27 November, 20143 December, 2014 Trans* Jersey

Media links: Equal marriage by 2017

Jersey Evening Post: Monday 1 December 2014

BBC Radio Jersey: Sunday 30 November 2014 (timecode: 01:04)

Pink News: Friday 28 November 2014

Jersey Evening Post: Wednesday 26 November 2014

Jersey Evening Post: Thursday 27 November 2014

Channel Television: Wednesday 26 November 2014

BBC Radio Jersey: Wednesday 26 November 2014 (timecode: 01:07)

BBC News: Wednesday 26 November 2014

Bailiwick Express: Thursday 27 November 2014

26 November, 201414 July, 2015 Trans* Jersey

Results of equal marriage consultation

Trans* Jersey and Liberate met with Chief Minister Ian Gorst on 21 November 2014 to discuss the findings of the consultation into the question of whether it is appropriate to introduce legislation to equalise marriage in Jersey.

Consultation results

The online survey conducted by the Chief Minister’s office had 1,094 respondents and 161 people wrote letters on the subject. This represents an amazing level of response and bears witness to strongly held opinions on both sides of the debate.

However, this only represents 1.5% of the population and, inevitably, only those members of the population who feel strongly about the subject. It was no surprise, therefore, to learn that 54% of respondents were for and 46% were against equal marriage. The closeness of the result is probably not representative of the population as a whole but speaks to the fact that about 10% of the population are LGBTQ and about 10% of the population are regular churchgoers, both parties being well mobilised and well versed in the arguments for and against.

Of the three options offered for making equal marriage a reality, the responses were as follows –

Civil marriage only – 34% for
Civil and religious marriage (with an opt-out for those whose faith does not allow for same-sex unions) – 55% for
Union Civile – 75% against

On the question of allowing humanist marriages to take place, 50% agreed that they should, but the lack of comments on this issue was interpreted to mean either a lack of understanding of the issue or a lack of real interest in seeing it happen.

On the question of opening up civil partnerships to opposite-sex couples, 75% were in favour. However, the comments from respondents indicated that this option was less about equality and more about greater legal protection for co-habiting couples.

On the question of parity of law for same-sex and opposite-sex couples where adultery is concerned, 65% were for equalising the law.

Of the options offered for equalising the law on adultery, the responses were as follows –

Removing adultery from law – 11%
Creating a new definition of adultery – 40%

This result spoke to concerns that fidelity is important within any marriage and that to remove adultery from law is to make fidelity appear less important.

In addition, a number of points came out of the consultation –

Marriage matters to everyone (whether you are for or against same-sex marriage).
Equality and non-discrimination is an important issue that respondents respected and did not want to stand accused of breaching.
From those people of faith, the message was that marriage can only be between a man and a woman.
There were also a number of people who felt that civil partnerships should be enough for same-sex couples.
Both sides agreed that civil partnerships are not the same as marriages.
For some “redefining” marriage to include same-sex marriages is not an option.
There were concerns surrounding the use of language if same-sex marriage were to happen, such as the neutralising genders on official documents. People from both sides were unhappy with words such as spouse1/spouse2 and would prefer husband/wife, wife/wife, husband/husband.
Both sides of the argument represent a minority of the population. This is, therefore, a minority issue.
The impact of same-sex marriage on children worried some respondents. However, research from other jurisdictions shows that there is no negative impact. This did raise the issue of changes to educational and family policy that will need to be looked at by the States. (For example, the automatic right of a mother to have responsibility for her children. At the moment, there is no automatic right for fathers.)
Some were concerned that same-sex marriage would promote homosexuality.
The cost of implementing the legislation is not inconsiderable and, it was felt, needed to be weighed against the number of beneficiaries. At the last census, 0.4% of the population are living together in a same-sex relationship. (Note: this is not the same as the percentage of the population that is LGBTQ.)
The estimate of the number of equal marriages that will be held following the introduction of a new law is 44. This is similar to the uptake of civil partnerships following their introduction.

The proposal

Based on his findings, the Chief Minister will be bringing forward the following proposal for legislation –

Civil and religious marriage for same-sex couples with an opt-in clause for religious groups and their clergy. This will preserve terms such as husband and wife. It will also include something similar to the “quadruple lock” that protects religious organisations from prosecution under anti-discrimination legislation and is included in the England and Wales legislation for same-sex marriage.
Civil partnerships will be able to seamlessly convert to marriages. This can happen with or without a marriage ceremony as the couple chooses. Marriages will not be allowed to convert to civil partnerships, however, as this has proved unhelpful in other jurisdictions where it has been used to facilitate divorces.
Humanist marriage will not be brought in.
There will be no so-called “spousal veto” where, in England and Wales, a person in a marriage transitions and their spouse can prevent them from applying for a gender recognition certificate (in order to stop the marriage becoming a same-sex marriage). Jersey will seek to follow Scottish law on this point.
Civil partnerships will not be extended to opposite-sex couples and will be gradually phased out, if possible, because they are seen by the majority of people as a “second-tier” of marriage. More work will be done to find ways to provide more rights to co-habiting couples. If civil partnerships cannot be phased out, the decision will be revisited and the Chief Minister will seek to bring in civil partnerships for opposite-sex couples.
On the question of equalising adultery in the law, the Chief Minister will not be seeking to remove it from law as it is clear that sexual fidelity in marriage matters to people. He will be exploring the option of “no fault” divorces, the ability of a couple to apply jointly for a divorce (rather than one party bringing an action against the other) and the legal requirement for a divorcing couple to have mediation first. All options are being investigated with the intent of taking some of the acrimony out of divorce.

Timetable

The Chief Minister will report his findings to the States Chamber on 26 November 2014. The proposition will be brought in the first quarter of 2015 with a request for the States to approve the time frame and the process of legal change. Because there are extensive amendments that need to be made to other laws, a clear order of progress is required. (For example, within taxation law, a couple in a civil partnership can elect which partner is treated as the main taxpayer but, for a married couple, it is always the husband who is automatically the main taxpayer. This is clearly inequitable and needs amending.)

It is anticipated that Jersey will have same-sex marriage by the end of 2017.

You can download the full report on the consultation here.

17 June, 201420 August, 2014 Trans* Jersey

Open letter to all States of Jersey members from Liberate

This is the full version of Liberate‘s excellent letter to all members of the States of Jersey on the subject of Deputy Sam Mézec’s proposition:

I write on behalf of LIBERATE in support of Deputy Sam Mézec’s proposition lodged at the States Greffe on Wednesday 28 May 2014 petitioning the States of Jersey to introduce equal marriage in the Bailiwick of Jersey.

LIBERATE is the first Channel Island charity to support the islands’ Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Questioning Community (LGBTQ).

Who we are

Liberate is an inclusive Group, which welcomes people irrespective of sexual orientation, gender identity, religious belief, race, gender or disability. We are a local charity and were founded on 15 February 2014 in Guernsey.

Liberate is made up of a virtual rainbow of people from every different gender and sexual identity you could possibly think of. With such a diverse background we can operate on many different levels as we all bring something different to the group.

Our vision

Our vision is simple. We believe in a Fair & Equal society, where everyone is born equal and free, and treated with dignity and respect no matter what their gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, disability, belief or race.

Article 1 of the United Nations Declaration of Human Rights states: “All people are born free & equal in dignity and rights”.

Children do not know racism, sexism, homophobia, biphobia, transphobia, unless they are taught it and government has a responsibility to ensure that it sends a clear message to communities that discrimination in all its forms is not acceptable.

Our purpose

The purpose of Liberate is to educate and inform on a wide range of issues and to support those who identify as LGBTQ, their families and friends.

We campaign to reform some of Guernsey’s policies and laws to ensure that LGBTQ people can enjoy the same freedoms as everyone else in the Bailiwick of Guernsey. We also lend our support to the LGBTQ community in Jersey and are affiliated to Trans*Jersey.

We question social attitudes and behaviours which discriminate against LGBTQ people, and offer advice and help in tackling homophobia, biphobia, transphobia, etc.

Our aims

We will petition and work with government to:

Introduce Equal Marriage Legislation
Give transgender people full access to services to allow them to transition to their gender identity
Introduce anti-discriminatory legislation or an Equality Act which addresses homophobic, biphobic and transphobic hate crime
Reform laws and policies such as income tax legislation to ensure that they are non-discriminatory

Since our website www.liberate.gg was launched we have had over 1,000 signatures in support of equal marriage in the islands. We have also achieved one of our aims in Guernsey of having transgender reassignment surgery funded by the States of Guernsey. We also:

Support the local Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Questioning community, their families, friends and carers through a wide range of initiatives.
Educate and inform society through outreach and Public Awareness campaigns.
Fight to ensure that everyone is treated fairly and equally under the law, and that no-one is left behind.
Challenge discrimination in all its forms in our daily lives, whether it is working in a voluntary capacity for Liberate, at work, socially, etc. We will not be bystanders.
Act as Ambassadors for Equality and Diversity in our daily lives.
Work with other organisations, charities and non-governmental organisations to promote equality and fairness in our society and facilitate positive change in social policy.
Respect the dignity and rights of others at all times, whether we have differences of opinion or belief, or not.

The Free & Equal Campaign

The United Nations Human Rights Commission recently launched its Free & Equal Campaign which is partly aimed at world governments to ensure that they do not actively discriminate through legislation and policy, as well as encouraging the LGBTQ community to speak out and have a voice.

The LGBTQ community have historically been persecuted, tortured and executed[1]. Indeed 81 countries still classify homosexuality as a criminal offence. It is only in recent history that it was decriminalised in our society, and not until the early 1990’s that the World Health Organisation declassified homosexuality as a disease. We hope that you can therefore appreciate how difficult it is for the LGBTQ community to be visible and speak out against social injustice.

Deputy Mézec’s Proposition

Deputy Mézec’s proposition is an important step for Jersey in ensuring that each and every one of its citizens are free and equal in dignity and rights.

Jersey recently made an important step in terms of tackling discrimination with the introduction of its Discrimination Law. We see the introduction of equal marriage in Jersey as a natural progressive step towards that goal. Failure to do so will deny approximately 10% of the population the right to marry, and be totally at odds with Jersey’s current social policy in terms of discrimination.

Guernsey’s Chief Minister has already assured LIBERATE that he will bring a report to the States of Guernsey before the end of this political term proposing the introduction of a Union Civile for all couples who wish to marry. Under the proposed law, it will be the choice of those getting married whether they chose to then have a blessing or humanist celebration.

We hope Jersey does the same.

The England and Wales Equal Marriage Act caused problems for transgender people over the so-called Spousal Veto. It allows their spouse to refuse to permit them to have a Gender Reassignment Certificate, which would convert the marriage from opposite-sex to same-sex. We prefer the Scottish Same Sex Marriage Law of 2014 model which overcomes that “veto”.

Winning Hearts and Minds

LIBERATE acknowledges that changing laws and policies is only part of the solution to changing societal attitudes towards the LGBTQ community.

Together we must win the hearts and minds of those who through ignorance, intolerance, and hatred, discriminate against various sections of our community. It is that intolerance which can divide families, friends and colleagues, and damage the very fabric of our society, with consequential harm to individuals and cost to government and other third party agencies. The LGBTQ community is widely acknowledged to be twice at risk of harm of anxiety, depression, substance misuse, self harm and suicide because of the affects that prejudicial attitudes have.

Changing laws and policies sends out a very clear signal to society of what is acceptable and what behaviours are not.

Our commitment to the States of Jersey is that we will work and co-operate with government locally in terms of ensuring that the universal principle of fairness and equality for all applies within our islands. Whether it be in changing laws and policies, or helping States departments in developing social policy strategies which promote equality and inclusion and celebrate the importance of diversity.

We ask you to vote “Pour” in favour of Deputy Mézec’s proposition.

Yours faithfully
Martin Gavet
Hon. Chairperson
LIBERATE

[1] Including an estimated 100,000 LGBTQ people who were victims of the Nazi Holocaust.

The JEP report from Tuesday 17 June 2014: