After 23 years together, Susan Nicholls
and her partner, Chris Healy, were among
the first couples in line as the ACT opened
its doors to registering gay and lesbian
partnerships this week.
''We were the first people there, standing
in the freezing cold on Monday
morning waiting for the [registrar's] office
to open,'' Dr Nicholls, a communications
lecturer at the University of Canberra,
said.
She and Ms Healy, a former consultant
to the bushfire recovery centre, were
joined in their vigil by another couple,
who took their children with them.
''We all charged in together and registered
our relationships, took pictures of
each other and there were hugs and kisses
all round.''
After registering their relationship, Dr
Nicholls and Ms Healy celebrated with a
champagne breakfast in the company of a
close friend.
''So we had a lovely morning,'' she said.
''But it was much less than it could have
been, which is a great disappointment.''
The civil partnerships are a watered-
down version of what the ACT Government
first legislated for.
Its original plan was to introduce legally
recognised, marriage-like ceremonies for
same-sex couples.
But Attorney-General Simon Corbell
was forced to back down after the Howard
government used its constitutional power
to overturn territory laws, and again when
the Rudd Government threatened to do
the same. Instead, same-sex couples can
now register their relationships, after
which they will be legally regarded as
being in a domestic partnership.
Couples can choose from four options,
ranging from handing their paperwork
over the counter, to having a ''commitment
ceremony'' conducted by the
deputy registrar-general. Registering a
relationship costs $192.50.
Dr Nicholls described the fight for
recognition as ''a very long journey'' to
get to a very unsatisfactory outcome.
''But under the circumstances, it was
the best that we could do,'' she said.
Mr Corbell said it was an exciting time
for many gay and lesbian Canberrans, but
more needed to be done to achieve true
equality. The Government would continue
to fight for equal rights for all
Canberrans.
Dr Nicholls said she was pleased to be
able to establish her relationship legally,
but she looked forward to the day she and
Ms Healy could enjoy the same rights as
their married friends.
She urged heterosexual couples to
stand up for the rights of all Canberrans.
''All you ever hear is the far-right
Christian lobby saying it's a disgrace unto
God and all that rubbish,'' she said.
''And politicians think that's the only
opinion out there. But it's so not true, and
when good people say nothing, injustice
prevails.''