Estonia Might Allow Gay Marriages
The Minister of Justice Rein Lang met today gay movement representatives and introduced them to various departments to analyze about legally regulating no-marital cohabitations and is waiting suggestions from them.
The main goal for this analysis was to fixate today’s legal and social situation about free marriages, including regulations about opposite as well as same sex cohabitations, said the PR representative of the ministry.
Analysis would dissert the concept and idea of free marriage. It looks into this kind of cohabitations associations to the fundamental law. It will give an overview of different regulation forms of free marriages and will map free marriages different legal aspects in today’s Estonia (ex. In inheritance law, in tax law and in renting relations).
Today met the minister of justice representatives of the gay movement; for whom were introduced the created analysis and proposed to come up with ideas for the following steps by 1st December. This analysis will also be sent to all members of parliament for introduction and they will also be asked to bring up their view of following actions by 1st December.
In addition the ministry of justice is waiting constructive proposals about the possible ways of actions brought up in analyze and about ways of handling the topic in the future from all the interested persons and organisations.
The writer of the analysis Andra Olm said that in Estonian constitution, international law and in EU regulations the conceptions of family and marriage are handled rather narrowly and traditionally.
“Different level courts are interpreting marriage and family as something that belongs only to the biome of heterosexuals – it means that same sex couples won’t be under family protection and won’t have legal rights to get married. Courts have found that hetero and gay couple’s discriminative treatment is justified: traditional marriage means biome that can give heirs and marriage and protection of family is created mainly for protecting this part of society that guarantees the survival of the nation” said the analysis.
“On the base of the analysis can surely say that Estonia is not obligated to regulate separately non-marital cohabitation – including gay couples. Although we should not only look into the direct obligations but we should keep in mind also society’s bigger tolerance about unconventional family forms and the practice of other countries – the expanding legal regulations of same sex marriages. Some law theorists have found that protection of traditional marriages and ability to give heirs – that has been main reason for justifying distinguish between sexes – are using more and more strength as arguments and courts can´t rely on them for long. Now is already 16 countries recognised same sexes partnerships and 7 countries have gone even further: they are allowing same sex marriages.
Analysis author thinks that Estonia has three choices:
1) Leave laws unchanged and removing only from laws points that put same sex partners into unfair position compared to spouses (ex. Things to do with renting relationships).
2) Create a separate contract type for no marriage cohabitant couples. Partnership agreement would set so called standard packet in law questions, which causes problems in these kind of conjoins.
3) Open the marriage institution for same sex couples.
