IMMEDIATE RELEASE 03/27/07 Contact: Tracey Thompson – Tel# 914 907 9789 Email: tracey@destinationmark.com www.gayweddingssouthafrica.com
GAY WEDDINGS LEGAL IN SOUTH AFRICA In December 2006, South Africa courts ruled that same sex marriages, according to the constitution, should be treated and recognized in the same way as marriages between a man and a woman. The bill provides for the "voluntary union of two persons, which is solemnized and registered by either a marriage or civil union". South Africa already is the first and only country in the world prohibiting discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation in its constitution. Two years ago, this led to a court ruling giving gay couples the right to adopt children - a right currently only paralleled in Sweden, the Netherlands and Belgium Robben Island outside Cape Town is mostly known as a high security prison during South Africa's apartheid era, and for its most prominent prisoner, Nelson Mandela. Each Valentine's Day, however, the prison turns into a romantic site for couples from all over the world, wanting to tie the knot. The mass weddings have been taking place on the apartheid prison compound since 2000, with not one of the couples married there having divorced in the seven years since. People came from as far afield as Algiers and England to take their vows on the island on Valentine's Day. The newly weds were taken on a tour of the Island after their novel weddings. For many, it was their first visit to the rocky outcrop, adding to the high emotions of any wedding day. This year was to have marked the first time a same sex couple was married on Robben Island, following the promulgation of the Civil Unions Act. The couple however, declined as they did not want the publicity. Requests for weddings in South Africa is at an all time high – Advance planning is necessary when planning to tie the knot in South Africa. # # # For more details on gay wedding packages contact tracy@destinationmark.com at Tel# 914 907 9789 |