Court annuls France's first same-sex marriage
(Agencies)
Updated: 2004-07-28 08:40

A French court annulled France's first gay marriage on Tuesday, setting a legal precedent for outlawing same-sex marriages that came down on the side of the conservative government.

The government had already declared the marriage invalid and suspended the mayor who conducted it on June 5 in the Bordeaux suburb of Begles. The court ruling was a blow for opposition politicians who want to make gay marriages legal.

Partners Beth Reis, left, and Barbara Steele smile as they chat in the hallway during a break in a court hearing for same-sex couples who want the right to marry Tuesday, July 27, 2004, in Seattle. Eight gay or lesbian couples are suing to overturn a state defense of marriage law prohibiting gay marriage. Their lawsuit was filed in March. [AP]

"The tribunal declared null and void the marriage between Mr. Stephane Chapin and Mr. Bertrand Charpentier," the court in Bordeaux, the main city near Begles, said in its ruling.

Chapin, a 33-year-old home care worker, and Charpentier, a 31-year-old shop worker, said they would appeal against the ruling and take their fight to the European Court of Human Rights if necessary.

"We will fight to the end, as we said two months ago, but we will win because we have faith in our country," Charpentier said outside the court.

The couple's lawyer, Emmanuel Pierrat, said the court had based its ruling on the argument that marriage is traditionally considered the foundation of the family and that one of its main functions is to have children.

He said the couple remained legally married pending their appeal.

PRESSURE FROM ABOVE

Justice Minister Dominique Perben had said immediately after the marriage that it was null and void. The Interior Ministry suspended local Mayor Noele Mamere for conducting the ceremony following warnings by Prime Minister Jean-Pierre Raffarin.

Mamere, a Green member of parliament who is waging a battle against traditional family values, said he was not surprised by the court's decision.

"It would have been a revolution if the ruling had gone the other way because the judges came under pressure from the authorities to make an adventurous interpretation of the civil code," Mamere said.

The marriage stirred controversy in France, where the law allows civil unions between homosexuals although gays say this puts them at a disadvantage in terms of tax, inheritance and adoption rights.

Gay rights activists had hailed the marriage as a victory for tolerance and it was welcomed by opposition politicians who have promised to push for a pro-gay marriage law.

A recent survey by Elle magazine showed 64 percent of French people were in favor of same-sex weddings.

But conservative critics denounced the ceremony as an attack on the sanctity of marriage and Mamere's political foes dismissed it as a political stunt.

Members of President Jacques Chirac's ruling conservative party, Roman Catholic church leaders and some opposition Socialists have said children need a mother and a father and that the issue was too serious to be discussed in a hurry.

The issue of gay weddings has caused controversy in other countries, including the United States, where U.S. President Bush wants a constitutional ban on same-sex marriages.

Belgium, the Netherlands the U.S. state of Massachusetts and three Canadian provinces have legalized gay marriage. Spain's new Socialist government plans to present a draft law on same-sex marriages in September.

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