|
(Ottawa) Canada's lower house Tuesday night
passed legislation allowing same-sex couples to marry in those regions of the
country where courts have not already ruled it legal.
The measure passed 158 to 133. Gays and lesbians who packed the gallery for the
vote applauded and cheered when the vote result was announced.
The legislation now moves to the Senate, but
passage in the Commons came at a cost for the governing Liberals.
Joe Comuzzi, minister of state for northern Ontario economic
development quit the cabinet over the issue. While Members of Parliament
were given a free vote on the marriage bill members of cabinet were required to
vote with the government.
Just hours before the vote Comuzzi informed Prime
Minister Paul Martin that he would not support the bill and was leaving
cabinet. It was a personal blow for the Prime Minister - the two have been
friends for more than 20 years.
Comuzzi said he said that despite quitting the
cabinet he was not leaving the Liberal caucus and plans to run in the next federal election.
During the final hours of debate on the bill
Conservative MP Dave Chatters of Alberta asked, "What will be the next step
down the infamous slope?"
"Will it be legalizing polygamy? Legalizing
prostitution? Legalizing hard drugs or maybe just working for organized crime to
import strippers and drugs? God only knows, Mr. Speaker."
For the Liberals it was about equal rights for
all Canadians.
"We are a nation of minorities," Prime
Minister Martin told the House. "And in a nation of minorities, it is
important that you don't cherry-pick rights.
"A right is a right and that is what this
vote tonight is all about."
Following the vote jubilant gays said that first
time they were full citizens.
``We will be proud as Canadians that we rejected
rejection, that we ended exclusion, that we said to lesbian and gay people there
are no second-class citizens,'' Alex Munter of Canadians for Equal Marriage told
a news conference. ``We will long remember this very proud day.''
The Conservatives who had fought the measure
since it was first announced by Martin's predecessor Jean Chretien two
years ago had sought to delay passage, putting up a long list of speakers and
amendments. That failed early Tuesday morning when the government and the
two smaller opposition parties - the New Democrats and the Bloc Quebecois -
supported cloture and forcing tonight's vote. (story)
Although the legislation is expected to pass the
Senate comfortably it could face a lengthy debate.
Same-sex marriage already is legal in 8 of
Canada's 10 provinces and one of the three territories.
But, the Tories say they aren't finished with
same-sex marriage. The party intends to use it as an issue in the next
federal election - expected early in 2006.
And, if they are elected, Conservative leader
Stephen Harper told a Tuesday evening news conference, they'll attempt to repeal
the bill and end same-sex marriage altogether even if it means a constitutional
fight. Harper said he would replace marriage for gays and lesbians with
civil unions.
"I don't think Canadians are going to accept as the final word a
decision taken by only a minority of federalist MPs imposed because the
government made a deal with the Bloc," Harper said, referring to the Quebec
separatist party that supports same-sex marriage.
"There will be a chance to revisit this in a future Parliament," he
said. "Our intention is to have a free vote."
That chance may be a long way off though.
Recent polls show Conservative support falling and Liberals with a healthy
majority.
But, if Harper's Tories should
get in they would have only one tool to get rid of same-sex
marriage most constitutional experts agree: the Charter's
notwithstanding clause, a constitutional escape hatch which no
federal government has ever used.
``They're going to have to at
least be honest with the people,'' said Justice Minister Irwin
Cotler.
``They're going to have to
acknowledge that they want to override the (Charter of
Rights), override constitutional-law decisions in nine
jurisdictions in this country, override a unanimous decision
of the Supreme Court of Canada, override the rule of law in
this country.''
More than 3,000 couples have already wed in eight
provinces and the Yukon where gay weddings are already allowed.
©365Gay.com 2005
|
