在臺灣 實現同性婚姻合法的目標不再遙遠(上)

TAIPEI, Taiwan — Sitting in the third row of a small chapel, Ms Liou wiped away tears of joy as her sister exchanged wedding vows with her new husband.

臺灣台北——當自己的手足同胞和她的新婚丈夫互相許下婚姻誓言時，坐在一座小教堂第三排的劉女士拭去了高興的淚水。

A few feet away, Ms Liou’s partner stood alone, maintaining their public charade of being just friends.

幾步開外，她的伴侶獨自站着，保持着她們在公共場合只是朋友的假象。

Ms Liou — who asked that her full name not be disclosed because she had yet to come out as gay — said she would feel more comfortable holding her partner’s hand or embracing her in a society that did not view their way of life as out of the ordinary.

因爲還沒出櫃而要求不公開自己全名的劉女士說，如果能生活在一個不認爲她們的生活方式不正常的社會裏，她在牽着伴侶的手或是擁抱她時會更踏實。

If we could realize marriage equality in Taiwan, people in our situation could lead fuller lives, she said.

如果能在臺灣實現婚姻平權，處於我們這種情況的人的人生會更完整，她說。

That day could be coming soon, although it is not assured.

那一天或許很快便會到來，但這也不是一件板上釘釘的事情。

Bills that would legalize same-sex marriage are moving through Taiwan’s legislative system, bringing the island closer to becoming the first place in Asia with marriage equality.

使同性婚姻合法化的議案已進入臺灣的立法系統，從而讓該島距離成爲亞洲首個實現婚姻平等的地區更近了一步。

Some predict it could happen early next year.

一些人預測可能明年初便能實現婚姻平等。

The political climate in Taiwan has never been more favorable.

臺灣的政治環境從來沒像現在這麼有利過。

President Tsai Ing-wen, who took office in May, has spoken out in favor of same-sex marriage.

5月上臺的總統蔡英文(Tsai Ing-wen)發聲支持同性婚姻。

Her Democratic Progressive Party, which is largely sympathetic to gay rights, holds the majority in the Legislative Yuan.

她領導的民主進步黨基本上支持同性戀權益，並在立法院佔有多數席位。

Some cities are already extending symbolic recognition of same-sex relationships.

一些城市已經在擴大對同性關係的象徵性認可。

In May, Kaohsiung became the first city in Taiwan to register same-sex couples.

5月，高雄成爲臺灣首個爲同性伴侶登記的城市。

Shortly afterward, Taipei, the capital, followed suit.

不久後，首都臺北亦效仿高雄。

This month, Kaohsiung issued its first same-sex partnership cards to gay couples, and the Taipei city government announced that it would soon do the same.

本月，高雄向同性伴侶頒發首批同性伴侶卡，臺北市政府則宣佈很快便會加入高雄的行列。

The deputy director of the Kaohsiung civil affairs bureau, Chen Shu-fang, said the cards would make it easier to contact partners in emergencies and for hospitals to include partners in medical decisions.

高雄民政局副局長陳淑芳表示，伴侶卡會降低在緊急情況下聯繫伴侶，以及醫院在做出醫療決定時將伴侶考慮進來的難度。

In Asia, Taiwan is an island of relative acceptance for gays, lesbians and those of other sexual orientations.

在亞洲，臺灣是一個相對更接受男女同性戀和有其他性取向的人士的島嶼。

In some Asian countries, including Brunei, homosexual acts are illegal.

在包括文萊在內的部分亞洲國家，同性戀行爲是違法的。

The governing Democratic Progressive Party; the opposition Nationalist Party, or Kuomintang; and the smaller New Power Party have each proposed same-sex marriage bills.

執政黨民進黨、反對黨國民黨以及規模較小的時代力量黨均提出了各自的同性婚姻議案。

As of Friday, the bills were in the hands of a Legislative Yuan judiciary committee.

截至週五，這些議案都已提交至立法院下屬的一個司法委員會。

Taiwan has considered marriage equality before.

臺灣以前就考慮過婚姻平等。

Hsiao Bi-khim, a legislator from the Democratic Progressive Party, submitted a same-sex marriage bill in 2005 that was blocked outright.

民進黨立法委員蕭美琴(Hsiao Bi-khim)在2005年提交了一項同性婚姻議案，但該議案被徹底否決。

In 2013, a bill reached the committee review stage but stalled.

2013年，一項議案已經到了委員會審查的階段，後來仍被擱置。

Now, Ms Hsiao said, things are different.

如今，蕭美琴說，情況不同了。