Bermuda Becomes First Nation To Legalize Same-Sex Marriage, Then Abrogate It

Less than a year after legalizing same-sex marriage, Bermuda is reversing course, implementing a law that says same-sex couples can enter domestic partnerships but not marry.

Bermuda Gov. John Rankin, on Wednesday night approved the abrogates, outlawing same sex-marriage for the island.

The island’s supreme court ruled last year that such marriages must be recognized, though the measure approved by the legislature in December allows only domestic partnerships instead of same-sex marriage.

That vote came after a non-binding referendum in 2016 where majorities voted against same-sex marriage.

The international human rights grouped such as the LGBT-focused Human Rights Campaign had condemned the move, saying it “unconscionably ripped away the right of loving same-sex couples in Bermuda to marry”.