Bermuda is first country to reverse gay marriage law
BERMUDA has become the first country to repeal a gay marriage law, prompting a backlash from equal rights activists and Theresa May.
The British overseas territory had allowed couples of the same gender to marry after a ruling by the island’s Supreme Court in May last year.
But a majority of voters on the socially conservative island opposed the idea in a non-binding referendum a year earlier, and same-sex marriages have now been replaced with ‘domestic partnerships’.
The government of the Caribbean island said the new Domestic Partnership Act, approved in December and signed into law on Wednesday, is in line with European court rulings ensuring recognition and protection for same-sex couples.
However, critics called the move an unprecedented rollback of civil rights.
Veteran gay rights campaigner Peter Tatchell said: ‘This decision to reverse marriage equality and reinstate discrimination is a huge emotional and legal blow
‘Huge emotional and legal blow’
for LGBT [lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender] Bermudans and their loved ones. Civil partnerships are not equality. They reinforce the second-class legal status of LGBT people in Bermuda.’
He added: ‘The ban on same-sex marriage defies the Universal Declaration of Human Rights which states that everyone has a right to marry.’
The Prime Minister’s spokesman said Britain was ‘seriously disappointed’ by the repeal but it would not have been right for the UK Government to block it.
He said the bill ‘has been democratically passed by the Parliament of Bermuda, and our relationship with the overseas territories is based on partnership and respect for their right to democratic self-government’.
British overseas territories are free to choose which UK laws to adopt.
Bermuda’s citizens – many of whom are devout Christians – voted against gay marriage by 68 per cent to 31 per cent in a referendum in 2016. However, the 47 per cent turnout was below the 50 per cent needed for the results to be binding.
About half a dozen same-sex marriages took place in the country while it was legal – and these will still be recognised. The repeal means gay marriage ceremonies can no longer take place on P&O cruises as the firm is registered in Bermuda.