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Vanuatu does not recognise same-sex marriage, civil unions or any other form of recognition for same-sex couples. In November 2024, the Parliament of Vanuatu amended the Marriage Act to ban same-sex marriages.
While Vanuatu is almost exclusively Melanesian, there are five Polynesian outlier islands, Emae, Mele, Ifira, Futuna and Aniwa, which, similarly to many other Polynesian societies, recognise a third gender role in their cultures. In Samoa and American Samoa, such individuals are known as faʻafafine and are considered an integral part of Samoan society. Historically, if they wished to marry and have children, they would marry women, thus creating the possibility for marriages between two female-presenting individuals to be performed in Samoan culture. [1] In Emae, such third gender individuals are known as fakafafine, while in the Mele-Fila language they are fakaffine, [2] and in the Futuna-Aniwa language fakafine. [3] However, there is little literature on the third gender structure on these five islands, unlike in Samoa, Tonga and other Polynesian islands.
Discussions on the legal recognition of same-sex unions first emerged after New Zealand legalised same-sex marriage in 2013. [4] In October 2013, the Minister for Internal Affairs, Patrick Crowby, issued a warning that pastors are not allowed to preside over same-sex marriages. [5] Crowby referred to the Constitution of Vanuatu, which describes the country as "founded on traditional Melanesian values, faith in God, and Christian principles". [6] His announcement followed rumours that a same-sex marriage had been performed in a resort on Iririki. Crowby called for an investigation and said he "would not hesitate to revoke the licence of the pastor and the church involved", as well as penalise the resort for allowing the ceremony to take place on its premises. Pastor Alan Nafuki of the Presbyterian Church of Vanuatu, who was asked to comment by Radio New Zealand, said, "In Vanuatu, being a Christian country, we think it is best that government will review what happened in Vanuatu. And also the government of the day must give the side of the story, that the churches are voicing out our concern at the moment, but we need our government, also, to come out clear on the position of these marriage practises in Vanuatu. I would also say that we are so glad that a country like Australia has not legalised the gay and lesbian marriage. But we know that New Zealand has recently passed a legislation in parliament to have that done. But for Vanuatu, and of course I only speak on behalf of this country, we contend with a very high note that this should not be seen [to be practised] on our land [ sic ]." [7] The Constitution does not explicitly ban same-sex marriage. [8] [9]
In June 2014, the Vanuatu Law Commission discussed the issue of same-sex marriage, noting developments in neighbouring Australia and especially New Zealand. The Commission noted that the Marriage Act (French : Loi sur le mariage; Bislama : Mared Akt) did not explicitly prohibit the recognition of same-sex marriages. [10] It also stated that legalizing same-sex marriage would allow LGBT people to "fulfil their sexual preference or sexual orientation without repression or fear of being prosecuted", but found that religious opposition to legalization would be high. [11] In 2015, it issued a report that the Marriage Act "must expressly prohibit same-sex marriage in Vanuatu" and "must be consistent with the Control of Marriage Act in prohibiting the celebration of same-sex marriage[s] in Vanuatu." [12]
On 14 November 2024, the Parliament of Vanuatu amended the Marriage Act to ban same-sex marriages. Minister of Internal Affairs Andrew Solomon Napuat said, "When the law was passed, it made clear the government's full intention, along with our leaders, that every pastor who performs marriage ceremonies must understand that they cannot conduct a ceremony that is against the law and expect it to be registered." Napuat, who incorrectly stated that the Constitution banned same-sex marriage, added, "If anyone conducts a marriage that does not follow the spirit of the law passed today and seeks our registration, his or her license will be revoked to prevent further marriages. This applies to religious, civil, or traditional ceremonies." [13] [14] [15] The bill awaits President Nikenike Vurobaravu's signature.
Vanuatu's largest religious organisations are the Presbyterian Church, the Anglican Church of Melanesia and the Catholic Church. The Presbyterian Church expressed opposition to same-sex marriage in 2013, [7] and strongly condemned rumours that a same-sex marriage between two Australians had taken placed in Vanuatu. "We sent a statement that we produced last week for the minister for internal affairs. And we are requesting internal affairs to come up with some kind of policy. We need some immediate guidelines to guide our people here while waiting for the government. to put in legislation that would ban all these practises in Vanuatu [sic]", said Pastor Nafuki in 2013. [7]
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Vanuatu apologised in March 2021 over reports that a same-sex couple had been married in Port Vila the previous month by a church leader. The couple, who presented themselves as "a man and a woman", were later discovered to be of the same sex, and the marriage was annulled. [12] In May 2023, the Anglican Church, which has one diocese in Vanuatu, issued a statement "that while [it] will always extend and welcome with the love of God people with all forms of sexual orientation, it does not recognize nor will it bless same sex unions." [16] In 2024, a pastor of the Church of the Nazarene expressed support for government plans to forbid same-sex marriages, describing same-sex relationships as "contrary to Vanuatu's customs and constitution". [17]
In December 2023, the Holy See published Fiducia supplicans , a declaration allowing Catholic priests to bless couples who are not considered to be married according to church teaching, including the blessing of same-sex couples. [18]
The Polynesian languages form a genealogical group of languages, itself part of the Oceanic branch of the Austronesian family.
Air Vanuatu is an airline with its head office in Air Vanuatu House, Port Vila, Vanuatu. It is Vanuatu's national flag carrier, formerly operating to Australia, New Zealand, New Caledonia and points in the South Pacific. Its main base is Bauerfield International Airport, Port Vila. In May 2024 operations ceased with the airline placed into liquidation by the Government of Vanuatu. Limited domestic services resumed in August 2024.
Polynesians are an ethnolinguistic group comprising closely related ethnic groups native to Polynesia, which encompasses the islands within the Polynesian Triangle in the Pacific Ocean. They trace their early prehistoric origins to Island Southeast Asia and are part of the larger Austronesian ethnolinguistic group, with an Urheimat in Taiwan. They speak the Polynesian languages, a branch of the Oceanic subfamily within the Austronesian language family. The Indigenous Māori people form the largest Polynesian population, followed by Samoans, Native Hawaiians, Tahitians, Tongans, and Cook Islands Māori.
The Samoic–Outlier languages, also known as Samoic languages, are a purported group of Polynesian languages, encompassing the Polynesian languages of Samoa, Tuvalu, American Samoa, Tokelau, Wallis and Futuna, and Polynesian outlier languages in New Caledonia, the Solomon Islands, Vanuatu, Papua New Guinea, and the Federated States of Micronesia. The name "Samoic-Outlier" recognizes Samoan.
Polynesian outliers are a number of culturally Polynesian societies that geographically lie outside the main region of Polynesian influence, known as the Polynesian Triangle; instead, Polynesian outliers are scattered in the two other Pacific subregions, Melanesia and Micronesia. Based on archaeological and linguistic analysis, these islands are considered to have been colonized by seafaring Polynesians, mostly from the area of Tonga, Samoa and Tuvalu.
Faʻafafine are natal males who align with a third gender or gender role in Samoa. Fa'afafine are not assigned the role at birth, nor raised as girls due to a lack of daughters, as is often claimed in western media. Rather, their femininity emerges in early childhood, and Samoans recognize them as distinct from typical boys.
Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) rights in Fiji have evolved rapidly over the years. In 1997, Fiji became the second country in the world after South Africa to explicitly protect against discrimination based on sexual orientation in its Constitution. In 2009, the Constitution was abolished. The new Constitution, promulgated in September 2013, bans discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity or expression. However, same-sex marriage remains banned in Fiji and reports of societal discrimination and bullying are not uncommon.
Aniwa is a small island in the southernmost province of Tafea, Vanuatu.
The Republic of Vanuatu has the world's highest linguistic density per capita. Despite being a country with a population of less than 300,000, Vanuatu is home to 138 indigenous Oceanic languages.
Attitudes in Presbyterianism toward homosexuality vary, ranging from outright condemnation to complete acceptance.
Oceania is, like other regions, quite diverse in its laws regarding LGBT rights. This ranges from significant rights, including same-sex marriage – granted to the LGBT+ community in New Zealand, Australia, Guam, Hawaii, Easter Island, Northern Mariana Islands, Wallis and Futuna, New Caledonia, French Polynesia and the Pitcairn Islands – to remaining criminal penalties for homosexual activity in six countries and one territory. Although acceptance is growing across the Pacific, violence and social stigma remain issues for LGBT+ communities. This also leads to problems with healthcare, including access to HIV treatment in countries such as Papua New Guinea and the Solomon Islands where homosexuality is criminalised.
Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) persons in Vanuatu may face legal challenges not experienced by non-LGBTQ residents. Same-sex sexual activity is legal, but households headed by same-sex couples are not eligible for the same legal protections available to opposite-sex married couples. In November 2024, legislative action certified a ban on any religious, civil and traditional marriages between two people of the same sex.
Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people in Tokelau face legal challenges not experienced by non-LGBTQ residents. Both the male and female kinds of same-sex sexual activity are legal in Tokelau, but same-sex couples and households headed by same-sex couples are not eligible for the same legal protections available to opposite-sex married couples.
Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender (LGBT) people in American Samoa face legal challenges not experienced by non-LGBTQ residents. Same-sex sexual activity became legal in the territory in 1980, but same-sex couples may not marry. Same-sex couples married legally in other jurisdictions are recognized and must be treated equally under US federal law since 13 December 2022. American Samoa remains the only part of the United States along with select Native American tribal jurisdictions to enforce a ban on same-sex couples marrying.
Same-sex marriage is not currently performed in American Samoa, though same-sex marriages from other jurisdictions are recognized. On June 26, 2015, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Obergefell v. Hodges that the Fourteenth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution guarantees same-sex couples the right to marry. The ruling legalized same-sex marriage nationwide in the United States; however, it is uncertain how the ruling applies to American Samoa as the territory is unincorporated and unorganized. In July 2015, Governor Lolo Matalasi Moliga said he believed that the Supreme Court's ruling does not apply to American Samoa.
Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people in Samoa face legal challenges not faced by non-LGBT residents. Sexual contact between men is illegal, punishable by up to seven years’ imprisonment, but the law is not enforced.
Emae, Emwae or Mae language, is a Polynesian outlier language of Vanuatu.
The 2017 Pacific Mini Games were held in Port Vila, Vanuatu, in December 2017. It was the tenth edition of the Pacific Mini Games, and the second to be hosted in Vanuatu.
Fiji does not recognise same-sex marriage, civil unions or any other form of recognition for same-sex couples. The Marriage Act defines marriage as "the voluntary union of one man to one woman", although the Constitution of Fiji guarantees equal protection before the law to all citizens regardless of sexual orientation.
The Federated States of Micronesia does not recognise same-sex marriage, civil unions or any other form of recognition for same-sex couples. Laws in its four states do not permit marriages between people of the same sex.
Status of same-sex unions around the world | ||
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| Europe |
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| Oceania |
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| Antarctica |
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