| An Ontario Superior Court ruling that would allow same-sex marriages gets no objection from Ontario Premier Ernie Eves, as he announces that the province will not be appealing the groundbreaking decision redefining marriage.
“Everybody has their own personal point of view on this issue. My point of view on this issue is that if two people decide that they want to be in union, why would I interfere with that? That’s my personal point of view,” Eves said.
Martin Cauchon, the federal justice minister, says Ottawa is working on a response to the ruling. The National Post reports that he is not ruling out the possibility of extending the definition to those of the same sex. The Globe and Mail claimed that Ontario can register same-sex marriages before Ottawa makes up its mind about what to do. However, Eves has not indicated that the province would do that. Ontario Attorney General David Young indicated that it would be improper to act one way or another before the federal government acted on the issue. Eves’s comments, however, seem to contradict, and even undermine, his attorney-general’s “let’s wait and see” approach. In contrast to Ontario’s capitulation to gay rights activists, Alberta Premier Ralph Klein says his province has no intention of recognizing same-sex marriages and is urging the federal government to appeal the Ontario court decision. While capitulating on various fronts to homosexual activists since he promised to erect “fences” protecting the traditional definition of marriage following the 1998 Vriend decision, Klein has always promised to exclude same-sex couples from marriages by invoking the notwithstanding clause of the Constitution. To bolster Klein’s promise, a private member’s bill by Victor Doerksen has passed the Alberta legislature, despite objections from provincial Justice Minister David Hancock. Doerksen’s bill affirms that marriage is exclusively between a man and a woman and compels Alberta to invoke the notwithstanding clause to prevent the courts from imposing a contrary definition in the province. Meanwhile, the governments of B.C., Manitoba and New Brunswick say they are reviewing the issue. Quebec Justice Minister Paul Begin said his province has introduced civil unions open to all couples regardless of orientation, “having all the legal effect of marriage.” |
The Ontario premier said he would leave it up to Ottawa to appeal the July 12 ruling which lifted the ban on same-sex marriages. He also made sure that his point of view was seen not as that of “a government’s point of view,” but his personal opinion.
