Hundreds of same-sex couples are tying the knot across Thailand on Thursday as the country becomes the first in Southeast Asia to recognize marriage equality.
The landmark bill marks a momentous win for the LGBTQ+ community, which has fought for more than a decade for the same marriage rights as heterosexual couples.
“It’s the happiest day of my life. We could finally and completely do what we have been wanting to do for a long time,” Pisit Sirihiranchai, who married his partner of five years Chanathip Sirihiranchai, told CNN.
“We are now a complete family,” he said.
Under the legislation, passed by Thailand’s parliament and endorsed by the king last year, same-sex couples are able to register their marriages with full legal, financial, and medical rights, as well as adoption and inheritance rights.
“This marriage equality law marks the beginning of Thai society’s greater awareness of gender diversity, and our embrace of everyone regardless of sexual orientation, race, or religion — our affirmation that everyone is entitled to equal rights and dignity,” Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra said in a recorded message played at a mass wedding in the capital Bangkok on Thursday.
At least 200 couples signed up to get married at the Siam Paragon shopping center, according to Bangkok Pride, which co-organized the event with local authorities.
A rainbow carpet was rolled out at the mall to welcome the newlyweds from all ages and walks of life, including police officer Sirihiranchai who turned up in uniform with his partner.
Among those to walk down the “pride carpet” was an elderly lesbian couple who toured the venue with former prime minister Srettha Thavisin to a backdrop of falling confetti and traditional Thai beats. Srettha’s ruling Pheu Thai party has backed the marriage bill.
Some embraced the full celebratory spirit by turning up in wedding suits and dresses. Others donned pink or white blazers and dresses. Many waved the rainbow flag.
Meanwhile, celebrities and drag queens performed on a stage adorned with rainbow hearts and flowers, with a screen proudly declaring, “marriage equality.”
Celebrations are also taking place Thursday in other parts of the country stretching from the eastern coastal city of Pattaya to the mountainous northern city of Chiang Mai.
Ahead of the festivities, equality campaigners hailed the new legislation as a victory for progression.
“This could be a model for the world because we now have Thailand as a model,” said Kittinun Daramadhaj, a lawyer and president of the Rainbow Sky Association of Thailand. “There is true marriage equality in Thailand.”
A dream comes true
For some, such as Nina Chetniphat Chuadkhunthod, who was planning to attend the mass celebration at Siam Paragon, the day feels long overdue.
The transgender woman has not been able to marry her boyfriend of 22 years because she is unable to legally change her gender identity. But with same-sex marriage now being recognized, they can tie the knot.
“I feel like, wow, my dream is close to coming true,” the 42-year-old told CNN during a recent interview.
Chuadkhunthod and her fiancée held their wedding party three weeks ago. At a wedding hall on the outskirts of Bangkok, the couple walked down the aisle in locked arms, as bridesmaids sprinkled their path with rose petals amid cheers from friends and relatives. They planned to register their marriage on Thursday.
“I felt the proudest moment of my life that I could do this and let people know, let the industry and friends around me know that I could do it,” she said.
BY CNN
