It was a long-awaited day of joy and affirmation. At city halls around Thailand and its embassies around the world, hundreds of same-sex couples legally registered their marriages on the first day that the Kingdom’s marriage equality law came into effect.
“We’ve been waiting for this day for 17 years,” said Ploynaplus Chirasukon posing with her wife Kwanporn Kongpetch after receiving a marriage license in Bangkok. They were one of about same-sex 300 couples who registered their unions in the capital. “We hope to see even more equality in the future.”
In a bold step forward for human rights, Thailand became the first country in Southeast Asia and the third in Asia to legally recognize same-sex marriages when it passed its marriage equality law last September. LGBTQ+ and human rights activists had been campaigning for the law for more than a decade before finally achieving success.
“This marriage equality law marks the beginning of Thai society’s greater awareness of gender diversity, and our embrace of everyone regardless of sexual orientation, race, or religion — our affirmation that everyone is entitled to equal rights and dignity,” Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra said in a recorded message played at a mass wedding party in Bangkok.
To ensure everything went smoothly, Bangkok’s city government organized workshops for civil servants in charge of handling marriage registration in all its district offices. They included lectures raising awareness about gender diversity and guidance on how to properly communicate with those who come for the service. The Interior Ministry has provided similar guidance for its staff handling marriage registrations around the country.
“I felt the proudest moment of my life that I could do this and let people know, let the industry and friends around me know that I could do it,” said Nina Chetniphat Chuadkhunthod as she headed with her partner to a grand celebration for the couples at a Bangkok shopping mall.
But aside from the joy in being able to openly celebrate their love, many also expressed satisfaction that their rights as married couples will be legally recognized in all facets of life.
“When we go to the hospital, I can tell them that this is my wife, this is my partner, she makes decisions for me, things like that. Unlike before, they wouldn’t accept it in the hospital,” said Philippine national Ana Boncan and her Thai wife Siri Wattanavikij.
“We believe that as two human beings, we should be granted the same basic legal rights as heterosexual couples,” said Patherine Khunnares, a web designer who wed researcher Vivian Chullamon.
“We are a complete family in spirit, but legal recognition would alleviate our future anxieties. In the end, we aren’t asking for anything special—we just want a simple, happy family life,” Patherine said.
Photo courtesy of https://www.facebook.com/bangkokpride.official
Source: Thailand Focus
