Namibia court postponed same-sex marriage recognition to next year

Same sex couple who married outside Namibia want their marriage to be recognised in the country.

RUSTENBURG, May 21 (ANA) – The high court in Windhoek reserved judgment on whether same sex marriages concluded in other countries are recognised in Namibia or not, local media reported on Friday.

Daily newspaper The Namibian reported the court reserved judgement after hearing oral arguments on two cases in which the government was being sued to have same-sex marriages concluded in other countries recognised in Namibia.

Judge Hannelie Prinsloo postponed the delivery of the judgement to January 20, 2022, but said the decision could be announced before that date if it was available earlier.

The court heard two cases in which it was asked to declare that the marriage between a Namibian citizen and a non-Namibian spouse of the same sex is recognised in Namibia.

Namibian citizen Johann Potgieter and his South African husband Daniel Digashu, as well as German citizen, Anita Seiler-Lilles and her Namibian spouse are suing the government to have their marriages, concluded in South Africa in 2015 and in Germany in 2017 respectively, to be recognised in Namibia.

Meanwhile The Namibian further reported that twin daughters born through surrogacy in South Africa to same sex couple Phillip Luhl and Guillermo Delgado, were expected to arrive in Namibia on Friday night.

This was after the government on Monday, issued the twins with emergency travel documents, but stated that they have not been granted Namibian citizenship.

In April the Windhoek High Court dismissed the couple’s application to allow their twin daughters born through surrogacy to enter Namibia.

Maya and Paula who were born via surrogacy to Namibian Phillip Luhl and his husband Guillermo Delgado on March 13 in Durban, South Africa.

Luhl filed an application in the high court last month asking the court to order the minister of home affairs, to issue emergency travel certificates or to allow him to enter Namibia with the two babies.

Luhl and Delgado got married in South Africa in 2014.

According to local newspaper Informante, Luhl and Guillermo Delgado, a Mexican, appear on the South African issued birth certificates as the rightful parents.

– African News Agency (ANA); Editing by Naomi Mackay