Mar 17 (Japan Times) - A Sapporo court ruled Wednesday that the government's failure to recognize same-sex marriage is unconstitutional in the country's first judicial ruling on marriage equality.
The ruling set a new precedent in the only Group of Seven nation not to fully recognize same-sex partnerships, though it rejected demands for damages to be paid. Still, it is a major symbolic victory for the LGBTQ community and activists in a country whose Constitution defines marriage as being based on "the mutual consent of both sexes."
The Sapporo District Court threw out the demand for damages by the six plaintiffs — two male couples and one female couple — who had asked that the government pay ¥1 million each due to the pain they suffered for not being able to legally marry.
In the landmark ruling, presiding Judge Tomoko Takebe sided with the couples who claimed the government was violating Article 14 of the Constitution that ensures the right to equality, describing as "discriminatory" the government's failure to implement legal measures to offer "even a degree" of marital benefits to same-sex couples.
However, she rejected the plaintiffs' demand for compensation, saying that the state reparations law was not violated, noting the difficulty for the Diet to quickly recognize the problem.
The lawsuit also revolved around the interpretation of marriage in Article 24 of the Constitution that stipulates, "Marriage shall be based only on the mutual consent of both sexes and it shall be maintained through mutual cooperation with the equal rights of husband and wife as a basis."
Takebe agreed with the government that there was no violation of Article 24 of the Constitution, saying it related to heterosexual marriage and did not mention same-sex marriage.
But the recognition that not allowing them to marry was unconstitutional was the victory the plaintiffs, their lawyers and activists had been hoping for.
Source: ANNnewsCH
