Gay marriage bill creates
strange political bedfellows
Two political parties which normally avoid each other have teamed in an unusual alliance to protest Norway's looming same-sex marriage law. They're joined by 50,000 irate Christian fundamentalists.
 Dagfinn Høybråten, leader of the Christian Democrats, has found some common ground with Progress Party leader Siv Jensen. PHOTO: HEIKO JUNGE / SCANPIX |
The Christian Democrats (Kristelig Folkeparti – KrF) and the Progress Party (Fremskrittspartiet – FrP), are rejecting a new marriage law that will allow gay and lesbian couples to marry, to adopt, and in the case of lesbian couples, to qualify for state-funded fertility treatment.
Both the parties and the thousands who've organized grass-roots protests against the bill also worry that independent Christian schools will lose their state funding if they continue to teach that marriage is between partners of the opposite sex.
This creates the unusual political alliance, since KrF usually avoids close co-operation with FrP, despite both belonging to the non-socialist bloc in parliament. Both parties reject the new legislation in favour of keeping the existing law.
Both parties are quick to emphasize that they are against discrimination of homosexuals and that they support measures which strengthen the rights of the children of same-sex couples.
The bill was to come up in Parliament on Thursday. Norway's left-centre coalition government has a majority in parliament, so the bill seemed assured of passing when it eventually comes up for a vote.
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