OTTAWA, ON-An appeal of a court decision sanctioning same-sex marriage will not be allowed, the Supreme Court of Canada ruled October 9.

When the Ontario Court of Appeal ruled in June that gays and lesbians could marry in Halpern v. Ontario, the federal government made no move to challenge the decision.

Subsequently, the Association for Marriage and the Family in Ontario and the Interfaith Coalition on Marriage and the Family launched their own request to appeal on behalf of supporters of the traditional definition of marriage.

However, several groups in favour of changing the definition filed motions to quash the request. The court agreed, although they gave no reasons given for denying the hearing.

Because they had intervenor status in the previous court cases on the definition of marriage, the coalitions argued that they should be able to appeal the June ruling to the Supreme Court.

"Marriage belongs to all Canadians," says Darrel Reid, president of Focus on the Family Canada, a member of the Association for Marriage and the Family in Ontario. "It is not the property of the courts, the federal government or gay lobby groups. The Supreme Court has done a disservice to Canadians."

Reid says the definition of marriage is one of the most important public policy issues facing Canada, and that the legal process should not have been abandoned.

"The Supreme Court of Canada should have taken the opportunity to debate the fundamental issue and not just the minor details."

Opportunity lost

Bruce Clemenger, president of the Evangelical Fellowship of Canada, the lead partner in the Interfaith Coalition on Marriage and Family coalition, says the groups "have lost an important opportunity to express the concerns of millions of Canadians.

"When the challenges to the definition of marriage were started in 2000, it was expected they would eventually be decided by the Supreme Court of Canada."

Canadian Alliance Justice Critic Vic Toews says the decision effectively slams another door shut on the same-sex marriage debate.

"After the Liberal Government failed in its responsibility to appeal the lower court decision, citizens’ groups were forced to bring this matter to the Supreme Court themselves," he says.

"Canadians who support the traditional definition of marriage placed a lot of hope in this appeal being heard.  The court decision effectively disenfranchises these Canadians from participating in a debate that will result in far-reaching social change."

The Supreme Court intends to consider a draft bill legalizing homosexual marriage next April. Meanwhile, the federal government has put three questions to the court in an attempt to build an iron-clad legal argument for the legislation.

If Ottawa introduces the legislation, it will make Canada the world’s third country to allow same-sex marriage.