After meeting with the described, "ultra-Orthodox" Shas political party, Israel's Justice Minister Daniel Freidman has revised a draft law on inheritance for cohabiting unmarried couples to specifically exclude gay and lesbian couples. Justice Minister Friedman also received pressure from religious parties in the Knesset.
The original proposal was gender neutral, however the bill now designates, "a man and a woman who lead a family life in a joint household."
Mike Hamel, the chair of the the Israeli GLBT association issued the following statement:
"Since the beginning of his miserable term, the Justice Minister has been committed to setting Israel back 30 years."
Despite vocal opposition from orthodox religious groups, a survey concludes that 51% of Israelis feel that it is good or necessary for same-sex couples to be granted pension and survivorship rights.
No matter what country, every story concerning this matter involves members of the Religious Right attempting (most of the time successfully) to deny essential human rights to gay and lesbian couples. From my experience and research, Jewish and Christian faith focus on acceptance and compassion from their respective faith. Events such as this one in Israel and issues across the world say other wise and are nothing short of hypocrisy. It's incredibly sad when people use their Religious views to influence governments into supporting prejudice and injustice.
Currently, same-sex marriage is legal in the Netherlands, Belgium, Spain, Canada and South Africa. In the United States, Massachusetts is the only state to offer same-sex marriage, however, civil unions are recognized in Vermont, Connecticut, New Jersey and New Hampshire. Other states do offer some same-sex partnership benefits.
For more information on gay rights in the United States please visit:
Human Rights Campaign
Sources:
Israeli Same-Sex Couples May Be Denied Rights
Civil unions in the United States
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