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FACTBOX-State of same-sex marriage around the world

by Lin Taylor | @linnytayls | Thomson Reuters Foundation
Friday, 30 June 2017 13:09 GMT

Volker Beck of Germany's environmental party Die Gruenen (The Greens) celebrates after a session of the lower house of parliament Bundestag voted on legalising same-sex marriage, in Berlin, Germany June 30, 2017. REUTERS/Fabrizio Bensch

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Facts and figures about same-sex marriage in the wake of Germany's vote on Friday to legalise the union

By Lin Taylor

LONDON, June 30 (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - Germany has voted on Friday to legalise same-sex marriage after Chancellor Angela Merkel did an about-face that freed members of her ruling conservative bloc to follow their personal conscience rather than the party line.

The parliament voted by 393 votes in favour of same-sex marriage to 226 against. The measure will likely be signed into law by the president some time after July 7.

Many other European countries, including France, Britain and Spain, have already legalised same-sex marriage. The newly-elected Prime Minister of Malta, Joseph Muscat has also pledged to legalise gay marriage in the country.

Here are the facts about same-sex marriage around the world:

* Aside from Germany, same-sex marriage is legal in 22 countries : Argentina, Belgium, Brazil, Britain, Canada, Colombia, Denmark, Finland, France, Greenland, Iceland, Luxembourg, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Uruguay, United States.

* In some of these countries, such as Mexico and Britain, marriage is only open to same-sex couples in some regions. Northern Ireland is the only part of the United Kingdom where same-sex marriage is not allowed.

* The first country to legalise same-sex marriage was the Netherlands in 2001.

* In Africa, where homosexuality is a crime in many countries and can lead to imprisonment or the death penalty, South Africa alone has granted the same access to gay couples. Same-sex marriage legislation came into force there in 2006.

* There are no countries in Asia that allow same-sex couples to marry, or enter civil unions of any kind. In May, Taiwan's constitutional court ruled that same-sex couples have the right to legally marry, the first such ruling in Asia.

* Almost one in three adults globally believe people of the same sex should be allowed to marry, a survey of almost 100,000 people in 65 countries showed in 2016.

SOURCES: International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association (ILGA), Reuters

(Reporting by Lin Taylor @linnytayls, Editing by Ros Russell; Please credit the Thomson Reuters Foundation, the charitable arm of Thomson Reuters that covers humanitarian issues, conflicts, global land and property rights, modern slavery and human trafficking, women's rights, climate change and resilience. Visit http://news.trust.org to see more stories)

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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