Gay marriage in malta
Catholic Malta Legalizes Gay Marriage Over Church Objection
VALLETTA, Malta — The predominantly Roman Catholic island nation of Malta is set to legalize gay marriage, joining much of Western Europe by replacing the traditional "you are now husband and wife" declaration in civil ceremonies with "you are now spouses."
The Catholic Church had opposed the legislation, which the Labor government promised to launch as its first commandment after winning a second term last month and which both opposition parties support. The only ask heading into Wednesday's parliamentary vote was whether there would be any votes against.
The aim of the law, piloted by Equality Minister Helena Dalli, is to "modernize the institution of marriage" to prolong it to all consenting adult couples.
Its passage is the latest evidence of the transformation of the once conservative island nation of about 440,000 people, where divorce was illegal until 2011.
While abortion remains banned in Malta, same-sex attracted adoption has been legal since civil unions were introduced in 2014. Last year, the number of exclusively civil marriages eclipsed the number of church weddings for the first time.
Archbishop Charles Scicluna ha
Catholic Malta embraces homosexual marriage
Online Editor, Times of Malta
Staunchly Catholic Malta only introduced divorce accompanying a referendum in 2011, to the dismay of many in authority.
Six years later, it ranks top in Europe for lgbtq+ rights, it was the first nation to ban lgbtq+ conversion therapy - and it's about to legalise gay marriage.
"Malta wants to keep leading on LGBT issues and civil liberties, to serve as a model for the rest of the world," Prime Minister Joseph Muscat told the BBC.
Fresh from a resounding electoral victory, Mr Muscat put forward the Marriage Equality Bill as the first law to be discussed in parliament.
Aware of the potential backlash, centre-right Nationalist Party chief Simon Busuttil killed off speculation that the conservative faction within his party was against homosexual marriage. He insisted the opposition would support the novel law.
It is not a standalone law, but consists of changes to the Marriage Perform and several other laws.
Among the most contentious changes, it scraps references to "husband", "wife", "mother" and "father", preferring gender
Malta's parliament approves gay marriage
The Marriage Equality Bill (formally titled the Marriage Bills and other Laws) passed in Valletta on Wednesday simply changes select words in existing Maltese marriage laws, thereby including lesbian couples.
Read more: The long road toward same-sex marriage in Germany
In a 66 to 1 vote, parliamentarians from both the ruling Labour Party and the center-right alliance conflict, National Force, agreed to swap the words "husband" and "wife" with the gender-neutral term "spouse." The word "parent" will get the place of "mother" and "father," while the phrases "the person who gave birth" and "the other parent" will be used to describe lesbian couples who have children via medical processes.
The sole objecting member of parliament, Edwin Vassallo, described the "morally unacceptable" law as incompatible with his Catholic faith.
"A Christian politician cannot leave his conscience outside the door" of parliament, Vassallo said.
Read more: German same-sex marriage vote highlights discussion about gay couples' adoption rights
Social Dialogue Minister Helena Dalli, who brought the bill to parlia
Marriage Equality Around the World
The Human Rights Campaign tracks developments in the legal recognition of same-sex marriage around the planet. Working through a worldwide network of HRC global alumni and partners, we lift up the voices of collective, national and regional advocates and give tools, resources, and lessons learned to empower movements for marriage equality.
Current State of Marriage Equality
There are currently 38 countries where same-sex marriage is legal: Andorra, Argentina, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Denmark, Ecuador, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Iceland, Ireland, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Malta, Mexico, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, Slovenia, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, Thailand, the Combined Kingdom, the Together States of America and Uruguay.
These countries have legalized marriage equality through both legislation and court decisions.
Countries that Legalized Marriage Equality in 2025
Liechtenstein: On May 16, 2024, Liechtenstein's government passed a bill in favor of marriage equality. The law went into effe