We have legalized same-sex marriage. Here is our story:
Seventeen years ago, the Netherlands made a huge step toward the full recognition of the rights of LGBTI [lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex people] by allowing them to marry the persons they love, just like anybody else.
Belgium, Spain, Canada, South Africa and Sweden quickly followed in the footsteps of our Dutch friends, along with Denmark, France, the UK, New Zealand and Luxembourg. Most recently, the US, Germany, Finland and Australia — and soon Austria — joined the list of countries acknowledging that love simply is love.
Did marriage equality raise a lot of discussions in our parliaments, our courts, our societies? Yes, to some extent. Has it threatened social cohesion since then? No, quite the contrary.
By legalizing same-sex marriage, we have seen the financial, psychological and physical well-being of LGBTI people enhanced. Children of same-sex parents can now be raised by couples whose union has been supported by our institutions.
These benefits accrue to society as a whole, which has also become more open and tolerant. As a matter of fact, polls have consistently shown wide support among our citizens for same-sex marriage.
Same-sex couples are not different from opposite-sex ones. They work, pay their taxes, take responsibilities in society and take care of their children, parents and families. They have the same rights as all other citizens, including access to government services and legal protections such as inheritance or hospital visitation rights.
In a way, excluding LGBTI from marriage stigmatizes them and invites public discrimination against them. This is not what our leaders and our citizens wanted.
Today is the International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia and Biphobia. Today we commemorate the WHO’s decision, 30 years ago, to declassify homosexuality as a mental disorder.
Today we celebrate all the steps, legal and societal, that have been taken to defend and promote the rights of LGBTI worldwide, and the dedication of courageous activists who have made these changes happen.
As representative offices in Taiwan, we have consistently acknowledged that Taiwan stands at the forefront in Asia and in the world on LGBTI rights.
We have witnessed how Taiwan Pride has become a reference for Prides on this continent and beyond. We have seen grassroots movements and the arts industry working hard to advance equal rights for the LGBTI community.
Most importantly, we have seen the Constitutional Court [Editor’s note: the Council of Grand Justices] issuing a landmark ruling on same-sex marriage just over a year ago, which offers Taiwan a unique opportunity to show the world its commitment to human rights.
If we had to sum up our experience with marriage equality, it would be by answering one simple question: Do we want a society in which our present and next generations are truly happy?
We have realized that the answer is equally simple: Love is love, no matter who the individuals are.
All of us have the same basic needs and should enjoy the same basic rights. This includes the right to get married and live happily ever after.
Endorsed by the Austrian Office Taipei, Belgian Office Taipei, Canadian Trade Office in Taipei, Trade Council of Denmark Taipei, European Economic and Trade Office, Business Finland, French Office in Taipei, Luxembourg Trade and Investment Office in Taipei, Netherlands Trade and Investment Office, Spanish Chamber of Commerce, Business Sweden, and British Office Taipei.
A nation has several pillars of national defense, among them are military strength, energy and food security, and national unity. Military strength is very much on the forefront of the debate, while several recent editorials have dealt with energy security. National unity and a sense of shared purpose — especially while a powerful, hostile state is becoming increasingly menacing — are problematic, and would continue to be until the nation’s schizophrenia is properly managed. The controversy over the past few days over former navy lieutenant commander Lu Li-shih’s (呂禮詩) usage of the term “our China” during an interview about his attendance
Bo Guagua (薄瓜瓜), the son of former Chinese Communist Party (CCP) Central Committee Politburo member and former Chongqing Municipal Communist Party secretary Bo Xilai (薄熙來), used his British passport to make a low-key entry into Taiwan on a flight originating in Canada. He is set to marry the granddaughter of former political heavyweight Hsu Wen-cheng (許文政), the founder of Luodong Poh-Ai Hospital in Yilan County’s Luodong Township (羅東). Bo Xilai is a former high-ranking CCP official who was once a challenger to Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) for the chairmanship of the CCP. That makes Bo Guagua a bona fide “third-generation red”
Following the BRICS summit held in Kazan, Russia, last month, media outlets circulated familiar narratives about Russia and China’s plans to dethrone the US dollar and build a BRICS-led global order. Each summit brings renewed buzz about a BRICS cross-border payment system designed to replace the SWIFT payment system, allowing members to trade without using US dollars. Articles often highlight the appeal of this concept to BRICS members — bypassing sanctions, reducing US dollar dependence and escaping US influence. They say that, if widely adopted, the US dollar could lose its global currency status. However, none of these articles provide
US president-elect Donald Trump earlier this year accused Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC) of “stealing” the US chip business. He did so to have a favorable bargaining chip in negotiations with Taiwan. During his first term from 2017 to 2021, Trump demanded that European allies increase their military budgets — especially Germany, where US troops are stationed — and that Japan and South Korea share more of the costs for stationing US troops in their countries. He demanded that rich countries not simply enjoy the “protection” the US has provided since the end of World War II, while being stingy with
RSS