Whilst Australia still waits for the Lieberal party to drag itself into this century, Taiwan is the latest country to move on marriage equality, with the constitutional court there ruling in favour of same sex marriage. They are the first Asian nation to do so.
“I am so touched. Finally we’ve reached this moment. This represents Taiwan’s human rights. This is a step forward in human rights,” said the 60-year-old retiree, who asked that only his first name be used.
A bill to enforce the ruling is already working its way through the legislature, where both the ruling and major opposition parties support legalization of same-sex marriage. Surveys show a majority of the public is also in favor, as is President Tsai Ing-wen, Taiwan’s first female leader.
Gays and lesbians in Taiwan have formed an effective lobby in recent years, with an annual Gay Pride march drawing tens of thousands. While some conservative religious and social groups have mobilized against same-sex marriage, their influence is much less potent than in the United States and many other parts of the world.
“The need, capability, willingness and longing, in both physical and psychological senses, for creating such permanent unions of intimate and exclusive nature are equally essential to homosexuals and heterosexuals, given the importance of the freedom of marriage to the sound development of personality and safeguarding of human dignity,” the court said in its ruling. AP
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