Quote from: Associated PressPortugal's Socialist government has drawn up a proposal that would make Portugal the sixth European country to allow gay marriage.
The law is almost certain to pass, as the center-left Socialist government has the support of all left-of-center parties, who together have a majority in Parliament. Right-of-center parties oppose the measure.
The proposal changes Portuguese law to remove references to marriage being between two people of different sexes, Cabinet Minister Pedro Silva Pereira told a news conference Thursday, adding the government will send its proposal to lawmakers for a debate, probably in January.
If approved by Parliament, the proposed law goes to Portugal's conservative President Anibal Cavaco Silva, who can ratify or veto it. A veto can be overturned by Parliament.
If there is no presidential veto, the first gay marriage ceremonies could take place in April _ a month before Pope Benedict XVI is due on a four-day official visit.
Gay marriage is currently permitted in five European countries _ Belgium, the Netherlands, Spain, Sweden and Norway.
In Portugal, an overwhelmingly Roman Catholic country, previous efforts to introduce gay marriage have run into strong resistance from religious groups and conservative lawmakers.
Pedro Corte-Real, head of the Portuguese delegation of ILGA, the International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association, said the proposal was a vindication of his group's battle to end sexual discrimination.
"We have been fighting for this for years," he told The AP.
In July, the Constitutional Court upheld the country's ban on gay marriage, rejecting an appeal by two lesbians seeking to wed. It said the constitution, while granting equal rights, did not state that same-sex marriages must be permitted.
http://www.etaiwannews.com/etn/news_content.php?id=1135487&lang=eng_news&cate_img=83.jpg&cate_rss=news_Politics (http://www.etaiwannews.com/etn/news_content.php?id=1135487&lang=eng_news&cate_img=83.jpg&cate_rss=news_Politics)
Unfortunatelly for many it seems that the debate over same-sex marriages in Portugal will have to start and a position will have to be taken by many.
Following last election results (minority government from the center-left socialists) the PM is coming forward with a proposal to end the need of marriage to be between people of different sexs as was said in the campaign.
To some, it might have been seen has another promise that wouldn't be fulfilled since the country had more important "things to worry about" (literal translation of an awful type of argument).
Although the final result isn't clear it seems it will be aproved at the current parliament, even if the left-wing party(es) also demand for a right to adopt to be given to homosexual couples, they will certainly approve this in a "better than nothing" kind of deal.
As the article points out there is a last word comming from our conservative president, and some forces are trying to arrange for a referendum.
Anyway, just trying to give some good news to our gay community after the BBC debacle.
Yay! Another place to get my EU passport, although Portuguese...:unsure:
Quote from: garbon on December 17, 2009, 02:14:51 PM
Yay! Another place to get my EU passport, although Portuguese...:unsure:
Nowadays you get an EU-Portugal kind of passport, so if the EU doesn't colapse in the following years you can have all the benefits of belonging to an important diplomatic center without the problems connected with that like people disliking you or avoid your entance since noone cares about us anyway. :)
Quote from: garbon on December 17, 2009, 02:14:51 PM
Yay! Another place to get my EU passport, although Portuguese...:unsure:
Portuguese is no problemo dude. For any word ending in 'n', replace it with 'ao'. Got it, garbao? :smarty:
Quote from: Caliga on December 17, 2009, 02:33:33 PM
Quote from: garbon on December 17, 2009, 02:14:51 PM
Yay! Another place to get my EU passport, although Portuguese...:unsure:
Portuguese is no problemo dude. For any word ending in 'n', replace it with 'ao'. Got it, garbao? :smarty:
:lol:
Unfortunatelly that wouldn't work that easily: asião? americão? etc.
And if you want to really nerd it next time, use "ão" instead. :P
My keyboard doesn't easily allow me to put the tildes above a letter, and while I know how to do it via Windows Character Map, I'm too lazy. :hug:
Quote from: Caliga on December 17, 2009, 02:33:33 PM
Quote from: garbon on December 17, 2009, 02:14:51 PM
Yay! Another place to get my EU passport, although Portuguese...:unsure:
Portuguese is no problemo dude. For any word ending in 'n', replace it with 'ao'. Got it, garbao? :smarty:
I'm thinking his problem was having to marry a Portuguese dude.
I know he wasn't talking about the language itself :P
Garbon could pass for a Portuguese.
Quote from: Martinus on December 17, 2009, 04:49:01 PM
Garbon could pass for a Portuguese.
You saying all dark people look alike to you? Raciss!
Quote from: I Killed Kenny on December 18, 2009, 05:49:06 AM
LOL. BY: AMERICANS?
No, love, Europeans do actually come here despite what Marty says. That said it may have been a Brazilian so they have may have just been asking if I was Brazilian. :D
Some news on this issue:
Quote from: BBCSame-sex marriage law backed in Portugal's parliament
PM Jose Socrates had appealed to MPs to back the same-sex marriage law
Portugal's parliament has passed a law to legalise same-sex marriage, but rejected proposals to allow homosexual couples to adopt.
The bill was approved with the support of the governing Socialist Party and other parties further to the left.
Prime Minister Jose Socrates opened the debate with an appeal to back the law, saying it would put right an injustice that had caused unnecessary pain.
The law has been fiercely opposed by conservatives in the Catholic country.
Rightist parties had sought a national referendum on the issue following a petition that collected more than 90,000 signatures, but their proposal was rejected.
Friday's debate was at times heated, says the BBC's Alison Roberts in Lisbon, with Socialists attacking as discriminatory a counter-proposal from the centre-right Social Democrats for a new so-called civil union for same-sex couples.
The bill will now be reviewed in committee before coming back for a final vote in parliament.
If the law is ratified by President Anibal Cavaco Silva, it could come into effect in April - just a month before a visit to Portugal by Pope Benedict XVI, a staunch opponent of gay marriage.
The ratification would make Portugal the sixth country in Europe to allow same-sex marriages after Belgium, the Netherlands, Spain, Sweden and Norway.
Many other countries have introduced civil partnerships, which give lesbian and gay couples some of the rights of married heterosexuals.
Now that the law was passed by the Parliament and the referendum rejected there is still one possible problem coming from the right of veto by the conservative President Anibal Cavaco Silva.
There is also another possibility, that the President send the law to the constitucional court for them to access of the possibility of it being against our Constitution. In that case I think the only problem is the rejection of adoption by same sex couples that was also on the law.
How have other countries legislated on the adoption issue? It seems that this addendum will not hold long if the law is passed since it seems kind of discriminatory to forbid it on the grounds of sexual orientation. :hmm:
Link: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/8448640.stm
I'm disappointed by this. With the whole crisis all over us, so many workers out of a job and so many bankers stealing, and the Left is totally preoccupied with satisyfing a handful of deviant burgeois.
I can understand the Left Block on this, as they are nothing but a 'socialite Left' (aka a way for rich city kids to pretend to be Leftists while just catering to their own little egotism), while the Socialists can do nothing with our hung parliament but try to pass worthless laws, but the participation of the Communist Party in this saddens me deeply.
This DOES NOTHING for the workers and encourages behaviours that are not helpful for the creation of productive families. Indeed, it will reduce the number of workers. How can this be a good thing? :huh:
Of course, the Party has the policy of wrecking capitalist society as much as possible, but doing this so openly can only be detrimental. What would hard-working, unemployed factory worker parents with two kids to feed will think of this attitude?
Nothing positive, I'm certain :(
Quote from: clandestino on January 08, 2010, 02:54:14 PM
How have other countries legislated on the adoption issue? It seems that this addendum will not hold long if the law is passed since it seems kind of discriminatory to forbid it on the grounds of sexual orientation. :hmm:
The UK has I believe. Wiki has maps :)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LGBT_adoption
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Two girls, two cups?
Lucianus will enjoy this. :)
Portugal really has become quite the bastion of liberal awesomeness lately...
On paper at least.
God knows how it really is.
Quote from: Queequeg on January 09, 2010, 12:01:08 AM
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Portugal sure has better looking dykes than we do.