Same-sex marriage in Cambodia
Encyclopedia
After witnessing same-sex marriages being performed in San Francisco during 2004, King Norodom Sihanouk
expressed support for legalizing such unions in Cambodia
, though he nor anyone in the government has yet to take any action to legislate them.
, "The authorities thought it was strange, but they agreed to tolerate it because I have three children already (from a previous marriage). They said that if we were both single (and childless), we would not be allowed to get married because we could not produce children". Thus, it is a fully acknowledged marriage, with official approval, and there was not really any reaction to it. It was a popular event, with 250 people coming to the ceremony and partying, including Buddhist monks and high officials from the Province.(Juan Pablo Ordonez - May 1996)
Norodom Sihanouk
Norodom Sihanouk regular script was the King of Cambodia from 1941 to 1955 and again from 1993 until his semi-retirement and voluntary abdication on 7 October 2004 in favor of his son, the current King Norodom Sihamoni...
expressed support for legalizing such unions in Cambodia
Cambodia
Cambodia , officially known as the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia...
, though he nor anyone in the government has yet to take any action to legislate them.
Case of civil marriage
There is one recorded case of a legally valid same-sex civil marriage contraction in Cambodia. Khav Sokha and Pum Eth were married on March 12, 1995, in the village of Kro Bao Ach Kok, in Kandal Province, where they are from. Sokha said in an interview to the Phnom Penh PostPhnom Penh Post
The Phnom Penh Post is a daily English-language newspaper published in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. Founded in 1992 by publisher Michael Hayes, it is Cambodia's oldest English-language newspaper. It is printed in full-color tabloid format. The Phnom Penh Post is also available in Khmer language...
, "The authorities thought it was strange, but they agreed to tolerate it because I have three children already (from a previous marriage). They said that if we were both single (and childless), we would not be allowed to get married because we could not produce children". Thus, it is a fully acknowledged marriage, with official approval, and there was not really any reaction to it. It was a popular event, with 250 people coming to the ceremony and partying, including Buddhist monks and high officials from the Province.(Juan Pablo Ordonez - May 1996)