Taiwanese Military To Feature Two Same Sex Couples In Its Annual Mass Wedding Ceremony. This Is A Landmark Move
Almost every single day since we’ve been in this pandemic, I have been waking up to a bad news. Despite all our progress, our world views, policies, actions and mindsets are still so regressive. Each morning , the newspaper is peppered with news of women raped, or two lovers of the same sex being pulled apart, and I cringe at the thought of being part of a world that severely lacks compassion. And while I may have become habituated to only assuming the worst, at least from my own country, seems like the Taiwanese have stepped up to surprise us with some good news.
With its decision to feature same-sex couples in their Taiwanese army’s annual mass wedding ceremony this week, the country has made a landmark resolution to promote the culture of same-sex marriages, that was legalised in the country just last year on 24 May, 2019.
Two female Taiwanese soldiers and their civilian same-sex partners, Chen Ying-xuan and Lee Ying-ying, and Wang Yi and Meng Youmei will get married in the mass wedding that is to be hosted on Friday. It is now being looked at as a symbol of acceptance, integration and progression. Something that a lot of other countries can learn from, considering there is nothing wrong in celebrating love and enabling two people in love being together, no matter their gender.
Also Read : Menaka Guruswamy And Arundhati Katju, The Lawyers Who Fought To Decriminalise Article 377, Now To Fight For Same Sex Marriage
Two same-sex couples are to be married in the Taiwanese army’s annual mass wedding ceremony this week, in a first after the island’s government legalised marriage equality 18 months ago.https://t.co/UwgKn5I3Zj
— Fiona Bateman (@feebateman) October 29, 2020
The military commented on this great move and said, “Our country … has become the first in Asia to legalise same-sex marriage and the ministry gives its blessings to same-sex servicemen who are getting married.” Just the kind of view point we expect all leaders to have. This is a classic example of how we need to honour others and their choices, to maintain a balance and peace in the society.
In fact, the military posted a number of photos of the two couples online and asked people to vote for their favoyrite pictures. The picture of the couple, Wang and Meng turned out to be the most likes with more than 31,000 likes on Facebook alone. Meanwhile, people across have been congratulating the happy couples and also expressing their delight by writing things like, “It’s proof that LGBT people can have equal rights and, like everyone else, are capable of defending the country.”
#Taiwanese military mass wedding to feature its first #samesex couples. Two same-sex couples are to be married in the Taiwanese army’s annual mass wedding ceremony this week, in a first after the island’s government legalised #marriageequality. #LGBT https://t.co/leN9LyBjlP pic.twitter.com/0OIY3nc0yW
— Alturi.org (@AlturiOrg) October 29, 2020
Another user wrote, “Love makes Taiwan stronger, bless every lover, and cheer for the continuous improvement of the national army,” while one other said, “You defend our country, we defend your freedom.” And just like that, this move brought people together, closer and made them more hopeful.
Although, there are still a lot of things that need to change, for instance the law about not letting couples in same-sex adopt children, or allowing for a Taiwanese people to marry foreigners of the same sex but then, it’s a huge step forward. But until then, this is a great start and a perfect motivator for other countries to follow suit, with the Taiwanese leading the way.
