The political storm over gay marriage in Canada headed for a flashpoint on Monday, with opponents and proponents making last-minute pitches ahead of a key vote in parliament scheduled for yesterday.
The gay marriage debate dominated headlines and political discussion over the summer after the federal government decided not to appeal a provincial court decision that declared the heterosexual-only definition of marriage unconstitutional.
The opposition Canadian Alliance, which is against gay marriage, would try to embarrass the ruling Liberals yesterday by introducing an identical motion to one supported by Cabinet in 1999. That motion directed parliament to preserve a definition of marriage as "the union of one man and one woman to the exclusion of all others."
"It'll come down to how did you vote last time, how are you voting now and why did you change your mind," John Reynolds, who runs the Alliance's legislative agenda in the House of Commons, said.
Prime Minister Jean Chretien, asked why he supported the motion in 1999 but not now, shrugged: "Society evolved."
The Alliance is eager to turn it into an issue in the federal election expected to be called next spring, particularly in the vote-rich battleground of Ontario, where the Liberals are seen as most vulnerable -- though they still have overwhelming dominance in the polls.
So many Liberals, particularly in rural districts, have signaled their intention to side with the Alliance on traditional marriage that Tuesday's vote is predicted to be razor-thin.
CONFRONTATION: The water cannon attack was the second this month on the Philippine supply boat ‘Unaizah May 4,’ after an incident on March 5 The China Coast Guard yesterday morning blocked a Philippine supply vessel and damaged it with water cannons near a reef off the Southeast Asian country, the Philippines said. The Philippine military released video of what it said was a nearly hour-long attack off the Second Thomas Shoal (Renai Shoal, 仁愛暗沙) in the contested South China Sea, where Chinese ships have unleashed water cannons and collided with Philippine vessels in similar standoffs in the past few months. The China Coast Guard and other vessels “once again harassed, blocked, deployed water cannons, and executed dangerous maneuvers” against a routine rotation and resupply mission to
GLOBAL COMBAT AIR PROGRAM: The potential purchasers would be limited to the 15 nations with which Tokyo has signed defense partnership and equipment transfer deals Japan’s Cabinet yesterday approved a plan to sell future next-generation fighter jets that it is developing with the UK and Italy to other nations, in the latest move away from the country’s post-World War II pacifist principles. The contentious decision to allow international arms sales is expected to help secure Japan’s role in the joint fighter jet project, and is part of a move to build up the Japanese arms industry and bolster its role in global security. The Cabinet also endorsed a revision to Japan’s arms equipment and technology transfer guidelines to allow coproduced lethal weapons to be sold to nations
Thousands of devotees, some in a state of trance, gathered at a Buddhist temple on the outskirts of Bangkok renowned for sacred tattoos known as Sak Yant, paying their respects to a revered monk who mastered the practice and seeking purification. The gathering at Wat Bang Phra Buddhist temple is part of a Thai Wai Khru ritual in which devotees pay homage to Luang Phor Pern, the temple’s formal abbot, who died in 2002. He had a reputation for refining and popularizing the temple’s Sak Yant tattoo style. The idea that tattoos confer magical powers has existed in many parts of Asia
ON ALERT: A Russian cruise missile crossed into Polish airspace for about 40 seconds, the Polish military said, adding that it is constantly monitoring the war to protect its airspace Ukraine’s capital, Kyiv, and the western region of Lviv early yesterday came under a “massive” Russian air attack, officials said, while a Russian cruise missile breached Polish airspace, the Polish military said. Russia and Ukraine have been engaged in a series of deadly aerial attacks, with yesterday’s strikes coming a day after the Russian military said it had seized the Ukrainian village of Ivanivske, west of Bakhmut. A militant attack on a Moscow concert hall on Friday that killed at least 133 people also became a new flash point between the two archrivals. “Explosions in the capital. Air defense is working. Do not