Portugal’s parliament passed a bill Friday that would make the predominantly Catholic nation the sixth in Europe to permit gay marriage. Currently, five countries allow same-sex marriages: Belgium, the Netherlands, Spain, Sweden and Norway. Many other countries have introduced civil partnerships, which give lesbian and gay couples some of the rights of married heterosexuals.
The law has been fiercely opposed by conservatives in the Catholic country. Rightist parties had sought a national referendum on the issue following a petition that collected more than 90,000 signatures, but their proposal was rejected. Gay rights campaigners applauded from the galleries, hugged and kissed outside the building and ate wedding cake.
Like neighboring Spain, which introduced same-sex marriages four years ago, Portugal is an overwhelmingly Roman Catholic country and previous efforts to introduce gay marriage ran into strong resistance from religious groups and conservative lawmakers.
In 2001, a law allowed “civil unions” between same-sex couples which granted them certain legal, tax and property rights. However, it did not allow couples to take their partner’s name, inherit their possessions nor their state pension, which is permitted in marriages.
The bill will now be reviewed in committee before coming back for a final vote in parliament. If the law is ratified , it could come into effect in April – just a month before a visit to Portugal by Pope Benedict XVI, a staunch opponent of gay marriage.
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