwa Thangkanopast wore a long white dress, and her partner, Phanlavee Chongtangsattam, a black tuxedo. Officials welcomed them.
But when they reached the registrar’s desk and presented their identity cards, which show each to be female, they were turned away.
Marriage between two women, they were told, was not permitted. On Thursday, the couple finally had the chance to wed under Thailand’s new law allowing same-sex marriages.