Two lesbian couples tied the knot in a mass wedding held by the military yesterday.
The event with 188 couples was the first time same-sex couples have been wed and celebrated at a military ceremony in the nation.
Both couples said they viewed their ceremonies with a sense of responsibility toward representing the LGBT community.
Photo: Ritchie Tongo, EPA-EFE
“We are hoping that more LGBT people in the military can bravely stand up, because our military is very open-minded. In matters of love, everyone will be treated equally,” said Chen Ying-hsuan (陳瑩宣), 27, an army lieutenant who married Lee Li-chen (李沴稹), 26.
Chen said she has always been open about her sexual orientation while serving.
The ceremony at an army base in Taoyuan was brief.
The couples took part in a parade and then exchanged rings in front of an audience of family members and senior officers.
Yumi Meng (孟酉玫), 37, and her wife, army Major Wang Yi (王翊), 36, wiped back tears as they exchanged rings. Meng wore sneakers under her wedding dress, while Wang wore her officer’s uniform.
“I really feel that this is a huge breakthrough for the military because before gay people really had to go through a lot,” Wang’s mother said.
“Perhaps for heterosexual couples, it’s just a paper, but it’s very important for gay couples, if you’re sick or have to have a major surgery, if you don’t have this, then you are nothing, you can’t make a decision,” she said.
Meng’s parents had not come to the celebration.
The military seemed an unlikely institution to be the site of a same-sex marriage, but has opened up in recent years, Taiwan Alliance to Promote Civil Partnership Rights cofounder Victoria Hsu (許秀雯) said.
In related news, the Taipei Department of Civil Affairs on Thursday said that starting in the middle of next month, foreign same-sex couples in Taiwan would be able to apply in Taipei for a commemorative “marriage certificate” that would not be legally binding.
The commemorative Same-Sex Partnership Certificate for Foreign Visitors would be issued as part of the city’s tourism promotion efforts, and applications can be filed on a special government Web site created for the program, the department said.
After applying for the certificate, couples can go to a Taipei household registration office to pick up the commemorative document at an appointed date, it said.
Wu Chung-hsing (吳重信), division chief of population policy at the Taipei Civil Affairs Department, said that the initiative is geared mainly toward same-sex couples from countries where gay marriage is not legal.
The idea was raised in June at a seminar in Taipei as a way to boost tourism, he said.
Additional reporting by CNA
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