Taiwan’s court rules in favour of same sex marriage

Taiwan’s top judges have ruled in the favour of same sex marriage and thus becoming the first place in Asia to legalise same sex unions. The court ruled that the current laws that prevented same sex from marrying were violating their right to equality and were also unconstitutional. The high court has given two years to the government to implement the ruling.

A huge crowd of supporters cheered, hugged and also wept as the court legalised same sex marriages. The court said in a press release that, “Disallowing two persons of the same sex to marry, for the sake of safeguarding basic ethical orders” constituted a “different treatment” with “no rational basis. Such different treatment is incompatible with the spirit and meaning of the right to equality”.

A momentum grew behind the push for equal rights with Taiwan’s president Tsai Ing openly supporting the campaign. The constitutional court said that if the parliament does not make the change within two years then same sex couples could register to marry regardless based on its interpretation.

The court added, “The current provisions of the marriage chapter do not allow two persons of the same sex to create a permanent union of an intimate and exclusive nature for the committed purpose of managing a life together. This is obviously a gross legislative flaw”. They expect that the decision to support same sex marriage would contribute to social stability and protect ‘human dignity’.

Hundreds of supporters who gathered outside the parliament in central Taipei cheered at the news while some broke to tears.

This decision also triggered anger among all the conservative groups who later staged mass rallies against the same sex marriage law.

Story Credits: Indian Express