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| Hon Tambuwal, Speaker, House of Representatives |
Leadership
newspaper, it was that first jogged my memory about the loss of momentum in the
drive to take a firm legal stand against homosexuality and the so-called
same-sex marriage in this country. In its editorial of Monday May 7 titled,
“House of Reps’ Silence on Same-Sex Marriage Bill,” the newspaper drew
attention to the fact that Senate Bill 05, more fully known as “An Act to
Prohibit Same Sex Marriages”, has yet to go beyond the first reading in the second chamber of the
National Assembly.
The Abuja-based
national daily expressed surprise that “more than five months after the
Same-Sex Marriage Bill was passed by the Senate, Nigeria’s House of
Representatives has not yet acted to take a vote on the bill, beyond the first
reading to which the bill was subjected in the House just a week after being
passed by the Senate”. It then urged “the House to expedite and conclude action
on the Same Sex Marriage Bill. And, in doing so, we wish it would accept the
Senate’s version so that the bill could be sent to President Jonathan for his
assent without delay. Without prejudice to whatever it ultimately chooses to
do, the House should refrain from “killing” the bill by its prolonged silence or
simply inaction.”
Two days later,
President Barack Obama of the United States of America, who had said that his
views on the subject of gay marriage finally took a stand. In a well promoted interview with American
Broadcasting Corporation, ABC's Robin Roberts previewed on Wednesday evening
edition of "World News with Diane Sawyer" and fully aired on
Thursday’s "Good Morning America", Obama said: "At a certain
point I've just concluded that for me personally it is important for me to go
ahead and affirm that I think same sex couples should be able to get
married."
Obama was clearly
stampeded into making the statement at the time he did because at least two key
members of his administration had gone public with their conviction on the
subject. Vice President Joe Biden had been widely
reported to have told National Broadcasting Corporation, NBC on Sunday that he
was "absolutely comfortable" with couples of the same gender
marrying. Also Education Secretary Arne Duncan answered an unequivocal “yes, I
do” on Monday when asked on MSNBC's ‘Morning Joe’ if he supports allowing
individuals of the same gender to legally wed."
As if to confirm the suspicion that for
Obama, the decision and its announcement was all about his re-election bid, he
played up the decision about 36 hours later, at a fund raising event where he subsequently raised $15million. His
words: "Obviously yesterday, we
made some news…But the truth is it was the logical extension of what America's
supposed to be. It grew directly out of this difference in visions. Are we a
country that includes everybody and gives everybody a shot and treats everybody
fairly? Does that make us strong? I believe it does.”
Expectedly,
Obama’s announcement is being celebrated by the gay movement internationally.
The Guardian (London) carried a piece that’s typifies the celebratory mood of
the group by one, Peter Tatchell, described as “a human rights campaigner, and
a member of the gay rights group OutRage! and the left wing of the Green party”
It
reads in part: “President Obama joins prime minister
David Cameron and the new French president, Francois Hollande, in backing
same-sex marriage. It's one of the great moral and human rights crusades of our
age – and it's an unstoppable global trend. There is a growing momentum to end
the ban on gay marriage in more and more countries, from Cuba to Finland,
Uruguay, Nepal, Denmark, Brazil, Australia and Colombia.
“Obama's
support will have a huge positive impact. It will boost the worldwide campaign
for marriage equality and, through media reporting of his support, raise
awareness of gay marriage among billions of people in every corner of the
globe. Even people living under tyrannical, homophobic regimes will hear the
message of gay equality. It is significant that Obama's change of heart was
influenced by the sacrifices of US lesbian and gay military personnel and by
discussions with his family and friends, including gay White House staffers and
gay parents at his daughters' school. This concurs with existing evidence that
people who know a gay person are more likely to support gay equal rights. (CONTINUES BELOW)
“Endorsing
marriage equality was a brave move, given the upcoming presidential elections
and the fierce, powerful opposition he will now face from republicans and
religious conservatives…In some respects, however, Obama is merely catching up
with the historical trend towards equality. Same-sex couples are already
allowed to marry in Canada, Spain, Portugal, Argentina, Norway, Sweden,
Belgium, the Netherlands, Iceland and South Africa, plus some regions in Mexico
and Brazil. Denmark is expected to legalise gay marriage next month. Within the
US, gay marriage laws have been passed in Connecticut, the District of
Columbia, Iowa, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, Vermont and
Washington. A majority of Americans support equal marriage rights for all.
“Obama's
move throws the spotlight back on Cameron and recent wavering in the Tory ranks
on this issue. The UK campaign for marriage equality has been spearheaded by
the Equal Love campaign involving a twin-track strategy, both political and
legal. We've succeeded in persuading the government to legalise gay marriage by
2015, although the prime minister is under pressure from a rump of homophobic
Tory MPs to drop this commitment…”
As
I had occasion to state here before, delay
is dangerous. The same forces that truncated two previous attempts at the
legislation are still alive and well. Indeed, if anything, they are waxing
stronger, by the day.
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