[extropy-chat] Spain has become the third country in Europe to legalise gay marriage

[Giu1i0 Pri5c0]

This makes me really proud of the country where I live. Of course the new 
law had a lot of coverage on Spanish television. The legal definitions of 
"marriage" has been changed accordingly in such a way as to make no 
references to different sex. The Spanish PM said that he expects strong 
opposition by Pope Benedict, but in a democracy the choice of the people 
wins, and indeed polls show that two thirds of Spaniards are in favor of the 
new law. This, I think, is an important victory for civil rights in Europe.
The Guardian<http://www.guardian.co.uk/spain/article/0,2763,1466072,00.html>: 
Spain has become the third country in Europe to legalise gay marriage, with 
parliament also giving same-sex couples the right to adopt children. Mr 
Zapatero's Socialists won the support of several small parties as the bill 
was passed by 183 votes in favour, 136 against, with six abstentions in the 
350-seat lower chamber.
"This is a historic day for everybody who believes in equality, justice and 
rights," said Beatriz Gimeno, president of the country's Federation of 
Lesbians, Gays and Transexuals.
The phrase "matrimony shall have the same requisites and effects regardless 
of whether the persons involved are of the same or different sex" should now 
be added to Spain's law books.
"This is an initiative that brings up to date a question of rights within 
society," said the justice minister, Juan Fernando Lopez Aguilar. "It is a 
reform that improves people's lives." Belgium and the Netherlands are the 
only two other European countries that have legalised gay marriage so far.
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