Same-sex marriage in France
| Same-sex marriage |
| Recognised nationwide in: |
| Belgium |
| Netherlands |
| Recognised in some regions in: |
| Canada (Ont, Que, B.C, Y.T) |
| United States (Massachusetts) |
| Other countries: |
| Australia |
| France |
| South Africa |
| Spain |
| See also |
| Civil union |
| Domestic partnership |
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On June 5, 2004, former Green Party presidential candidate Noël Mamère;, Mayor of the Bordeaux suburb of Bègles, conducted a same-sex marriage ceremony for two men, Bertrand Charpentier and Stéphane Chapin. Mamère had said that there is nothing in French law to prohibit such a ceremony, and that he would appeal any challenge to the European Court of Human Rights.
French Justice Minister Dominique Perben had stated that such unions would be legally void, and called for judicial intervention to halt the ceremony. On July 27 2004, a court declared the marriage null and void.
Shortly after the ceremony took place, Interior Minister Dominique de Villepin instituted disciplinary procedures against Mamère. Mamère was suspended for a month.
On May 11, 2004, Socialist Party leader François Hollande announced that he would ask his party to file a draft law which would render such marriages unequivocally legal. However, other party leaders, such as his partner Segolene Royal and former prime minister Lionel Jospin, disapproved publicly of same-sex marriages.