German Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Friday she voted agast legalizg gay marriage given her personal view that marriage should be between a man and a woman, but she hoped parliament's approval of the measure would lead to more social hn.
Contents:
- GERMANY'S MERKEL VOTED AGAST GAY MARRIAGE
- ANGELA MERKEL SIGNALS CHANGE STANCE ON GAY MARRIAGE GERMANY
- WHAT ANGELA MERKEL’S SHIFT ON GAY MARRIAGE REVEALS ABOUT HER STYLE
- WHY ANGELA MERKEL IS RIGHT TO OPPOSE GAY MARRIAGE
- MERKEL RAIS PROSPECT OF GAY MARRIAGE GERMANY
GERMANY'S MERKEL VOTED AGAST GAY MARRIAGE
* merkel gay marriage *
BERLIN (Rters) - German Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Friday she voted agast legalizg gay marriage given her personal view that marriage should be between a man and a woman, but she hoped parliament’s approval of the measure would lead to more social hn. “It is really an amazg victory, ” said Beck, who has mpaigned around Europe for gay rights.
Gay upl outsi the chancellery, not far om parliament, kissed and hugged after the cisn was announced, wavg rabow flags and rryg signs sayg “Marriage for everybody. ”After years of lewarm opposn to gay marriage followg her party’s le, Merkel said Monday that lawmakers uld take up the issue as a qutn of “nscience, ” allowg members of her nservative aln to dividually vote for if they prompted her center-left rivals to ll for a quick vote on the issue, addg to the agenda Friday on parliament’s last regular ssn before Germany’s Sept. “It would be absurd to try and protect marriage by preventg people to marry, ” he told lawmakers the bate ahead of the appld Merkel’s ments that opened the way for the vote, but Social Democrat lawmaker Johann Kahrs noted that the chancellor has been a longtime opponent of gay marriage.
ANGELA MERKEL SIGNALS CHANGE STANCE ON GAY MARRIAGE GERMANY
Germany has allowed same-sex upl to enter civil partnerships sce 2001, but has not granted them full maral rights, which clu the possibily of jotly adoptg children, even though gay marriage enjoyed some 80 percent support, acrdg to recent polls.
More than a dozen untri Europe have legalized gay marriage, all the wtern part of the ntent, and Germany had been the largt where was not yet legal. ”“Germany has bee the 23rd untry to regnize same-sex marriage and has sent a clear msage to the world that gay and lbian people should be entled to the same rights as everyone else, and to full and equal protectn of the law, ” Amnty’s Europe director John Dalhuisen new law won’t take effect for several months bee still needs to pass the upper hoe of parliament and be approved by the print, although those are formali.
It is also expected to face legal told reporters later that her vote agast the measure was based upon her readg of the untry’s law ncerng marriage but add that she did thk gay upl should be able to adopt. Analysts have suggted that by openg the door to gay marriage, Merkel removed yet another issue that her opponents uld have ed agast her an electn year — a nod to her pragmatic approach to her nearly 12 years as chancellor, Merkel has moved her party to the center and away om nservative orthodoxy, speedg up Germany’s ex om nuclear power and endg ary nscriptn, among other mov. Angela Merkel has signalled a change her party’s opposn to gay marriage after statg MPs should be allowed a ee vote the German parliament.
WHAT ANGELA MERKEL’S SHIFT ON GAY MARRIAGE REVEALS ABOUT HER STYLE
Speakg at an event anised by the magaze Brigte, the German chancellor said she felt aggrieved that bate was maly rried out along party l and that she hoped would be “head towards a nscience vote” is wily believed the Bunstag would legalise gay marriage a ee vote on the issue.
Civil partnerships have been allowed sce 2001, but Merkel’s Christian Democratic Unn has risted lls to open up marriage to same-sex centre-right CDU, which has been erng as senr partner a aln wh the centre-left SPD sce 2013, has said prefers to amend legislatn so upl a civil partnership have the same tax stat and adoptn rights as married ls than three months before feral electns, Merkel’s ments uld take the wd out of her crics’ sails and open her party up to the wist possible range of post-electn Social Democrats, the German Greens and the rurgent liberal Free Democratic party have all signalled they would make possible CDU opposn to gay marriage a red le aln talks.
WHY ANGELA MERKEL IS RIGHT TO OPPOSE GAY MARRIAGE
Then the chancellor said she had “difficulti” wh givg gay and lbian upl the right to adopt, admtg that this might seem old-fashned.
MERKEL RAIS PROSPECT OF GAY MARRIAGE GERMANY
The next day her Social Democrat (SPD) aln partners picked up on the ment, broke wh the CDU and lled a parliamentary vote on gay marriage wh the socialist Left party and the Greens.
Likewise, the chancellor firmly led out gay marriage when most Germans were opposed, but the latt YouGov poll puts support for at 66% (and for gay adoptn at 57%).
Mrs Merkel’s shift on gay marriage is a wele illtratn of her strengths.