Human rights campaigner Peter Tatchell has marked the first anniversary of his Equal Love campaign by re-iterating the fight for marriage equality.
In a piece for The Guardian, the Australian-born activist – who recently celebrated his sixtieth birthday – said that his mission is now steadily building momentum.
It is exactly one year ago today that four gay couples and four heterosexual couples filed a historic joint appeal to the European Court of Human Rights.
As reported on PinkPaper.com, their appeal argues that Britain's twin legal bans on same-sex civil marriages and opposite-sex civil partnerships amount to illegal discrimination, contrary to the European Convention on Human Rights.
The bans violate Articles 8, 12 and 14 - respectively the right to privacy and family life, the right to marry and the right to non-discrimination.
"Soon after the ECHR appeal was filed, the government announced its intention to consult on the issue of same-sex marriage. Mere coincidence? Perhaps. But the government was surely mindful that it will be required to explain to the ECHR its rationale for excluding gay couples from civil marriages and heterosexual couples from civil partnerships," writes Tatchell.
"It can now report to the ECHR that it is consulting. This consultation is, however, flawed. It is limited to same-sex marriage."
He then goes on to press the government on the issue, insisting that heterosexuals are also being denied equality.
"David Cameron mistakenly calculated that we'll be satisfied with marriage equality. We won't. So long as heterosexual couples remain banned from civil partnerships, which is the Prime Minister's apparent intention, the Equal Love campaign will continue. We believe in straight equality just as passionately as we care about equal rights for lesbians and gay men."
The right of gay couples to marry is backed by David Cameron, Ed Miliband, Nick Clegg, Boris Johnson and a growing number of Tory MPs, including Chloe Smith, Mike Weatherley and Margot James.
A Populus poll in 2009 found that 61% of the public believe: "Gay couples should have an equal right to get married, not just to have civil partnerships." Only 33% disagreed. It's likely that there is similar support for heterosexual civil partnerships.
