Strasbourg, France, Jun 29, 2010 / 11:52 am
The European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg, France has ruled that European countries currently prohibiting same-sex marriage are not violating the human rights of their citizens.
In a 4-3 ruling, the court ruled against a lawsuit filed by two Austrian men who were denied permission to marry in 2002 by Austrian officials.
The homosexual couple argued that their right to contract marriage, according to the European Convention of Human Rights, had been violated. However, the court ruled that the convention did not address the topic of same-sex marriage, an issue that it said falls under the authority of individual states.
In its decision, the court acknowledged “an emerging European consensus towards legal recognition of same-sex couples.” Nevertheless, it continued, “there is not yet a majority of States providing for legal recognition of same-sex couples.”