Taiwanese voters rejected same-sex marriage in a referendum Saturday, dealing a blow to LGBT advocates who hoped the island would become the first place in Asia to allow same-sex unions.
Voters, meanwhile, rejected a question put forth by LGBT activists that asked if civil code marriage regulations „should be used to guarantee the rights of same-sex couples to get married.“
Amnesty International Taiwan’s Acting Director Annie Huang called the result „a bitter blow and a step backwards for human rights“ on the island.
„However, despite this setback, we remain confident that love and equality will ultimately prevail,“ Huang said in a statement . „The result must not be used as an excuse to further undermine the rights of LGBTI people. The Taiwanese government needs to step up and take all necessary measures to deliver equality and dignity for all, regardless of who people love.“
High court ruled in favor of same-sex marriage
The vote comes after Taiwan’s high court passed a resolution in May 2017 ruling it was unconstitutional to ban same-sex couples from getting married.
The ruling was seen as a rare beam of light in a region infamous for its repression of LGBT people.
The ruling gave Taiwanese lawmakers a two-year deadline to enshrine marriage equality into law, but the government reached a deadlock.
With the government stuck, Taiwan’s conservatives saw an opportunity to use the newly revised referendum law — under which any suggested question that gets a minimum of 280,000 signatures must be put to the people — to stall same-sex marriage.
Legal confusion
Saturday’s results mean that Taiwan’s government could now be compelled to enforce a law already ruled unconstitutional.
