PlanetOut Network, May 11, 2005
SPAIN LEADER SLAMS CHURCH ON MARRIAGE BIAS
Spain's prime minister fought back on Wednesday against the Catholic Church's condemnation of legislation that seeks to extend full marriage rights to same-sex couples.
The measure was approved in the Spanish parliament last month, and Spain's bishops subsequently ordered the country's faithful to resist the legislation "in a clear and incisive way."
In a "state of the nation" address to Parliament, Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero said, "I will never understand those who proclaim love as the foundation of life, while denying so radically protection, understanding and affection to our neighbors, our friends, our relatives, our colleagues."
"What kind of love is this that excludes those who experience their sexuality in a different way?" he asked, as reported by Reuters.
The church has also told Catholic mayors in the country to refuse to certify same-sex marriages if the law passes, but the government warned the officials they will be held accountable if they do not uphold the law.
The marriage equality measure, sponsored Zapatero's Socialist government, is expected to win passage in the Senate later this month.
Polls suggest that nearly 80 percent of Spain's residents identify as Catholic, but half of them ignore church teachings.
If the legislation passes, Spain will become the third country in Europe to grant civil marriage rights to same-sex couples, after the Netherlands and Belgium.