AUSTRALIAN CAPITAL TO LIFT BARRIERS TO HOMOSEXUAL COMMON-LAW MARRIAGE

Wednesday March 12, 2003

AUSTRALIAN CAPITAL TO LIFT BARRIERS TO HOMOSEXUAL COMMON-LAW MARRIAGE

CANBERRA, March 12, 2003 (LifeSiteNews.com) - Australia's national capital district, the Austalian Capital Territory (ACT), is set to pass 37 amendments that will remove "discriminatory language" from the region's statutes on marriage. While the move will not give homosexuals full marriage rights, it will extend existing protections already available to common-law couples.

Jon Stanhope, Chief Minister of the ACT, said: "Most legislation already recognises heterosexual partnerships where a couple live together but are not married. This Bill simply extends that recognition to all partnerships, no matter what the sex of the partners. The definition of domestic partnership is simple and inclusive. It means the relationship between two people, whether of the same or of different sex, living together as a couple
on a genuine domestic basis."

For local coverage:
http://uk.gay.com/headlines/3938

URL: http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2003/mar/03031205.html

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