Padua, Italy's city council voted Monday night to allow same-sex couples to have their partnerships legally recognized as “a family founded on bonds of affection.”
The Vatican newspaper L'Osservatore Romano condemned the decision, warning that it was a stepping stone to gay marriage and adoption:
“There is in reality the progressive introduction — culturally and legally — of the alternative family — especially homosexual. And where there is the family, inevitably, sooner or later, there will be children, obtained through foster arrangements and by other means.”
City spokeswoman Donatella Gasperi said the move wasn't specifically tied to gay activism: “This is for couples who don't want to get married, couples who are living together who want to register that they are cohabiting. It could be useful for a number of things. It's not necessarily for gays, but if two gays come in, they will be registered.”
The measure was sponsored, however, by Alessandro Zan, the regional president of Arcigay, an Italian gay rights group. Said Zan: “It will be a very important instrument because it grants power to obtain all the rights and benefits that many laws and rules give to domestic partners, but which you can't enjoy without an official certificate from the statistics office.”
Padua vote to recognize cohabitating couples extends rights to gay couples [iht]
(photo source: antanask) [flickr]
