Faroe Islands’ Same-sex Marriage Bill Receives Royal Assent

A same-sex marriage bill from the Faroe Islands was given Royal Assent on May 3rd in Denmark.

This ends the legislation’s one year journey from the islands to Danish Parliament and same-sex weddings can begin for the Faroese once a date is chosen by the Danish Justice Minister.

The bill ratified and promulgated this month in Denmark repeals a section of the 2012 Danish marriage law which excluded its constituent territories of Greenland and Faroe Islands from having to perform same-sex weddings. The bill also contains provisions that will give full adoption rights to all Faroese couples.

Greenland previously copied Denmark’s gender-neutral wording into their matrimonial laws in 2016, while the Faroese Parliament mirrored most of Denmark’s legislation but included a clause that does not allow same-sex couples to marry in the local Church, making it the only region of the Danish Kingdom to do so. This exemption was added to guarantee the bill’s approval on the islands after fierce parliamentary debates.

Same-sex weddings are expected to begin in the Faroe Islands in the coming weeks.

Danish Parliament Ratifies Faroe Islands’ Same-sex Marriage Law

Danish Parliament held its final reading today on same-sex marriage legislation from the Faroe Islands.

The final vote in Copenhagen comes a year after Faroese Parliament voted to extend the right to marry to all couples and then passed the baton to Denmark. Provisions of the Faroese bill also allow full adoption rights for same-sex couples.

On a vote of 108-0, Denmark gave their ceremonial blessing to incorporating their own equal marriage laws into the islands. As a reading in Danish Parliament requires only 91 MPs to reach a quorum, the remaining MPs in the 179-seat Parliament were not present since it was not required due to the Danes respecting Faroese opinion on most civil matters.

Although it is simply a formality, Danish ratification on the matter was necessary to repeal a section of Denmark’s 2012 marriage legislation that barred their constituent territories of Greenland and the Faroe Islands from having to perform same-sex weddings. In its place will be a gender-neutral definition of marriage without territorial conditions that will be adopted into Faroese law as it was in Greenland in 2016.

According to the Danish Parliamentary website, Denmark will now allow the Faroese to marry after a two-step process following this week’s vote.

Today’s bill focuses on the international recognition of same-sex marriages and will enter into force following Royal Assent and a date chosen by the Justice Minister. For all remaining matters regarding marriage, a Royal Decree will be issued in the near future.

For more information on the LGBT rights situation in the Faroe Islands, please visit: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LGBT_rights_in_the_Faroe_Islands

Danish Parliament Begins Process of Ratifying Faroes Islands’ Same-sex Marriage Law

Almost a year after the Faroese Parliament approved a same-sex marriage and adoption bill, Danish Parliament held its first reading February 28th on legislation that would allow the Faroese law to come into effect.

Ratification from Denmark on the Faroese marriage legislation is seen as only a formality, but is required as the 2012 equal marriage law in Denmark, which is the basis for the Faroese same-sex marriage bill, states that none of the Danish constituent territories would be affected by the 2012 law.

The ratification process essentially repeals the clause making the Faroe Islands an exception to adopting Denmark’s same-sex marriage legislation and replaces local laws with gender-neutral wording which affords all couples the right to marry. Provisions within the marriage bill also allow for full adoption rights in the Faroes.

Danish Parliament will approach the ratification process in several steps. One step is to allow same-sex marriages to be held on the Faroe Islands through a Royal Decree and the other is to update the Faroese Procedural Code to mirror Denmark’s and allow for divorce for same-sex couples; the latter being the bill first mentioned in this article which requires two more readings from the Danes and Royal Assent.

Same-sex weddings on the islands should occur not long after the ratification process is completed in the future.

Faroe Islands Approves Same-sex Marriage and Adoption

On a vote of 19-14 , the Faroe Islands approved the adoption of Denmark’s same-sex matrimonial and adoption laws, with the only difference being that the local church will be allowed to decide if it will be performing same-sex weddings or not.

The bill will now be sent to the Danish Parliament who must repeal a clause in Denmark’s 2012 equal marriage law that states that the Danish constituent territories, Greenland and Faroe Islands, will not be affected by the 2012 marriage legislation. The future vote there is seen as a simple formality and once the bill is read in the Danish Parliament three times, it will be sent for Royal Assent so the law can come into effect.

According to Copenhagen Post, the bill will become law in December once it is passed and promulgated in Denmark.

-Congratulations to our friends in the Faroes and special thanks to LGBT Føroyar for answering our questions.

Faroe Islands’ Same-sex Marriage Bill Advances, Final Reading Scheduled for Friday

After a long debate which included a proposal for a referendum that was later withdrawn, the Faroese Legislature approved their same-sex marriage and adoption bill during its second reading on a vote of 19-14. According to the parliamentary calendar, the final reading is scheduled for Friday.

The bill seeks to adopt Denmark’s matrimonial and adoption laws and will require future ratification from the Danish Parliament if it is approved in the Faroe Islands.

Denmark’s approval, though mostly a formality as seen with the other Danish constituent territory, Greenland, is required because the 2012 Danish same-sex marriage bill included a clause that states that the territories will not be affected by the new Danish law. Denmark must approve an amendment to repeal the clause and allow the Faroese bill to go into effect if it passes this week and gets sent to Copenhagen.

For more information on the LGBT rights situation in Faroe Islands, please visit: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LGBT_rights_in_the_Faroe_Islands

Faroe Islands’ Same-Sex Marriage Bill Sent Back To Committee Stage

Yesterday, the second and perhaps final reading of the marriage bill hit a snag when objections over local churches blessing weddings between same-sex couples caused the bill to be sent back to the Welfare Committee for amendments.

The Faroese bill wants to incorporate Danish laws on marriage equality, full adoption rights and church ceremonies. In the Faroese Legislature made up of 33 members, the government holds a slim 17-seat majority, so when two MPs in the ruling coalition had reservations over the articles mentioning church blessings, it was decided that the bill be sent back to the committee stage to prevent it from failing. The tally was 26-2 with 5 abstentions in favor of this move.

According to dr.dk, the committee has another month to consider the proposal. They also state that the bill has not been voted down, but merely sent for further examination. The majority of the committee is in favor of marriage equality so the bill may head back to the plenary for a final vote even sooner than that.

Several of the loudest opponents of same-sex marriage who were against civil unions in the past have now said they are for them, but will still vote against expanding marriage rights.

For more information on the LGBT rights situation in the Faroe Islands, please visit: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LGBT_rights_in_the_Faroe_Islands

Faroese Gay Marriage Bill Scheduled for Second Reading on Wednesday

 

Faroe Islands is currently discussing a bill to adopt Danish marriage laws in order to bring same-sex marriage to the isles. Over the past months, different parts of the legislation (labeled 19-21) have gone through their assigned committees for debate. 19 discusses gay marriage and adoption, 20 discusses divorce and 21 is about Church law regarding the same-sex union matter.

On Wednesday, #19 will receive a second reading. It was announced in the Welfare Committee on Monday that one amendment to the proposal would be to change the date the marriage law goes into effect from July 1st to December 1st if it is approved. This is to make sure that Danish Parliament, who must ratify changes to local marriage laws, has enough time to give the bill its standard three readings and Royal Assent.

The committee decided 4-3 to recommend that Parliament pass the bill. A recent poll in a Faroese news publisher asked the 33 MPs of Faroese Parliament if they were in favor of the gay marriage bill and 14 said Yes, 12 said No and 7 had no answer.

Busy Week Ahead For Faroe Islands’ Gay Marriage Bill

Faroese Parliament has reserved this week for the committee debates on their pending gay marriage bill. The plan is for the Danish constituent territory to eventually adopt Denmark’s gender-neutral marriage laws. The week’s schedule is listed below:

• Monday, January 18 – The Culture Committee will discuss the provision of the law allowing the local Church to decide on whether same-sex ceremonies shall be performed there.
• Tuesday, January 19 – The Welfare Committee will discuss the provision of bringing the Danish marriage legislation into effect on the islands. Amnesty International will be sending a speaker to the debate.
• Wednesday, January 20 – The Legal Committee meeting to debate another provision to bring the marriage law into effect.
• Thursday, January 21 – The Welfare Committee continues the discussion from Tuesday.

The issue became a major election topic in 2015 and the same-sex marriage bill is being spearheaded by the first gay politician to be elected to Faroese Parliament. Together with members of several parties, a proposal was submitted that aims to have gay weddings start on July 1st.

If the law is approved on the Faroese side then the ball would move to Danish Parliament who must ratify the process due to the 2012 Danish gender-neutral marriage legislation containing a clause that states that none of Denmark’s constituent territories shall be affected by the new Danish marriage laws. The bill would then receive Royal Assent as a final step.

Although public opinion polls have shown a wide majority of the islanders in favor, public Parliamentary opinions are divided with 16 of the 33 MPs answering YES, 11 answering NO and 6 not giving any answer to supporting a gay marriage bill according to a poll from one of the region’s biggest newspapers, Sosialurin.

(Image from in.fo)

Clergy, members of the religious community and LGBT activists are scheduled to speak from Monday-Wednesday while Thursday will be reserved for government workers. The debates will begin each day at 9:00 or 9:15 AM local time (1:00/1:15 AM Pacific Time).

For more information on the LGBT rights situation in the Faroe Islands, please visit: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LGBT_rights_in_the_Faroe_Islands