Swiss voters
went to the polls and passed a referendum on marriage equality.
Legislation
approving marriage equality has been passed by the country’s parliament late
last year, but conservative groups mounted a last-ditch effort by forcing a
referendum which went down to defeat with over 64 percent of the country voting
in favor of marriage equality.
"It is a
historic day for Switzerland, a historic day when it comes to equality for
same-sex couples, and it is also an important day for the whole LGBT community,"
Jan Muller, of the "yes" campaign committee, told the AFP news
agency and was quoted by France 24.
"Whoever
loves each other and wants to get married will be able to do so, regardless of
whether it is two men, two women, or a man and a woman," Karin
Keller-Sutter, the country’s justice minister, told AFP/France 24,
adding the first same-sex marriages would take place next year in July.
The results
were overwhelmingly in support of marriage equality, with Swiss Info reporting 64.1 percent voted in favor
of the referendum and winning in every canton. The mountainous country had been
an outlier amid Europe, remaining one of the last countries in Western Europe
to not approve of the practice.
Marriage equality and other LGBTQ+ protections were approved by
the Swiss Parliament late last year, but conservative groups gathered enough
signatures to force this month’s referendum. Similar legislation had been
languishing in parliament for years. Switzerland had previously banned
conversion therapy, expanded anti-discrimination laws to include sexual
orientation and gender identity, allowed LGBTQ+ people to serve in the
military, but had not officially approved marriage equality.
Same-sex civil
partnerships have been legal since 2007, but they still did not enjoy the same
benefits and privileges of marriages between members of the opposite sex.
Same-sex
partnerships will now be able to jointly adopt children, rather than only
adopting children parented by one member of the couple. Lesbian couples will
now be able to access sperm banks and other medical services for the purpose of
procreation. Same-sex couples will also receive the same expedited path to citizenship
available to foreign spouses of Swiss citizens as well.
Opponents had
attempted to frame the measure as dangerous to the welfare of children. They
ran an aggressive campaign with posters suggesting marriage equality would
conflict with conservative Swiss values and harm families and children. Monika
Rüegger, federal deputy of the populist IDC party, told Swiss
Info the referendum vote was a “black day” for children.
Deborah
Heanni, an activist who had campaigned for the measure, disagreed.
"It is a
day of celebration, of victory after eight years of electoral campaign,"
Heanni told Remo News, saying the country is now "on par with
other countries in terms of openness and progress."
SOURCE: OUT DOT COM
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