Nepal registers first same-sex marriage
Nepal has registered it’s first-ever same-sex marriage, becoming the first South Asian country to do so.
Authorities in the western Lumjung district formally registered the union of Maya Gurung, 35, and Surendra Pandey, 27, on Wednesday.
It came five months after the Supreme Court issued an interim order allowing same-sex couples to register their marriages.
It is a landmark moment in a largely conservative country which earlier this year cleared the way for the legalization of gay marriages.
The couple has been in a relationship for nine years and was wedded according to Hindu rituals in 2016 in the capital Kathmandu – but had no certificate to show for it.
After the registration, Mr Pandey said: “We are both very happy. Like us, all others in our community are happy too.”
Mr. Pant said the newlyweds would be “like just any other couple” as they would be able to jointly open bank accounts and own and transfer property.
The court had in 2007 ordered the Nepali government to appoint a committee to prepare legislation that would recognize same-sex unions in the country.
In 2015, the committee suggested that same-sex marriages be legalized on the basis of the principle of equality, but governments in Nepal have been slow to table the proposed legislation.
Remember that Taiwan ‘China’ is the only other place in Asia that has legalized same-sex marriage.
Source: (with other media)
