Dallas Voice (Dallas, Tex.), Vol. 23, No. 27, Ed. 1 Friday, November 17, 2006 Page: 27 of 68
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is just a piece of paper. But we want that symbol-
ism of having a legally binding document of our
love," said Lindiwe Radebe, who wants to marry
her partner Bathini Dambuza.
The bill provides for the "voluntary union of
two persons, which is solemnized and registered
by either a marriage or civil union," without
specifying whether they are heterosexual or
homosexual partnerships.
The National Assembly passed the bill 230-41
with three abstentions. The measure now goes to
the National Council of Provinces, which is
expected to be a formality, before being signed
into law by President Thabo Mbeki.
The bill was drafted to comply with a
Constitutional Court ruling last December that
said existing marriage legislation was unconsti-
tutional because it discriminated against same-
sex couples. The court set a Dec. 1 deadline for
parliament to change the law.
Rather than change existing marriage laws,
the government introduced the additional civil
union bill in the hopes that this would be the
speediest option.
Given the ANC's huge majority, the govern-
ment can push through almost any legislation it
wants. But it had to order lawmakers to respect
the party line and wheeled out stalwarts of the
anti-apartheid movement to convince reluctant
traditionalists.
,s'The roots of this bill lie in many years of
struggle/' said Defense Minister Mosuia Lekota,
noting that many gays and lesbians went into
exile and prison with ANC members during
white racist rule.
"This country cannot afford to be a prison of
timeworn prejudices which have no basis in
modern society. Let us bequeath to future gener-
ations a society which is more democratic and
tolerant than the one that was handed down to
us," Lekota said.
Emotions were charged during the two-hour
debate.
"This bill has been a headache and a heartache
for many South Africans," said the small Inkatha
Freedom Party, which opposed the measure.
Beth Goldblatt, a senior researcher at the
Center of Applied Legal Studies at the
University of the Witswatersrand in
Johannesburg, predicted the bill would be chal-
lenged because of the opt-out clause.
"I don't see why people should present them-
selves before a marriage officer and be refused
just because the marriage officer has different
moral views," Goldblatt said.
Denmark in 1989 became the first country to
legislate for same-sex partnerships and several
other European Union members have followed
suit. In the United States, only Massachusetts
allows gay marriage, although the New Jersey
Supreme Court last month ordered lawmakers
there to create a system giving same-sex couples
all the state benefits of marriage without
demanding it be called marriage.
Vermont and Connecticut permit civil unions.
California grants similar status through a domes-
tic-partner registration law, and more than a
dozen states give gay couples some legal rights.
Associated Press writers Celean Jacobson in
Johannesburg, Katharine Houreld in Lagos,
Nigeria and Emily Withrow in Paris contributed
to this report
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Nash, Tammye. Dallas Voice (Dallas, Tex.), Vol. 23, No. 27, Ed. 1 Friday, November 17, 2006, newspaper, November 17, 2006; Dallas, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth238935/m1/27/: accessed May 4, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting UNT Libraries Special Collections.