西班牙最高法庭已于周二宣布支持同性婚姻，拒绝七年前由执政的人民党提出的上诉，确认同性婚姻的合法性。 西班牙于2005年7月成为世界上第四个同性婚姻合法化的国家，到去年年底，已有超过21000对同性恋夫妇喜结连理。

宪法法院的11名法官中，有8人投赞成票支持这项法案，法院在一份声明中说，完整的裁决将在接下来的几天刊登。 司法部长阿尔韦托·鲁伊斯·加利亚东（Alberto Ruiz-Gallardo）称，政府将尊重法律的裁决和立场。

 全国工商联女同性恋者，男同性恋者，变性者和双性恋（ FELGTB ）协会秘书长，杰西·赫内雷洛（Jesus Generelo）说：“这样的结果让我们感到非常非常高兴，因为支持和反对的比例是8比3，而不是6比5。”“我想现在同性婚姻已经是整个社会的一部分了。” 

人民党（PP ）向法院提出质疑，前政府的社会党总理何塞路易斯罗德里格斯萨帕特罗（Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero）提出的法律

萨帕特罗年期间， 数以十万计的民众走上街头，抗议社会党提出的允许同性婚姻和流产的法案。但调查显示多数的西班牙人支持允许同性伴侣获得与异性恋夫妇平等的婚姻权利。

 罗马天主教教会也强烈反对这项法律，以及神职人员活跃在呼吁人们支持反同性的萨帕特罗年期间的抗议活动中。

保守的天主教团体批评周二的法庭裁决。反对同性婚姻并进行有组织的抗议的家庭论坛（The Family Forum），要求政府废除该法。

该论坛称：“如果隐藏在这项裁决背后的人民党（PP）现在接受萨帕特罗法，那么它就违背了在2004年和2005年的公开承诺，并未能捍卫其核心支持者的想法，在政治上懦弱则显露无遗。”

 另一个保守组织Hazteoir.org称：“使婚姻和其他类型的联合组织一样，这对于西班牙家庭无疑是一个巨大的冲击。”

该组织的首脑，伊格纳西奥·阿苏瓦加（Ignacio Arsuaga）说“这种平等的地位，和对离婚率的促进将在短期内对社会造成损害。” 

开拓法

 西班牙的法律被视为开创性的同性恋权利运动，因为它给同性伴侣作为异性恋者同样的权利包括选择收养孩子。许多分析师认为对于马里亚诺拉霍伊（Mariano Rajoy）的保守政府来说，扭转这项法律是困难的，这会将同性恋家庭置于法律三不管的境地。

虽然有些人民党（PP）市长藐视法律，拒绝同性恋伴侣结婚，支持者大有人在，包括时任马德里市市长的司法部长加利亚多（Gallardo）。

 

Spain's highest court upheld the country's gay marriage law on Tuesday, rejecting an appeal lodged by the ruling People's Party seven years ago and confirming the legality of same-sex unions.

 

By the end of last year, more than 21,000 same-sex couples had tied the knot since Spain became the fourth country in the world to legalize gay marriage in July 2005.

 

Eight of the Constitutional Court's 11 judges voted in favor of the law, the court said in a statement, adding that the full ruling will be published in the next few days.

 

Justice Minister Alberto Ruiz-Gallardon said the government would respect the decision and leave the law as it stands.

 

"We're very, very pleased and particularly that the decision was 8-3 and not a close 6-5," Jesus Generelo, general secretary of the National Federation of Lesbians, Gays, Transsexuals and Bisexuals (FELGTB), said.

 

"I think it is clear that gay marriage is now a part of our society."

 

The law, introduced by the former government of Socialist Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero, was challenged in court by the People's Party (PP).

 

Hundreds of thousands of people marched in the streets during the Zapatero years against Socialist laws permitting gay marriage and liberalizing abortion, but surveys have shown a majority of Spaniards support allowing same-sex couples equal marriage rights with heterosexual couples.

 

The Roman Catholic church also strongly opposed the law and priests were active in calling on people to support the anti-same-sex protests during the Zapatero years.

 

Conservative and Catholic groups criticized Tuesday's court ruling. The Family Forum, which organized protests against same-sex marriage, demanded the government repeal the law.

 

"If the PP hides behind this sentence to now accept the Zapatero law, it will be reneging on the public commitments it made in 2004 and 2005 and failing to defend the ideas of its core supporters in a politically cowardly way," it said.

 

Another conservative group, Hazteoir.org, said: "Making marriage the same as other types of union is a direct attack on the Spanish family".

 

"This equal status, as well as the promotion of divorce, will cause damage to society in the short-term," the group's head, Ignacio Arsuaga, said.

 

PIONEERING LAW

Spain's law was seen as pioneering by gay rights campaigners since it gave same-sex couples the same rights as heterosexuals, including the option of adopting children.

 

Many analysts thought it would be difficult for the government of conservative Mariano Rajoy to reverse the law, which would have left gay families in legal limbo.

 

Although some PP mayors have defied the law, refusing to marry gay couples, others support it, including Justice Minister Gallardon when he served as mayor of Madrid.