TAIPEI — Love won in Taiwan as legislators approved same-sex marriage in a historic first for Asia.<br /><br />BBC reports that in 2017, the island nation's Constitutional Court ruled that homosexuals had the right to legally marry.<br /><br />The government was given two years to enact legislation, either by amending the current laws or passing new ones.<br /><br />Taiwanese lawmakers debated three different draft bills on same-sex marriage. On Friday, just a week before the May 24 deadline, they passed the most progressive one by 66 to 27 votes.<br /><br />CNN reports that the winning bill, backed by lawmakers from the Democratic Progressive Party and LGBTQ groups, was the only one to use the word "marriage."<br /><br />It's the only one to offer some adoption rights to homosexual couples, allowing them to adopt a partner's biological child.<br /><br />The bill was a definite win for marriage equality, sparking widespread celebration both in Taiwan and among LGBTQ folks in the region.<br /><br />Just a day later, the country held its first joint wedding ceremony for gay and straight couples in Taipei, according to CNA.<br /><br />But despite this very clear win for gender equality, the bill doesn't grant full marriage rights,so the fight is still on for adoption rights and transnational marriages."
