Court approves same-sex couple's right to marry

In October 2002, Marie Fourie and her partner of twelve years, Cecelia Bonthuys had been refused the right to marry on the basis of the common law interpretation of marriage.  The couple decided to challenge that ruling in court, based on the equal rights provision in South Africa's constitution. After a long legal battle the Supreme Court of Appeals gave the nod for the couple's same-sex marriage on 30 November 2004. At last, the couple thought, they succeeded in gaining equal standing with heterosexuals.  They then proceeded to make wedding plans, just like any other couple. The women later discovered, however, that they were unable to register for a church wedding.  When asked why, they were told that the Department of Home Affairs had refused their application and had gone to the Constitutional Court, arguing that only parliament could change the law. Neither Ms Fourie nor Ms Bonthuys were present at the court proceedings. Finally, on December 1st 2005, the Constitutional Court in Johannesburg ruled that it is unconstitutional to deny gay people the right to marry.  The court ordered parliament to amend existing legislation within a year. This made South Africa the fifth country in the world to legalise gay marriage after Belgium, the Netherlands, Spain and Canada; and the first country in Africa to do so, at the time. In contrast to many African countries where gay and lesbian people are persecuted, activists in South Africa have won many legal victories in recent years, including the right to adopt children and inherit from their partners' wills. The ruling African National Congress, which under Nelson Mandela led the country from apartheid to democracy, said that the developments confirmed the government would not tolerate discrimination against its citizens. In response to the court's ruling the ANC said, "Today's ruling, like others before it, is an important step forward in aligning the laws of the country with the rights and freedoms contained in the South African constitution." South Africa formally legalized gay marriage on November 30th, 2006.