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International News Report |
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Taiwan Gay-Rights Groups Protest Anti-Gay Remarks
Gay-rights groups protested December 23 outside the headquarters of Taiwan's
ruling Democratic Progressive Party demanding that a lawmaker be
punished for antigay remarks and that the government present a timetable
for enacting gay protections, the China Post reported.
Lawmaker Ho Shui-sheng had called for a ban on gay marriage, saying same-sex unions would destroy the nation because gay couples cannot reproduce. He later apologized, saying he was speaking from a "medical" point of view and is not prejudiced against homosexuals. More than 30 groups reportedly took part in the demonstration, including the Taiwan Tongzhi (gay) Hotline Association and the Gender-Sexuality Rights Association Taiwan. In November, Taiwanese President Chen Shui-bian said the government is planning to legalize same-sex marriage. "The human rights of homosexuals have been gradually recognized by countries around the world," he said. "To protect their rights, [gay] people should have the right to wed and have a family based on their free will." The protesters said the government needs to turn its words into action. Three countries let gays marry under ordinary marriage laws: Belgium, Canada (in Ontario and British Columbia only) and the Netherlands. Numerous other nations grant same-sex couples most or all marriage rights under civil-union or registered-partnership laws. Canada: Disobedient Anglican Church Closed
Bishop Michael Ingham initiated church gay-union ceremonies in the Diocese of New Westminster in May. He ordered Holy Cross Church closed on December 23 after the parish rejected his authority and sought to align itself with the Anglican bishop of the Yukon, Terrence Buckle, who is less gay-supportive. Buckle now faces charges of improperly interfering in Ingham's diocese. Holy Cross's pastor, the Rev. James Wagner, celebrated Christmas mass despite the closing. "Can you imagine abandoning my people at this point and not serving them communion on Christmas Day?" he asked the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. "I can't do that to them." Belgium May Extend Adoption Rights Belgium, one of the three nations in the world where same-sex couples have access to full marriage, is planning to erase the final distinction between same- and opposite-sex matrimony: access to adoption. Prime Minister Guy Verhofstadt's Dutch-speaking Liberal Party will introduce the measure in Parliament where it is expected to pass with help from the Socialists and the Greens, Reuters reported. The change is opposed by three other parties: the French-speaking Liberals, the right-wing Vlaams Blok and the French-speaking Christian Democrats. In a statement, the Dutch-speaking Liberals said, "Research and the practical experience of countries which already allow adoption by same-sex and bisexual couples, show that children raised by same-sex parents are not affected in a negative way." Same-sex couples also have access to full marriage in the Netherlands and in the Canadian provinces of Ontario and British Columbia, where courts opened up the institution in 2003. Canada's Parliament is expected to legalize same-sex marriage nationwide sometime this year, barring any unanticipated changes in the political or judicial landscape. |
The Anglican bishop in Vancouver, Canada, has closed down a church in
Abbotsford, British Columbia, that refused to endorse same-sex unions.