Taiwan’s parliament on Tuesday approved a bill that would allow same-sex couples to jointly adopt children, a decision hailed as “another big step forward” for the LGBTQ+ community.
Taiwan is at the forefront of LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) rights in Asia with the legalization of same-sex marriage in 2019, a first in this part of the world, according to the French agency AFP.
But same-sex couples still faced restrictions, including the inability to adopt non-biological children or for one spouse to be the legal parent of the partner’s adopted child.
The amendment was passed on the eve of the fourth anniversary of the law on marriage for all.
The amendment “not only guarantees the protection of children’s rights, but also meets their interests,” said MP Fan Yun, one of the amendment’s supporters, draped in a rainbow flag.
“In the future, spouses and parents, regardless of gender and sexual orientation, will enjoy full legal protection”he added.
The change comes after last year a family court in Kaohsiung city, in the south of the island, ruled in favor of the adoption of a spouse’s non-biological child by a married homosexual, the first decision of this type.
“After four years of hard work, the parliament has finally passed the law on adoption by same-sex unrelated couples,” said the Taiwanese Alliance for the Advancement of Civil Rights.
The Alliance also welcomed Taiwan’s recent recognition in January of transnational same-sex marriage.
Previously, foreigners were not allowed to marry Taiwanese partners from areas where same-sex marriage is banned, as is the case in most of Asia.
Since same-sex marriage was legalized in 2019, at least 7,000 same-sex couples have married in Taiwan, according to Interior Ministry data last updated in 2021.
The Alliance said on Tuesday it would continue to push for broader rights for same-sex couples, including the recognition of same-sex marriage between Taiwanese and Chinese.
Following the passage of the amendment to the law, the health ministry said on Tuesday it will begin allowing adoptions by same-sex couples “based on current normal procedures,” according to Taiwan’s CNA news agency.
Source: DN
