Split among government parties on internal adoption rights of same-sex couples

Opponents fear "gender-neutral marriage" concept

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Divisions emerged among government parties within Parliament last week on the issue of internal adoption in same sex relationships.
     In a 10-5 vote, Parliament’s Legal Affairs Committe, chaired by Heidi Hautala (Green), supported the approval of a law which would allow the practice. Making the motion to reject the bill was Esko Ahonen, the main representative on the committee of the largest government party, the Centre Party.
     Voting against the measure were four Centre Party parliamentarians and one from the National Coalition Party.
     
Internal adoption would mean that couples of the same gender living in registered partnerships, in which one of the two has a biological child, could agree that the other partner, who is not the child’s biological parent, would be allowed to become the adoptive parent.
      This would confer parental obligations on both partners, and inheritance rights on the child. If the couple separates, the non-biological parent would get visitation rights.
     
When Parliament began to debate the bill, a number of MPs who have generally opposed granting any special rights to gay and lesbian couples, said that they were in favour of it, because officials at the Finnish Evangelical Lutheran Church, and the Mannerheim League for Child Welfare felt that it would be in the interests of the child.
     However, the Christian Democrats see the bill as another step on a slippery slope toward a gender-neutral marriage law, which they feel began with the granting of official recognition to same-sex partnerships.
      Ahonen said that those on the Legal Affairs Committee who voted against the proposal share that view. The Christian Democrats do not have a member on the committee.
      Hautala feels that the matter is “a part of family law, which recognises the right of those of the same gender to establish couple relationships and families”.
     
The majority on the Legal Affairs Committee pondered the change of the concepts of maternity and paternity that the proposed legislation might bring about. In the majority’s view, the change has already taken place, because there already are same-sex couples raising children.
      The main argument of the minority is that internal adoption would interfere with the child’s rights by cutting ties with the other biological parent and that parent’s family. In the minority’s view, the rights of children should be increased in some other way than through adoption rights.
     Parliament begins the final reading of the bill in May.


Previously in HS International Edition:
  Planned bill would allow in-family adoption rights for same-sex couples (29.11.2007)

Helsingin Sanomat