New Zealand legalises gay marriage

Louisa Wall, an openly gay opposition Labour MP and former rugby star, told reporters after the vote: “It shows that we are building on our human rights as a country”, adding: “Nothing could make me more proud to be a New Zealander than passing this bill.”

The public gallery was packed as MPs voted by 77 to 44 in favour of the bill, after party leaders encouraged MPs to vote on their consciences rather than on party lines.

Centre-right Prime Minister John Key had supported it, saying: “In my view, marriage is a very personal thing between two individuals, .. and, in the end, this is part of equality in modern-day New Zealand.”

Following the vote, MPs and members of the public broke into song, singing the Maori love song “Pokarekare Ana”.

Leader in the region

New Zealand is the first country in the Asia-Pacific region to pass such a measure. The bill, which is expected to come into effect in August, makes New Zealand the 13th country in the world to legalise same-sex marriages.

Last year Australia rejected a similar proposal, although some states are considering such legislation.

Rodney Croome, the national director for the lobbying group Australian Marriage Equality, said that since Friday, 1,000 people had signed an online survey saying they would travel to New Zealand to wed, though same-sex marriages would not be recognized under current Australian law.

“There’s this really big, pent-up demand for this in Australia,” Mr Croome said. “New Zealand is just a three-hour plane ride away, and many couples are going to go to New Zealand to marry. They are just so sick and tired of waiting for the government to act. I think it’s going to spark this big tourism boom.”

The bill – which was opposed by the Roman Catholic Church – makes it clear that clergy can decline to preside in gay marriages.

Same-sex relationships were given partial legal recognition in New Zealand when civil unions were brought in in 2005, but there remains strong opposition in some quarters, with the campaign group Family First presenting a 50,000-signature petition to parliament last year.

Bob McCoskrie, founder of Family First, had called for a public referendum on the issue. However opinion polls have previously suggested that some two thirds of New Zealanders support gay marriage.

Where is gay marriage legal?
Gay marriage was legalised in Uruguay last week and is expected to become legal in France soon.

2001 The Netherlands 
2003 Belgium 
2005 Spain, Canada
2006 South Africa
2008 Norway
2009 Sweden
2010 Argentina, Iceland, Portgual
2012 Denmark
2013 Uruguay, New Zealand