In a first for the Philippines Nation which has a strong Catholic majority, two same-sex couples have attempted to register their relationships and applied for marriage licences.
Maria Arlyn Ibanez, Crescencio Agbayani and their partners attempted to register their relationships at a registry office in the city of Quezon.
However Officials would not accept their applications as they said marriage was between a man and a woman.
Although the two couples expected the negative outcome, Agbayani who is the founding pastor of the gay-friendly Christian Church Inc, said that he still found the rejection from the registry office Officials “painful.”
Agbayani later posted, “We were denied but we will not stop,” on his personal Facebook page, and plans to “seek help from our Supreme Court.”
Although the application was unsuccessful Ibanez said she still plans to wed her partner in a symbolic ceremony to be held later in the month.
Gay couples across the nation of the Philippines have been encouraged to apply for marriage licences on Monday by The Philippine Marriage Equality Network.
As a result the cities of Baguio, Davao and Silang had simultaneously received applications for marriage licences for gay couples.
In Philippines law marriage is defined as a “special contract of permanent union between a man and a woman,”
Unfortunately it is believed that any legislation to change the definition of marriage in the nation would likely be blocked by lawmakers who are allied to the church.
Last Updated on Aug 4, 2015
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