Source: The Guardian

By Tom Phillips

A Chinese judge has rejected a gay couple’s attempt to secure the right to marry in the country’s first same-sex marriage case.

Sun Wenlin, 27, from the central province of Hunan, had sued the civil affairs bureau in the city of Changsha for the right to marry his 37-year-old partner Hu Mingliang, a security guard.

Sun decided to take legal action after authorities refused the couple’s request to have their relationship officially recognised as a marriage last June, on their first anniversary together.

In January a court in Changsha agreed to hear their case, which activists said was the first of its kind in China.

At lunchtime on Wednesday a judge in Changsha announced he was dismissing the case shortly after the three-hour trial hearing had ended.

Speaking to the Guardian after the unexpectedly quick verdict, Sun said he believed the court had not taken enough time to consider their case and had been “too cautious”.

He vowed to continue his quest for the right to marry.

“We will continue to appeal. I think it is worthwhile. It catches people’s attention and it will help our opinions spread,” Sun said.

“What we are trying to achieve is freedom and equality.”

Shi Fulong, the lawyer representing the couple, claimed the court had provided insufficient grounds for dismissing the case but said gay marriage was destined to become a reality in China in the not-so-distant future.

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