The Taipei High Administrative Court yesterday handed a setback to lesbian couple Jennifer Lu (呂欣潔) and Chen Ling (陳凌) when it decided the court cannot order local government offices to register their same-sex marriage.
They were the third lesbian couple to see their requests denied by the court since October last year, just nine days after the court rejected a similar request by Liang Tzung-huei (梁宗慧) and Chu Pei-shuan (朱珮諠).
In yesterday’s ruling, the court said relevant amendments legalizing same-sex marriage have not yet cleared the legislature and therefore local authorities had no legal basis to approve the plaintiffs’ marriage application.
Photo: Liu Hsin-de, Taipei Times
The case can still be appealed, according to the court statement provided by presiding judge Huang Chiu-hung (黃秋鴻).
The litigation originated in August 2014, when The Taiwan Alliance to Promote Civil Partnership Rights as part of a campaign encouraged members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) community to register for marriage at Taipei’s Zhongzheng District Household Registration Office.
The couples’ requests to marry were rejected by staff at the household registration office, who cited the Civil Code, which stipulates that marriage is a union between a man and a woman.
Subsequently, Lu and Chen, along with two other couples, sought to challenge the decision in court. The Taipei High Administrative Court started hearings in the case in April 2015.
Yesterday’s ruling acknowledged the Council of Grand Justices’ Constitutional Interpretation No. 748 of May 24 last year, in which they ruled that the Civil Code’s definition of marriage violated the principles of freedom of marriage and equality enshrined in the Constitution.
However, Huang noted that the court cannot order local household registration offices to accept registration for same-sex marriage, as there is not yet a legal basis.
The interpretation gave the government two years to amend the Civil Code, the statement said, adding that in the meantime, the plaintiffs could still apply for marriage, but the marriages would only be legalized after the new marriage law has been promulgated.
Lu said she was disappointed by the ruling and would appeal the decision, asking the government and the legislature to expedite the amendment process to protect same-sex couples’ right to marry.
Lu’s lawyer, Victoria Hsu (許秀雯), said it was regrettable that all three couples have lost their court cases, despite the grand justices’ interpretation.
The court on Tuesday last week issued a similar ruling in the case of Liang and Chu, saying it did not have the authority to pressure household registration offices into recognizing same-sex marriages before a legal framework for such unions is promulgated into law.
OFFLINE: People who do not wish to register can get the money from select ATMs using their bank card, ID number and National Health Insurance card number Online registration for NT$6,000 (US$196.32) cash payments drawn from last year’s tax surplus is to open today for eligible people whose national ID or permanent residency number ends in either a zero or a one, the Ministry of Finance said on Monday. Officials from the ministry revealed which days Taiwanese and eligible foreigners would be able to register for the cash payments at a joint news conference with the Ministry of Digital Affairs. Online registration is to open tomorrow for those whose number ends in a two or three; on Friday for those that end in a four or five: on Saturday
TECH PROGRAM: A US official said that an important part of the delegation’s trip would be to meet with Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co executives The US is to send officials in charge of chip development to Taiwan, Japan and South Korea to promote cooperation in the global semiconductor supply chain, the US Department of Commerce said on Tuesday. Chips Program Office Director Michael Schmidt announced the visit, which marks the first time officials from the office are to visit the three nations since it was set up in September last year. “As semiconductors and technologies continue to evolve, the United States will keep working with allies and partners to develop coordinated strategies to ensure that malign actors cannot use the latest technologies to undermine our collective
Civil Aeronautics Administration (CAA) officials are investigating why a Starlux Airlines flight to Penang, Malaysia, returned to Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport nearly two hours after takeoff yesterday morning. The airline said in a statement that Flight JX721 to Penang took off from Taoyuan airport at 9:20am. “After the dashboard showed a signal of an abnormality in the hydraulic system, the captain followed standard operating procedures and returned the flight to Taoyuan airport for safety precautions,” the airline said, adding that the flight landed safely at the airport at 11:04am. The airline arranged for the passengers to have lunch after the flight landed and
WORKING UP AN APPETITE: Sales at the Rueifong Night Market surged 20 to 30 percent, while seats at Liouhe Night Market were packed until 1am, market officials said South Korean pop band Blackpink’s concerts over the weekend in Kaohsiung helped draw large crowds to local night markets, the Kaohsiung City Government said yesterday. The two concerts on Saturday and Sunday at Kaohsiung National Stadium drew more than 90,000 people. The city government offered NT$50 vouchers to spend locally to concertgoers who showed their ticket stubs. Liouhe Night Market (六合夜市) management committee head Chuang Chi-chang (莊其章) said that crowds over the weekend surged at about 10pm and the market remained packed until 1:30am. “Almost all the seats were filled,” Chuang said. Night market stall owners had stocked up in expectation of an increased number
RSS