Civil Partnership Bill to be debated

Activists in the United States for same sex marriage need to learn a lesson from our Dáil Éireann (Irish Free State) sisters and brothers!

Thursday, 3 December 2009 11:42

The Civil Partnership Bill is due to be debated in the Dáil this evening, with a number of groups calling for amendments over what they say are shortcomings in the Bill.

Watch the Dáil debate from 6.45pm

The National Lesbian and Gay Federation has rejected the Bill and is calling for the immediate introduction of a civil marriage option.

The Union of Students in Ireland says the proposed Bill will offer a number of legal rights to lesbian and gay couples but falls short of offering many of the rights and protections covered by civil marriage.

The USI says the Bill 'refuses to recognise the existence of same sex families, leaving children of same sex couples vulnerable and unprotected under Irish law'.

USI Lesbian Gay Bi-sexual Transgender Rights Officer, Laura Finlay, said: 'The implementation of this Civil Partnership Bill will only serve to enshrine in law the second class citizenship of LGBT people in this country.

'It is wholly unfair and sends out the message that gay people in Ireland are not equal to their heterosexual counterparts.'

In the recent NLGF report, Burning Issues, lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people named equal marriage rights as their number one priority.

'Burning Issues proved definitively that there is no appetite among the LGBT community for civil partnership. They recognise that not only will the bill deny them full rights, it will discriminate against them even further,' said NLGF Chairperson Ailbhe Smyth.

She said, 'Civil partnership will fuel such anti-gay sentiments by signalling: 'Yes, you are different'. The Government must admit that provision of Civil Partnership as the only relationship recognition option for LGBT people is a serious mistake.'....

Original Article