The Norwegian government
introduced legislation today to provide for same-sex marriage.
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Family Issues Minister Anniken
Huitfeldt
Photo: Conrelius Poope, Scanpix |
The country already allows gay
and lesbian couples to enter into civil partnerships, but gay rights groups
have long complained the law does not go far enough. The Norwegian National
Association for Lesbian and Gay Liberation (LLH) said current arrangements
had created two classes of citizenship - one for heterosexuals, the other
for gays.
The legislation will amend the
definition of civil marriage to make it gender neutral and will abolish
civil partnerships.
It will also extend all the
rights of parenthood to a woman who is married to another woman who becomes
pregnant through in vitro fertilisation.
The legislation additionally
states that in cases of adoption, both partners, gay or lesbian, would have
joint parenting rights.
In introducing the bill,
Family Issues Minister, Anniken Huitfeldt, told parliament that the
goal of the
legislation is to demonstrate that homosexual and heterosexual couples are
equal under the law.
"The new law won't weaken marriage as
an institution, rather, it will strengthen it. Marriage won't be worth less
because more can take part in it", said Huitfeldt.
The state Lutheran Church of
Norway is expected to allow each congregation to decide whether to conduct
same-sex weddings, as it did last year in allowing parishes to decide
whether to accept clergymen living in gay partnerships.
