helsinkitimes.fi, 25-6-2014
The Legal Affairs Committee of the Finnish Parliament
has voted 10-6 against a citizens' initiative for the introduction of equal
marriage rights and will consequently advise the Parliament to reject the
initiative in its plenary session this autumn.
The parliamentary debate is nevertheless expected to
be even.
The six members of the committee who on Wednesday
morning voted for the initiative were Aino-Kaisa Pekonen (Left Alliance), Kristiina
Salonen (SDP), Jaana Pelkonen (NCP), Stefan Wallin (SFP), Oras Tynkkynen
(Greens) and Johanna Ojala-Niemelä (SDP).
The backers of the initiative admitted to being
disappointed with the outcome of the vote. “It's a question of human rights,
equality and equality before the law,” said Salonen. “We're the only Nordic
country without equal marriage laws,” lamented Pekonen.
One of the members to vote against the initiative,
Mika Niikko of the Finns Party, described the outcome as “a blessing”.
“It's a matter between a man and woman, marriage that
is,” said Kari Tolvanen (NCP), another member to vote against the initiative. Tolvanen
also justified his decision by claiming that the initiative does not fulfil the
criteria for high-quality lawmaking.
Even if the Parliament in its plenary session decides
to back the initiative, the Government is unlikely to draw up a bill for equal
marriage rights before the elections due to its promise to the Christian
Democrats not to do so.
The Legal Affairs Committee also rejected a proposal
to extend marriage rights to gay couples in 2013, when the vote tipped 9-8
against the proposal.
As a result, Finland remains the only Nordic country
yet to permit same-sex marriage.
helsinkitimes.fi, 26-6-2014
Finland is at risk of falling
behind Europe in the development of human rights, unless the Parliament passes
a bill for equal marriage laws next autumn, cautions Martin Scheinin, an expert
in human rights and a professor of public international law at the European
University Institute in Italy.
The extension of marriage
rights to same-sex couples, Scheinin adds, has quickly become a human rights
issue.
“Although same-sex couples are
allowed to register their partnership in Finland, that is not equivalent to
marriage in all respects. Different treatment with respect to surname, adoption
rights and issues related to social security can result in discriminatory
situations,” estimates Scheinin.
“An equal marriage act would
be a technically simple and clear way to solve the problems.”
The Legal Affairs Committee of
the Finnish Parliament on Wednesday voted 10-6 against a citizens' initiative
for the introduction of equal marriage rights, sparking criticism from human
rights watchdogs and interest groups for sexual and gender minorities.
“We have an initiative that
has received 166,000 statements of support and polls showing that the people
support it. Now, ten people have decided if not to kill, then to turn down the
initiative,” says Merja Kähkönen, an executive director at Seta Helsinki.
Tiina Oikarinen, an expert at
the Finnish section of Amnesty International, urges people to challenge the
predominant norms. “That could promote the understanding of non-discrimination
as a human right.”
Although the law permitting
same-sex couples to register their partnership was enacted already in 2002, the
Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland has yet to adopt a clear position on the
issue. The General Synod has settled on a compromise by allowing pastors to
pray with or for same-sex couples.
“The Lutheran understanding of
marriage is that it's a social institution although the church has introduced a
spiritual dimension to it. If the law is passed later, the church has several
alternatives on how to approach the question of who to marry,” says Irja
Askola, the Bishop of Helsinki.
Askola is an advocate of equal
marriage rights.
“I believe the purpose of the
Parliament is to enact laws that treat people equally,” she explains.
At the Parliament, reactions
to the vote were mixed. “I'm very pleased with the decision of the Legal
Affairs Committee. The deep ranks of the people are of this opinion,” insisted
Timo Soini, the chairperson of the Finns Party.
Kaj Turunen (PS) said that he
voted against the initiative due to its implications for adoption rights. “It's
no longer a question of the rights of adults but of the rights of children,” he
argued.
Arto Pirttilahti (Centre) said
that extending adoption rights to gay couples would also prevent straight
couples from adopting from abroad because some countries have threatened to
refuse to give children for adoption to Finland if the country passes the
initiative.
The policy-makers who voted in
favour of the initiative were contrastively disappointment. “This is a question
of human rights, parity and equality. I see no reason why it shouldn't be
passed […]. We're already behind other Nordic countries in this respect.
I had hoped it would be pushed forward this term,” lamented Aino-Kaisa Pekonen
(Left Alliance).
Θέση υπέρ της νομικής αναγνώρισης των
συμβιώσεων των ομόφυλων ζευγαριών πήρε ο Σίλβιο Μπερλουσκόνι, ο οποίος σε
ανακοίνωσή του τονίζει ότι «η μάχη για τα δικαιώματα των ομοφυλόφιλων, σε
μια σύγχρονη και δημοκρατική χώρα, θα πρέπει να είναι μια προσπάθεια την οποία όλοι
δεσμεύονται να στηρίξουν».
