Taiwanese lawmakers have passed a bill to make Taiwan the first self-ruled Asian country to achieve marriage equality. Two years ago, Taiwan’s Constitutional Court ruled that the existing law defining marriage as between a man and woman was unconstitutional, and gave a two year deadline for marriage equality legislation.
Lawmakers voted on three bills on Friday to pass the legislation a week ahead of the deadline. One bill was tabled the Cabinet and two were put forward by conservative groups. The Cabinet bill backed by LGBT+ rights groups (the only one to use the word “marriage”) ultimately won out to great celebration. The bill leaves some rights granted to heterosexual couples unclear, including adoption and cross-national marriage.
“The Taiwanese government must not stop here. It needs to act to eliminate all forms of discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation, gender identities and intersex status,” said Acting director of Amnesty International Taiwan Annie Huang.
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