為什麼同性婚姻在澳大利亞不合法
Why same-sex marriage
isn t legal in Australia
為什麼同性婚姻在澳大利亞不合法
By Ben Westcott, CNN
Updated 5:27 AM ET, Mon
September 4, 2017
翻譯：怪人校對：查理
Thousands attended a rally calling for a yes vote in Melbourne on August 26
8月26日的墨爾本，數以千計的人集合起來呼籲大家投出支持的一票。
In just over a week, ballots for a nationwide postal vote will be sent out asking Australians whether or not they want same-sex marriage.
僅一周多後，調查是否支持同性婚姻的郵寄投票將會寄往澳大利亞的全國各地。
But advocates of gay marriage are pushing back against the vote that asks whether the law should be changed to allow same-sex unions.
但同性婚姻的支持者們卻反對這次調查是否應該修改法律、允許同性結合的投票。
Their challenge will be heard by Australia s High Court in Melbourne on Tuesday, with a ruling expected Wednesday.
墨爾本的澳大利亞最高法院將於周二就他們發起的挑戰舉行聽證會，並會在周三做出裁決。
（譯者註：本文發布較早，實際是在9月7日，即周四做出裁決，駁回了挑戰，而並非周三）
It s a right many other Western nations have already recognized. So why is the issue so divisive in Australia?
這項權利已被許多其他西方國家所認可。那麼為何這個議題在澳大利亞引發了如此大的分歧？
What do Australians think about gay marriage?
澳大利亞人如何看待同性婚姻？
Almost every poll in the past decade has shown a majority of Australians support same-sex marriage.
過去十年內，幾乎每次民調都表明多數澳大利亞人支持同性婚姻。
The latest Newspoll survey, released on August 22, said 63% of Australians were in favor of legalizing marriage between two men or two women. Just 30% said they were opposed, with the rest undecided.
8月22日，新聞民調（Newspoll）最新發布的調查結果顯示，63%的澳大利亞人支持兩男或兩女間的婚姻合法化。只有30%的人表示反對，其餘人持保留意見。
Overall, about four-fifths of Australians are accepting of homosexuality in general, Pew Research data published in 2013 reveals, one of the highest numbers in the world.
皮尤研究中心（Pew Research）於2013年公布的數據表明，總體上，大約有五分之四的澳大利亞人接受同性戀，是全球範圍內最高的支持率之一。
Gay rights in Australia haven t always been fast to arrive -- homosexual sex was illegal in parts of Australia up until 1997 -- but on marriage equality their opinion now seems clear.
在澳大利亞，同性戀權利並非由來已久——1997年之前，同性性行為在澳大利亞部分地區仍被列入非法範疇——但在婚姻平權方面，他們的意見現在越發明確。
Why is it taking so long?
緣何曠日持久？
In short, politics.
簡而言之，政治。
In 2004, then-prime minister John Howard changed the Marriage Act to clarify the definition of marriage as "the union of a man and a woman to the exclusion of all others."
2004年，時任總理的約翰·霍華德（John Howard）修改了《婚姻法》以明確婚姻的定義為「一男一女成立的具有排他性的結合」。
Since then, the campaign to bring same-sex marriage to Australia has slowly ramped up but no government has committed to passing it.
從那時起，推進同性婚姻的運動逐漸興起，但沒有一屆政府致力於通過同性婚姻合法的提案。
In 2013, outspoken conservative and former trainee priest Tony Abbott became prime minister, apparently eliminating all hope of same-sex marriage during his term in office.
2013年，曾經擔任見習牧師的、口無遮攔的保守派人托尼·阿博特（Tony Abbott）成為總理，顯然打消了人們在他任期內讓同性婚姻合法化的希望。
But in 2015, after loud demands from some of his ministers, Abbott announced there would be a national vote, or plebiscite, to decide the future of marriage equality.
但2015年，在部分內閣成員的強烈要求下，阿博特宣布將會舉辦一場全國性的投票，即「非強制性全民公投」（註：此處指plebiscite，此類公投不針對修憲，投票結果無法律約束力，政府無須依此行事，可理解為「意向公投」。與此相對的是referendum，即所有合法選民強制投票，決定是否修憲，公投結果具有法律效力，政府必須遵守，可理解為「修憲公投」），以此決定婚姻平權的未來。
To hold the plebiscite, the government needed money and to get that money it need to pass legislation through Australia s parliament.
為舉辦此次公投，政府需要資金，而資金的獲得則需要聯邦議會通過公投提案。
Two attempts at passing legislation in 2016 and 2017 failed after the opposition Labor party and Greens party helped block it, calling for a simple parliamentary vote legalizing marriage equality instead.
由於聯邦反對黨工黨和綠黨的阻撓，2016年及2017年通過提案的兩次嘗試均以失敗告終，兩黨希望以常規議會投票的方式來推行同性婚姻合法化。
After the last attempt, the government, now under Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull, said it would instead hold a national postal vote
在最終嘗試無果後，現任總理麥肯·騰博（Malcolm Turnbull）的領導下的政府宣布將會舉行一次全國範圍的郵寄投票。
"This is about the world of politics, not the Australian people. The Australian people have made their minds up on marriage equality a long time ago," Tiernan Brady, executive director at the Equality Campaign, told CNN.
「這是一場政治上的博弈，而不是人民之間的鬥爭。澳大利亞人早在很久之前就表明了自己在婚姻平權方面的態度」，平權組織的負責人蒂爾南·布拉迪（Tiernan Brady）向CNN表示。
"Australia has a higher approval rating for marriage equality than some countries that have marriage equality," added Brady.
「澳大利亞對婚姻平權的支持率比一些已經實現了婚姻平權的國家還高」，布拉迪補充道。
Why are same-sex marriage advocates opposed to the vote?
為什麼同性婚姻支持者反對這場投票？
Campaigners in favor of gay marriage are resolute in their opposition to the postal vote.
同性婚姻陣營支持者堅決反對此次郵寄投票。
They say the issue should be resolved by parliament, fearing that a brutal and vicious campaign against same-sex marriage by opponents could be damaging to LGBT people.
他們表示該議題應該交由聯邦議會解決，同時擔心同性婚姻反對者們組織的野蠻兇惡的抗議活動可能會對LGBT群體造成傷害。
"This is a debate in the public sphere about (LGBT people s) worth in society, their value and that s a hard debate to be a part of," Brady said.
「這是一場公共領域關於（LGBT人群的）社會價值的爭論，討論他們的價值觀，同時也是一場讓人很難參與的爭論」，布拉迪談到。
Already posters have been put in major cities calling homosexuality "a tragedy of a family," while a government lawmaker compared a loving LGBT relationship to hanging with his "cycling mates."
許多城市已經出現了宣揚同性戀為「家門不幸」的海報，同時，一位政府議員則將LGBT間的感情和與「騎行夥伴」間的友情相提並論。
But prime minister Turnbull told LGBT Australians they had to trust their fellow voters.
諷刺的是，總理騰博卻告訴澳大利亞LGBT人士要相信投票的同胞。
Lawmaker likens same-sex marriage to his friendship with cycling buddies
議員將同性婚姻關係比作他和騎友間兄弟關係
"Australians are able and have demonstrated that they can have a respectful discussion," he said.
「澳大利亞人有能力且已展示出他們可以展開一場體面的討論」，他談到。
Adding to the drama is the fact that the postal vote is non-binding -- and this is the crux of a court challenge being made by gay marriage proponents, including non-aligned politician Andrew Wilkie, in Australia s High Court.
關於這場鬧劇的另外一個現實是郵寄投票不具備約束力——這是包括無黨派人士安德魯·威爾基（Andrew Wilkie）在內，很多同性婚姻支持者向澳洲最高法院法庭發起挑戰的核心。
And if they knock it down, it will be back to the drawing board for gay marriage in Australia.
如果他們挑戰成功，澳大利亞的同性婚姻議題將會回到起點。
Australia would not be the first country to have a national vote on same-sex marriage -- Ireland voted to legalize marriage equality in 2015.
澳大利亞不是第一個發起同性婚姻全國投票的國家——愛爾蘭在2015年就舉行過同性婚姻合法化的投票。
"(But Ireland) had to have a referendum because it was a constitutional requirement," Brady said. "We ve always said the way this should be done (in Australia) is the way all issues pertaining to people s rights are dealt with, by parliament."
「但由於憲法規定，愛爾蘭必須採取強制性公投（此處指referendum）」，布拉迪說。「我們一直堅持，這個議題（在澳大利亞）的處理方式應該與其他所有關係公民權利的議題一樣，交由聯邦議會來解決。」
If Australians vote yes is gay marriage legal?
如果澳大利亞人投支持票，同性婚姻就合法了嗎？
Unlike Australian federal elections, where voting is compulsory, the postal vote is voluntary and also non-binding.
與澳洲的聯邦選舉的強制性投票不同，郵寄投票是自願性且不具備約束力的。
This means the government is not legally obliged to do anything and would have to pass legislation to make same-sex marriage law if Australia votes in favor.
這意味著政府在法律層面無義務採取任何行動。即使投票結果為支持，政府也不必須通過同性婚姻法。
Turnbull has said he will introduce legislation if same-sex marriage is approved by the population, but several conservative politicians have already said they d vote against same-sex marriage no matter what the postal vote says.
騰博說如果同性婚姻被民眾認可，他將會發起提案。不過一些保守派政客已表示無論郵寄投票結果如何，他們都會在同性婚姻這個問題上投反對票。
Defending the postal vote, the prime minister said his government was obligated to carry out a national vote as that was what he had promised voters at the last election.
為維護郵寄投票，總理表示在他領導下的政府有義務去實現全國性投票，因為這是上次競選時他承諾過選民的。
"Strong leaders carry out their promises. Weak leaders break them ... You heard me, again, say again and again that every Australian will have a say on this issue," he told journalists in August.
「強大的領導者實現他們的諾言，軟弱的領導者違背他們的諾言……你已經聽過我的多次強調，每一個澳大利亞公民在這個問題上都有發言權」，8月時他對記者講。
Opposition Labor party leader Bill Shorten has repeatedly pledged to make same-sex marriage law quickly if he is elected as prime minister, but has also said he would campaign for a "yes" vote in the postal vote.
聯邦反對黨工黨領袖比爾·肖滕（Bill Shorten）多次承諾如果當選總理，他將會迅速推動同性婚姻立法，但同時他也表示將在本次郵寄投票中站支持陣營。
"(We) will not let gay Australians and young gay people cope with this survey, this evaluation of their relationships, on their own," Shorten told parliament in August.
「（我們）不會讓澳大利亞的同志群體和年輕的同志人群獨自應對這場對他們關係進行評判的調查」，8月時肖滕告知議會。
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