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He said that it was important for the referendum to be held so that the courts and the United Kingdom government would be unambiguously advised that the people of the Virgin Islands believe “that marriage should be between a man and a woman.”
SAME-SEX MARRIAGE REFERENDUM STILL ON THE TABLE; PREMIER UPDATES
Premier Hon.
Dr. Natalio Wheatley recently provided an update on plans to trigger the Territory’s first referendum to decide on the issue of Same-Sex Marriage in the Virgin Islands. “And while we accept others, and while we certainly don’t advocate for violence or discrimination against others, we are firm in what we believe and what we want our culture to be,” said the premier.
Mr.
Constitution report proposes same-sex marriage ban
in All News / By: BVI News on February 6, 2024 at 8:02 AM /
The Constitutional Review Commission’s report has recommended that same-sex marriage be banned in the Virgin Islands.
The almost 300-page report was released yesterday, February 5, and made several recommendations concerning revamping, the BVI’s constitution.
Among other things, the report addresses key governance and constitutional reform issues in the territory, focusing on enhancing accountability within the government, evaluating the adequacy of constitutional governance structures, and clarifying the powers of the Governor.
It proposes mechanisms for transferring powers to the local government, suggests regulations for election expenses, and debates the inclusion of statutory boards in the constitution.
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It has been noted that the Premier’s response to Mather’s question reflected the same content of a previous response he made to the press on the matter in July 2023, following the resolution being Gazetted. British Virgin Islands Premier Dr. Natalio Wheatley, while not making the assertion directly, strongly resisted the idea that such recognition or acceptance could be imposed by external forces.
All Rights Reserved. A matter was stayed by presiding judge Adrian Jack, who wanted to wait until similar cases in two other British Overseas Territories in the region – Bermuda and the Cayman Islands – were disposed of by the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council. The document also considers the independence of the Speaker’s role and the need for election candidates with government contracts to declare their interests.
One of the report’s critical recommendations, however, was on the issue of same-sex marriage within the territory.
Recommendation 38 under the section ‘Bill of Rights – Right to marry’ states: “The Commission therefore recommends that section 20 of the Constitution should be amended to state clearly that marriage is between a man and a woman of the opposite sex.”
The report further states: “Every man and woman of a marriageable age has the right to marry a person of the opposite sex and found a family in accordance with laws enacted by the Legislature.”
Highlighted as part of the report’s recommendation on same-sex marriage was a pending court case that challenges the prohibition of same-sex marriage as unconstitutional.
The report examined legal challenges related to the recognition of same-sex marriages in Bermuda and the Cayman Islands, focusing on cases brought before the United Kingdom’s Privy Council and local courts.
It was noted that, in the Cayman Islands for instance, the government was required to provide a legal status equivalent to marriage for same-sex couples, leading to the enactment of the Civil Partnership Law 2020.
In March 2022, the Privy Council returned rulings in both matters that upheld the constitutionality of prohibiting same-sex marriage in both territories.
The local court’s decision in the Forbes matter is now set for June.
“We assert that we are a Christian community,” said Mr. Wheatley, at a recent press conference.
Although the UK government encourages British Overseas Territories to adopt its equality laws it has said that it will not force a change in law.
Censorship of LGBT issues in British Virgin Islands
?Censorship of LGBT issues in British Virgin Islands is no censorship.
Right to change legal gender in British Virgin Islands
?Right to change legal gender in British Virgin Islands is illegal.
Gender-affirming care in British Virgin Islands
?Gender-affirming care in British Virgin Islands is unknown.
Legal recognition of non-binary gender in British Virgin Islands
?Legal recognition of non-binary gender in British Virgin Islands is unknown.
Hate crime protections in British Virgin Islands
?Hate crime protections in British Virgin Islands is unknown.
LGBT employment discrimination in British Virgin Islands
?LGBT employment discrimination in British Virgin Islands is unknown.
LGBT housing discrimination in British Virgin Islands
?LGBT housing discrimination in British Virgin Islands is unknown.
Same-sex adoption in British Virgin Islands
?Same-sex adoption in British Virgin Islands is unknown.
Intersex infant surgery in British Virgin Islands
?Intersex infant surgery in British Virgin Islands is unknown.
Serving openly in military in British Virgin Islands
?Serving openly in military in British Virgin Islands is legal.
Blood donations by MSMs in British Virgin Islands
?Blood donations by MSMs in British Virgin Islands is banned (indefinite deferral).
Conversion therapy in British Virgin Islands
?Conversion therapy in British Virgin Islands is not banned.
Equal age of consent in British Virgin Islands
?Equal age of consent in British Virgin Islands is equal.
Is the legal recognition of same-sex marriage a human rights question, or one of cultural imperialism?
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According to the Premier, the holding of the referendum is expected to bear a similar cost to the public purse as the holding of a General Election, an estimated $250,000 – $300,000. This was based on the understanding that the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) does not mandate same-sex marriage rights, allowing the local legislature to decide on the matter.
Premier Dr Natalio previously proposed that the territory should move towards a referendum to address the issue of same-sex marriage, however, this has been met with some hiccups.
Notably, the report shows that in 2016, a referendum in Bermuda on the legal recognition of same-sex unions did not pass due to low turnout, with a majority voting against it.
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Instead, BVI voters will be asked to decide whether same-sex residents of the territories will have their unions accepted by the state.
A referendum, said Dr. Wheatley, would be coming soon. Wheatley firmly stated his belief that issues of social and religious significance should not be decided in the courts.
At the time of the announcement, the Premier called upon the people of the Virgin Islands to voice their opinions on the matter of marriage and stressed that legislators should be obligated to heed the wishes of the populace.
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Wheatley at the time was responding to a question posed by Deputy Speaker Hon. Stacy Mather during a sitting of the House of Assembly.
He explained that the next step is for the resolution to be debated in the House of Assembly, adding that the timing of the referendum is also heavily reliant on 2 other factors; the amendment of the Referendum Act to reflect the process of electronic tabulation and the progress of the ongoing court matter which prompted this line of action.
Without announcing a date, the recently re-elected leader of the territory promised that it would come before the final ruling in a pending lawsuit involving a local couple.
The claimants, Kinisha Forbes and Kirsten Lettsome, filed a constitutional motion in 2021 seeking to have their marriage recognized by the state, after being denied a marriage license by the territory’s Registrar General on the basis that both parties were women.