Portugal's President Anibal Cavaco Silva says he will sign a law legalising same-sex marriage passed by parliament earlier this year.

The law had been fiercely opposed by conservatives in the Catholic country.

The ratification will make Portugal the sixth country in Europe to allow same-sex marriage after Belgium, Spain, Norway, the Netherlands and Sweden.

The announcement comes days after Pope Benedict, on a visit to Portugal, told pilgrims they should oppose the law. ...

But parliament rejected proposals to allow homosexual couples to adopt.

Labels: adoption, gay marriage, Portugal

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Catholic Portugal, traditionally one of Europe's most socially conservative countries, is expected to approve the legalization of gay marriage on Friday with a minimum of fuss.

With the governing Socialists and other left-wing parties enjoying a strong majority, the new law is likely to sail through the first reading debate and gain final approval before a visit by Pope Benedict XVI, due in Portugal in May. ...

According to poll conducted late last year by the Eurosondagem institute, while a strong majority (68.4 per cent) of Portuguese are opposed to adoptions by same-sex couples, they are more evenly divided when it comes to gay marriage with 49.5 per cent against, with 45.5 per cent in favour. ...

Deputies are also expected on Friday to vote two other bills submitted by the Green party, the Left Bloc and others which would grant gay and lesbian couples the right to adopt children.

If the gay marriage proposals do pass through parliament, they will the have to go through a parliamentary commission before coming back for the final approval.

Labels: adoption, Catholic Church, gay marriage, Portugal

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HAVING sex without a condom is good for your mental health, according to controversial research conducted by a leading Scottish psychologist.

Professor Stuart Brody concludes that unprotected heterosexual sex can significantly boost men and women's mental wellbeing.

Conversely, Mr Brody claims that heterosexual sex with a condom is associated with poorer mental health, problems with dealing with stress and even conditions such as depression.

The claims were immediately criticised by sexual health campaigners, who warned that unsafe sex leads to unwanted pregnancies and diseases.

Mr Brody, of the West of Scotland University, Paisley, believes that mankind is biologically programmed to enjoy unprotected sex because it gives couples an evolutionary advantage and maximises the chances of reproducing. ...

Mr Brody based his conclusions on a study of the sexual behaviour of 99 women and 111 men in Portugal. They filled in questionnaires about the pleasure they derived from their sex lives and contraception use.

Using a measure of psychological health developed in Canada, Mr Brody concluded that condom use was associated with members of the sample who exhibited problems dealing with stress.

Those that had unprotected sex appeared to be able to deal with stress in a more mature way by taking effective action. They also had better mental health.

"The more often people are using condoms independent of age, independent of the nature of their relationship, the greater use of immature defence mechanisms against stress.

"In contrast, the more often they have sex without condoms, the better their mental health and the more mature their mechanisms."

Labels: contraception, Portugal, reproduction, sex

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Portugal's Constitutional Court on Friday upheld the country's ban on gay marriage, rejecting a challenge by two lesbians who are seeking to wed.

The court said its five judges ruled 3-2 against an appeal lodged by the women two years ago.

Teresa Pires and Helena Paixao, divorced mothers in their 30s who have been together as a couple since 2003, were turned away by a Lisbon registry office when they attempted to marry in 2006 because the law stipulates that marriage is between people of different genders.

Portugal's constitution, however, also forbids discrimination based on sexual orientation. The women took the case to a Lisbon court, which rejected their unprecedented challenge. ...

In the meantime, the two intend to take their legal battle to the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg, France, she said.

Gay marriage is permitted in five European countries — Belgium, the Netherlands, Spain, Sweden and Norway.

In Portugal, which is an overwhelmingly Roman Catholic country, efforts to introduce gay marriage have hit resistance from religious groups and conservative lawmakers.

Labels: Catholic Church, discrimination law, Europe, gay marriage, Portugal

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