SSM Court Appeal To Be Heard In November
On November 7 – 9 “we are back in court as the Bermuda Government has regrettably not accepted the constitutional ruling of Chief Justice Ian Kawaley,” activist Tony Brannon said.
Chief Justice Dr Ian Kawaley ruled in favour of same sex marriage in June of this year, with the judgement saying that the provisions of the Domestic Partnership Act that serve to revoke same sex marriage rights are invalid.
Same sex marriage was initially legalised in Bermuda following a Supreme Court decision in May 2017, however the Domestic Partnership Act passed in Bermuda’s legislature last year which created domestic partnerships and restricted marriage as between a man and woman, with the DPA taking effect on June 1st of this year.
A challenge to the Domestic Partnership Act was brought, with the Court ruling in favour of it on June 6th, and granting a six week stay to allow time for appeal.
Following that ruling, the Minister of Home Affairs Walton Brown confirmed, “We have filed an appeal in this matter. We look forward to having this matter heard by the court of Appeal.”
The ruling two months ago was the second court ruling in favour of same sex marriage, meaning same sex marriage has been legal in Bermuda, then restricted, then had a court ruling to make it legal again, with that court ruling now being appealed.
Mr Brannon said, “The politicians of Bermuda seem hellbent in denying equality for a minority. The cases [two] involving same sex marriage have been won in the Bermuda Supreme Court. To legislate inequality is indeed a disgrace and a complete affront for human rights.
He added the “right thing to do” to accept the court’s ruling, and “appealing this just ruling in order to continue denying equality is “regressive.”
When Government confirmed they filed the appeal last month, OUTBermuda, which served as a co-litigant in the original lawsuit, said they will join again with Roderick Ferguson, Maryellen Jackson and “many allies seeking to defeat the Government’s appeal.”
Other than “we didn’t get our way” on what grounds are they appealing this decision?
Please do not use my tax dollars on this frivolity, I’d rather Government spent mine on education and the eradication of the wide spread child abuse
Tony, The Government done the right thing to appeal this ruling .We would not be fighting now had the OBA had the courage to appeal this in the early stages .Their greatest concern was the cost to fight all those appeals .Any society has the right to set boundaries without infringing on your human rights .
How would appealing it “in the early stages” have made the slightest difference. It’s based on laws not timing.
This is an appeal of a ruling the court made on June 6, 2018. So unless they had a time travel machine it would not have been possible for the OBA government to appeal it.
You frikkin moron.
I think Rodney’s suggesting the OBA Govt should have appealed when the original judge ruling came about. Problem with that is the OBA govt didnt have a concrete position on the issue… you had Cannonnier and S Richards on one side of it, Gordon Pamplin on the other side, for example.
Fast forward a year and we’re just making lawyers richer. Meanwhile if you’re a gay resident you don’t know what’s going to happen next.
The original Supreme Court hearing was in May 2017. So even if the OBA had taken the ridiculous and counterproductive decision to appeal, it would have not been heard while they were in power.
The problem is not that the OBA didn’t appeal it. The problem is that the PLP did appeal it.
You’re absolutely right. A society DOES have the right to set boundaries… as long as they don’t infringe on people’s rights.
And, as has been shown a couple of times now, this infringes on people’s rights.
That’s why it keeps losing in court. It’s illegal to baselessly discriminate against people.
And “…Parliament cannot impose the religious preferences of any one group on the society as a whole through legislation of general application.”
Unless you would like to offer a reason to do this that isn’t based on religion?
“.Any society has the right to set boundaries without infringing on your human rights .”
So then why are you so hell bent on removing rights from some Bermudians?
How does this hurt you?
call it what you like if you believe in the bible or not every thing that has been written in the bible about mankind is slow becoming true
we are living in the last days
question /
why did noah take one male and one female animal into the ark?
That story is obviously fake…it’s not possible for the whole world to flood…and where was he that he had 1 of every animal? Where’s that to?
Oh come on now, the story must be true. It says so in the Bible. You know, that book where snakes talk, people come back from the dead, a guy walks on water and a virgin has a baby.
“every thing that has been written in the bible about mankind is slow becoming true”
No, it’s not.
Noahs ark is a myth…you’ve lead your life based on lies….poor stupid thing.
You honestly believe that story??? So, answer me this one question: What did the lions eat while on the Ark?
Did those animals get married?
“…Parliament cannot impose the religious preferences of any one group on the society as a whole through legislation of general application.”
Your argument is illegal.
LOVE will win without a shadow of a doubt Always has always will ….. sorry to the haters go rally with the orange haired one in the USA take LaWhine with ya all
Did any of these equal rights loving individuals have anything to say about the census report regarding the income disparities which are by design and rooted in racism/capitalism and this is not just in Bermuda this is global.
People can and do say anything in response to questions posed by the census enumerator. I can think of an individual who tells the census person he rents the apartment he lives in and owns and all the while owns 2 other houses.
Show us the companies that have different pay scales for their employees because of their ethnicity.
That’s the ONLY proof that’s believable.
What’s that got to do with same sex marriage? Stay on point please
Would you care to link to that data?
*sigh*….. here we go again, PLP being massive idiots yet again
Because the PLP had it in their election manifesto, they’re determined to see it through to the end, even though it’s a lot of tax payer money on the line. Promise made, promise kept and all that.
This is the only promise they’ve kept….the only one that has no benefit to Bermuda.
You people are weird.
“The politicians of Bermuda seem hellbent in denying equality for a minority. The cases [two] involving same sex marriage have been won in the Bermuda Supreme Court. To legislate inequality is indeed a disgrace and a complete affront for human rights.”
Well said, Tony
And that applies to politicians on both sides!
25 – 11
The Bermuda Government…stand firm.. be swayed or duped by NO ONE!!!
Agreed!
They shouldn’t be duped by the lies and misinformation that Preserve Marriage and their foreign bosses, NOM, have been spreading!
Preserve Marriage is still active? After one of their leaders was discovered in the scenario we all know with another man? Seriously?
Yup.
Even after it was discovered that they’re controlled by and using the playbook of a foreign hate group, NOM.