NewsWrap for the week ending June 5, 2004 (As broadcast on This Way Out program #845, distributed 6-7-04) [Written by Cindy Friedman, with thanks to Graham Underhill, Fenceberry, Rex Wockner, and Greg Gordon] Anchored this week by Cindy Friedman and Rick Watts France's first marriage of a same-gender couple was performed this week, despite the national Government's advance declaration it is legally void and threats of legal action against the mayor who performed it. While national TV cameras rolled, Bertrand Charpentier and Stephane Chapin exchanged rings and vows at Begles city hall before Mayor and Green Member of Parliament Noël Mamere. Riot police surrounded the building to keep the peace as some 500 people joined demonstrations of both support and protest. Less than an hour later, Interior Minister Dominique de Villepin had initiated disciplinary proceedings against Mamere. He could be removed from office temporarily or even permanently and fined up to 1,500 euros. The Bordeaux state prosecutor has also promised to act. Top Government officials from the President on down have been denouncing the marriage throughout the weeks since Mamere announced it, and the Prime Minister, Justice Minister and others renewed their warnings to him this week. He denies that he's broken any law, and insists that it's not up to those officials to determine if he has -- it's up to a court. Both Mamere and the couple are prepared to make the marriage a test case in the European courts if that's what it takes to get it legally recognized. New groom Charpentier told reporters after the ceremony, "If we have a message to give, it is be like us, be tolerant, love each other and pursue your dreams to the end." Switzerland's Senate has agreed in principle to create registered partnerships to extend many marital benefits to same-gender couples. The bill now returns to the House of Representatives, which will consider minor differences between the Senate version and the one the House passed in December. Switzerland's gay and lesbian civil rights group Pink Cross is urging lawmakers to enact the measure before this legislative session ends. Swiss partners would be recognized as next-of-kin with status similar to married couples in areas including health insurance, pensions and taxation, including inheritance taxes. They would not gain rights to adoption, fertility treatment, or a shared surname. The Federal Democratic Union, a conservative religious party with a small representation in the parliament, has vowed to challenge the bill if it becomes law, including putting a repeal initiative before the voters. The Supreme Court of Chilé this week issued a potentially precedent-setting judgment against a lesbian mother. Overturning an appeals court ruling, the high court both gave full custody of 3 children to their father and disqualified his ex-wife from any parental rights. As a rule, Chiléan mothers retain custody of their children following separation except in extraordinary circumstances. But Jaime Lopez had argued that Karen Atala's living with her lesbian partner could psychologically damage their children -- and 3 of the 5 justices agreed. They wrote that, "the lack of a male father at home and his replacement by another person of the female gender constitutes a risky situation for the development of the minors, from which they must be protected." The ruling was denounced as discriminatory not only by the dissenting justices, Chilé's gay and lesbian civil rights organizations, and the international group Human Rights Watch, but also by at least one Member of Parliament, Maria Antonieta Saa of the Party for Democracy. Some legal experts believe the ruling reflects Chilé's legal definition of marriage as solely between one man and one woman. The religious spotlight this week was on Canada's Anglicans as their triennial general synod convened this week with blessing same-gender couples on the agenda. Although somewhat overshadowed by the U.S. Episcopalians' confirmation of the world's first openly partnered gay Anglican bishop, the Vancouver-area New Westminster diocese's decision to hold union ceremonies for same-gender couples has also been a significant element in the near-schism of the global Anglican communion. The world church's commission working to heal that split sent a representative to warn the Canadian synod of dire consequences if they approved the union ceremonies, and there were other international pressures as well. For the sake of global unity, the author of the union ceremonies proposal withdrew it, replacing it with a call for further study of the issue that will delay any decision until at least 2007 and an actual policy change until at least 2010. Canadian Anglicans have already been debating this issue for 3 decades, but the further delay was approved by 55% of the delegates and 65% of the bishops. The world church's titular head Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams was greatly relieved. Gays and lesbians and their allies were disappointed, but the synod hastily offered them a consolation prize: it approved by a show of hands a resolution to "affirm the integrity and sanctity of committed adult same-sex relationships." There were other supportive events as well: the synod elected the most liberal of four candidates -- Archbishop of Montreal Andrew Hutchison -- to serve in Canada's top role as primate, and openly gay Dean of Vancouver's Christ Church Cathedral Peter Elliott was elected by a wide margin to chair the convention itself. And because the synod did not actually act to take a formal position against union ceremonies, many believe that for the time being there is no bar to New Westminster continuing to perform them or to other dioceses adopting them. Ultra-Orthodox Jews leveled threats against the first of their own to become Mayor of Jerusalem for allowing the city's 3rd annual Gay Pride parade and festival to go forward, as well as threatening the pride events themselves. The far right group staged protest demonstrations as their rabbinical convention met in the city during pride week, leading Mayor Uri Lupolianski to take on 2 new bodyguards this week. Lupolianski did not exactly endear himself to parade organizers either, as the group Jerusalem Open House complained that he'd tried to deny them permission to march, stopped the hanging of rainbow flags on the parade route, and still hasn't anted up the city's share of funds for last year's parade. Anti-gay posters went up all over the city which included threats against pride marchers. Yet the parade went ahead with some 3,000 marching and many more watching and joining the outdoor party that followed. A large contingent of police surrounded the event and were relieved that the only actual violence was a small group of ultra-Orthodox protesters throwing rotten eggs at the marchers. Two egg-tossers were arrested. Since it was widely reported that one rabbi had declared the "subhuman ... homosexuals would be reincarnated as rabbits," a number of marchers wore pink bunny ears. The Australian Government's bills to deny legal recognition to marriages and adoptions by same-gender couples may not zip through the legislative process. The largest Opposition party, the Australian Labor Party -- even though it won't oppose the marriage ban -- has now joined the smaller Australian Democrats and Greens in seeking a Senate inquiry to study it. The ALP has also decided to oppose the adoptions ban. When Liberal Party Prime Minister John Howard announced the bills, he also promised pension reforms that would enable same-gender partners to access the benefits. This week the ALP publicly questioned why those reforms had yet to be introduced when the marriage and adoption bans already were. The Government responded that the reforms will appear as an amendment to a pension bill already before the Senate, one that's expected to be enacted before the end of June. So it looks as if the part of the Government's agenda supporting equal treatment of gay and lesbian couples will be in place long before its moves to discriminate against them. And finally... just when Australian media were full of the political debate on same-gender couples, a popular children's television show aired a short segment featuring the real-life child of a lesbian couple. That "Play School" show is geared to pre-schoolers and runs on the taxpayer-supported Australian Broadcasting Corporation network, further inflaming both the religious right and the ruling Coalition. The segment followed a girl who said, "I'm Brenna. That's me in the blue. My mums are taking me and my friend Meryn to an amusement park." The visual showed Brenna and Meryn on a merry-go-round with the "mums" smiling and waving to them. ABC had created it in response to a request from two other lesbian mothers who wanted to see families like their own represented on the show, which has strived to depict the diversity of family life in Australia. The Australian Family Association called it "political indoctrination" and accused the ABC of turning "Play School" into Gay School. Australia's Government also leaped to denounce the broadcast. Acting Prime Minister John Anderson said it sought "to justify and promote the idea of gay parenting." Minister for Children Larry Anthony, declaring he was speaking for most Australians, said it should be left to parents to explain gay and lesbian couples to their children and that, "I think it's important for those program producers to ensure that they are not just responding to minorities." Communications Minister Daryl Williams sent a formal complaint and request for explanation to the network. One of Brenna's mothers, Vicki Harding, said a typical news show is more offensive, noting that in their segment, "There are no images of torture, or war, or violence, or poverty. There's no sex. I would like to think that some day we would get to a place where nobody would blink. It may take years." Yet she noted that when the same segment was first broadcast in March, there wasn't "a peep" from media or politicians.