Same-sex marriage in France
Encyclopedia
Same-sex marriage cannot legally be performed in France
, though some foreign same-sex marriages are recognized and the PACS
, which confers some of the same rights and responsibilities as marriage, is available to same-sex couples.
Same-sex marriage was an issue in the 2007 presidential election
, with the Conservative UMP
opposing it and the Socialist Party
supporting it, though both candidates support PACS. Gay and lesbian organizations in France, who believe that the prohibition of same-sex marriage is contrary to the Constitution, have asked the country's Constitutional Council to examine the constitutionality of gay marriage and to review the articles of the Civil Code. According to activists, the decision could open a door for the legalization of marriage between same-sex couples in France. On January 28, 2011 the Constitutional Court of France has decided that the illegality of same-sex marriages is not contrary to the Constitution, clearly stating that this is a question for Parliament to decide.
On June 14, 2011, the National Assembly of France voted 293-222 against legalizing same-sex marriage. Deputies of the majority party Union for a Popular Movement
voted mostly against the measure, while deputies of the Socialist Party
mostly voted in favor. Members of the Socialist Party stated that legalization of same-sex marriage would become a priority should they gain a majority in the French legislative election, 2012
.
On June 5, 2004, former Green Party
presidential candidate Noël Mamère
, Mayor of the Bordeaux
suburb of Bègles
, conducted a same-sex marriage ceremony for two men, Bertrand Charpentier and Stéphane Chapin. Mamère claimed that there was nothing in French law to prohibit such a ceremony, and that he would appeal any challenge to the European Court of Human Rights
.
French Justice Minister Dominique Perben had stated that such unions would be legally void, and called for judicial intervention to halt the ceremony. On July 27, 2004, the Bordeaux court of general jurisdiction declared the marriage null and void. One legal argument defended by the public prosecutor, which, representing the national government, opposed the marriage, was that the civil code
speaks several times of a husband and a wife, which implies different genders (the French for wife, femme, actually means woman in addition to wife). On April 19, 2005, the appeals court of Bordeaux
upheld the ruling. Charpentier and Chapin announced they would appeal the ruling before the Court of Cassation
on grounds of discrimination
.
instituted disciplinary procedures against Mamère. Mamère was suspended for a month. The local administrative court ruled that Mamère's suspension was legal and motivated. Mamère said he would not appeal the ruling (Mamère had already unsuccessfully tried to obtain an injunction
from the court, and then had appealed the case to the Conseil d'État; both had ruled that an injunction was not justified on grounds of urgency).
On May 11, 2004, Socialist Party leader François Hollande
announced that he would ask his party to file a draft law which would render such marriages unequivocally legal. Some other party leaders, such as former prime minister Lionel Jospin
, disapproved publicly of same-sex marriages. Hollande's partner, Ségolène Royal
, said at the time that she had doubts about same-sex marriage, but now supports it fully.
mayor Jean Vila performed a same-sex wedding ceremony for a couple named Patrick, 48, and Guillaume, 37. The marriage was not recorded in order to prevent a subsequent nullification, and Vila described it as a "militant act": “There are times when it is necessary to act outside the law. Refusing homosexual marriage is to deny the reality of thousands of couples.”
The Paris government's reaction was mixed: junior Families Minister Claude Greff
called the event a "provocation on the eve of the presidential election" in 2012, while Solidarity Minister Roselyne Bachelot stated that she supported same-sex marriage but that the ceremony was “not the best way to advance the cause”.
, adoption, and access to medically assisted reproduction
for same-sex couples, arguing that these three issues were inseparable and that allowing them would contravene a number of articles of the United Nations
Convention on the Rights of the Child
, to which France is a signatory (although many UN nations do grant some or all of these rights to same-sex couples). Referring to the rights of children as a human rights issue, the report argued that children "now have rights and to systematically give preference to adult aspirations over respect for these rights is not possible any more." Because of these prohibitions, left-wing members of the committee rejected the report.
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, though some foreign same-sex marriages are recognized and the PACS
Pacte civil de solidarité
In France, a pacte civil de solidarité commonly known as a PACS /paks/ , is a form of civil union between two adults for organising their joint life. It brings rights and responsibilities, but less so than marriage...
, which confers some of the same rights and responsibilities as marriage, is available to same-sex couples.
Same-sex marriage was an issue in the 2007 presidential election
French presidential election, 2007
The 2007 French presidential election, the ninth of the Fifth French Republic was held to elect the successor to Jacques Chirac as president of France for a five-year term.The winner, decided on 5 and 6 May 2007, was Nicolas Sarkozy...
, with the Conservative UMP
Union for a Popular Movement
The Union for a Popular Movement is a centre-right political party in France, and one of the two major contemporary political parties in the country along with the center-left Socialist Party...
opposing it and the Socialist Party
Socialist Party (France)
The Socialist Party is a social-democratic political party in France and the largest party of the French centre-left. It is one of the two major contemporary political parties in France, along with the center-right Union for a Popular Movement...
supporting it, though both candidates support PACS. Gay and lesbian organizations in France, who believe that the prohibition of same-sex marriage is contrary to the Constitution, have asked the country's Constitutional Council to examine the constitutionality of gay marriage and to review the articles of the Civil Code. According to activists, the decision could open a door for the legalization of marriage between same-sex couples in France. On January 28, 2011 the Constitutional Court of France has decided that the illegality of same-sex marriages is not contrary to the Constitution, clearly stating that this is a question for Parliament to decide.
On June 14, 2011, the National Assembly of France voted 293-222 against legalizing same-sex marriage. Deputies of the majority party Union for a Popular Movement
Union for a Popular Movement
The Union for a Popular Movement is a centre-right political party in France, and one of the two major contemporary political parties in the country along with the center-left Socialist Party...
voted mostly against the measure, while deputies of the Socialist Party
Socialist Party (France)
The Socialist Party is a social-democratic political party in France and the largest party of the French centre-left. It is one of the two major contemporary political parties in France, along with the center-right Union for a Popular Movement...
mostly voted in favor. Members of the Socialist Party stated that legalization of same-sex marriage would become a priority should they gain a majority in the French legislative election, 2012
French legislative election, 2012
The French legislative election of 2012 will take place on 10 and 17 June to elect the 14th National Assembly of the Fifth Republic, little over a month after the proposed date for the French presidential election run-off on 6 May...
.
Mamère and same-sex marriage
Les Verts
' is the name of various green political parties in French-speaking countries such as:official name:*Les Verts in France;*Les Verts in Luxembourg ;*Les Verts in Benin;*Les Verts in Mauritius;...
presidential candidate Noël Mamère
Noël Mamère
Noël Mamère is a French singer, cyclist and politician.He rose to fame in the 1980s as a TV entertainer, in particular on Antenne 2....
, Mayor of the Bordeaux
Bordeaux
Bordeaux is a port city on the Garonne River in the Gironde department in southwestern France.The Bordeaux-Arcachon-Libourne metropolitan area, has a population of 1,010,000 and constitutes the sixth-largest urban area in France. It is the capital of the Aquitaine region, as well as the prefecture...
suburb of Bègles
Bègles
Bègles is a commune in the Gironde department in southwestern France.It is a suburb of the city of Bordeaux and is adjacent to it on the south.-Population:-Personalities:Bègles was the birthplace of:* Sandrine Cantoreggi , violinist...
, conducted a same-sex marriage ceremony for two men, Bertrand Charpentier and Stéphane Chapin. Mamère claimed that there was nothing in French law to prohibit such a ceremony, and that he would appeal any challenge to the European Court of Human Rights
European Court of Human Rights
The European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg is a supra-national court established by the European Convention on Human Rights and hears complaints that a contracting state has violated the human rights enshrined in the Convention and its protocols. Complaints can be brought by individuals or...
.
French Justice Minister Dominique Perben had stated that such unions would be legally void, and called for judicial intervention to halt the ceremony. On July 27, 2004, the Bordeaux court of general jurisdiction declared the marriage null and void. One legal argument defended by the public prosecutor, which, representing the national government, opposed the marriage, was that the civil code
Civil code
A civil code is a systematic collection of laws designed to comprehensively deal with the core areas of private law. A jurisdiction that has a civil code generally also has a code of civil procedure...
speaks several times of a husband and a wife, which implies different genders (the French for wife, femme, actually means woman in addition to wife). On April 19, 2005, the appeals court of Bordeaux
Bordeaux
Bordeaux is a port city on the Garonne River in the Gironde department in southwestern France.The Bordeaux-Arcachon-Libourne metropolitan area, has a population of 1,010,000 and constitutes the sixth-largest urban area in France. It is the capital of the Aquitaine region, as well as the prefecture...
upheld the ruling. Charpentier and Chapin announced they would appeal the ruling before the Court of Cassation
Court of Cassation (France)
The French Supreme Court of Judicature is France's court of last resort having jurisdiction over all matters triable in the judicial stream but only scope of review to determine a miscarriage of justice or certify a question of law based solely on points of law...
on grounds of discrimination
Discrimination
Discrimination is the prejudicial treatment of an individual based on their membership in a certain group or category. It involves the actual behaviors towards groups such as excluding or restricting members of one group from opportunities that are available to another group. The term began to be...
.
Reaction
Shortly after the ceremony took place, Interior Minister Dominique de VillepinDominique de Villepin
Dominique Marie François René Galouzeau de Villepin is a French politician who served as the Prime Minister of France from 31 May 2005 to 17 May 2007....
instituted disciplinary procedures against Mamère. Mamère was suspended for a month. The local administrative court ruled that Mamère's suspension was legal and motivated. Mamère said he would not appeal the ruling (Mamère had already unsuccessfully tried to obtain an injunction
Injunction
An injunction is an equitable remedy in the form of a court order that requires a party to do or refrain from doing certain acts. A party that fails to comply with an injunction faces criminal or civil penalties and may have to pay damages or accept sanctions...
from the court, and then had appealed the case to the Conseil d'État; both had ruled that an injunction was not justified on grounds of urgency).
On May 11, 2004, Socialist Party leader François Hollande
François Hollande
François Gérard Georges Hollande is a French politician. From 1997 to 2008, he was the First Secretary of the French Socialist Party. He has also served as a Deputy of the National Assembly of France, representing the first constituency of Corrèze, since 1997. He previously represented that seat...
announced that he would ask his party to file a draft law which would render such marriages unequivocally legal. Some other party leaders, such as former prime minister Lionel Jospin
Lionel Jospin
Lionel Jospin is a French politician, who served as Prime Minister of France from 1997 to 2002.Jospin was the Socialist Party candidate for President of France in the elections of 1995 and 2002. He was narrowly defeated in the final runoff election by Jacques Chirac in 1995...
, disapproved publicly of same-sex marriages. Hollande's partner, Ségolène Royal
Ségolène Royal
Marie-Ségolène Royal , known as Ségolène Royal, is a French politician. She is the president of the Poitou-Charentes Regional Council, a former member of the National Assembly, a former government minister, and a prominent member of the French Socialist Party...
, said at the time that she had doubts about same-sex marriage, but now supports it fully.
Jean Vila in Cabestany
On November 12, 2011, CabestanyCabestany
Cabestany is a commune in the Pyrénées-Orientales department in southern France.The Master of Cabestany was from this area, and there is a museum dedicated to his work in the town.-References:*...
mayor Jean Vila performed a same-sex wedding ceremony for a couple named Patrick, 48, and Guillaume, 37. The marriage was not recorded in order to prevent a subsequent nullification, and Vila described it as a "militant act": “There are times when it is necessary to act outside the law. Refusing homosexual marriage is to deny the reality of thousands of couples.”
The Paris government's reaction was mixed: junior Families Minister Claude Greff
Claude Greff
Claude Greff is a member of the National Assembly of France. She represents the Indre-et-Loire department, and is a member of the Union for a Popular Movement.-References:...
called the event a "provocation on the eve of the presidential election" in 2012, while Solidarity Minister Roselyne Bachelot stated that she supported same-sex marriage but that the ceremony was “not the best way to advance the cause”.
Parliamentary report
A parliamentary "Report on the Family and the Rights of Children" was released on January 25, 2006. Although the committee recommended increasing some rights given in PACS, it recommended maintaining prohibitions against marriageMarriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...
, adoption, and access to medically assisted reproduction
Artificial insemination
Artificial insemination, or AI, is the process by which sperm is placed into the reproductive tract of a female for the purpose of impregnating the female by using means other than sexual intercourse or natural insemination...
for same-sex couples, arguing that these three issues were inseparable and that allowing them would contravene a number of articles of the United Nations
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
Convention on the Rights of the Child
Convention on the Rights of the Child
The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child is a human rights treaty setting out the civil, political, economic, social, health and cultural rights of children...
, to which France is a signatory (although many UN nations do grant some or all of these rights to same-sex couples). Referring to the rights of children as a human rights issue, the report argued that children "now have rights and to systematically give preference to adult aspirations over respect for these rights is not possible any more." Because of these prohibitions, left-wing members of the committee rejected the report.
Recognition of foreign same-sex marriages
Under current French law, same-sex marriages performed abroad are not recognized in France if at least one of the spouses is a French national or a national of some other country that does not recognize same-sex marriages. According to a reply of the French Minister of Justice to a parliamentary question a marriage performed abroad between two persons of the same sex both of which are nationals of countries allowing same-sex marriage, could be recognized in France. Accordingly, on July 11, 2008, a Dutch same-sex couple was able to get their marriage recognized for tax purposes in the country. There is as yet no case law confirming or contradicting this legal position.Public opinion
Opinion polls generally show that the French public supports the legalisation of same-sex marriage:- A 1996 Ifop poll found that 48% of respondents supported same-sex marriage, with 33% opposed.
- A 2003 Gallup poll found that 58% of respondents supported same-sex marriage.
- A May 2004 Ipsos poll found that 57% of respondents supported same-sex marriage, with 38% opposed. Younger people were particularly favourable, with 75% of those under 35 in support. Nevertheless, only 40% were in favour of adoption rights, although 56% of those younger than 35 were in support.
- A 2004 Ifop poll found 64% of respondents in support of same-sex marriage, with 49% supporting adoption rights.
- A 2006 Eurobarometer survey found that 48% of respondents supported same-sex marriage being allowed "throughout Europe". This was 4% above the EU average. Support for adoption rights was at 35%, 3% above the EU average.
- A 2006 Ipsos poll found that 61% of respondents favoured the recognition of civil marriage for same-sex couples.
- A June 2006 TNS-Sofres poll found that 45% of respondents supported same-sex marriage, with 51% opposed. 36% supported adoption rights for same-sex couples.
- A June 2008 Ifop poll found 62% of respondents in favour of same-sex marriage, with 38% against. 51% supported adoption rights. Support was very high among younger people, with 77% of those aged between 25 and 34 in favour.
- A November 2009 BVA poll found 64% of respondents in favour of same-sex marriage, including for the first time a majority of right-wing voters. 57% supported adoption rights (support was 68% among those between 18 and 25 years).
- A July 2010 Crédoc poll found 61% of respondents in favour of same-sex marriage, while 48% supported adoption rights.
- A January 2011 TNS-Sofres poll found that 58% of respondents supported same-sex marriage, with 35% opposed. Support was 74% among those under 35 years. 49% supported adoption rights for same-sex couples.
- A June 2011 Ifop poll found that 63% of respondents were in favour of same-sex marriage, while 58% supported adoption rights for same-sex couples.
External links
- Gunther, Scott. "The Elastic Closet: A History of Homosexuality in France, 1942-present" Book about the history of homosexual movements in France (sample chapter available online). New York: Palgrave-Macmillan, 2009. ISBN 023022105X
- BBC News article: "France annuls first gay wedding (July 2004)"
- Washington Times article: "France ready to change civil pact (Dec. 2004)"
- Report on the Family and the Rights of Children: Executive summary, List of proposals and full report (January 2006)