Nearly 2,000 LGBTQ+ couples wed as Thai same-sex marriage law comes into force

I want to see the same-sex marriage law available in every country where LGBTQ+ couples are,

Chanatip chimed in

And we can build our family in our own way because I believe that every kind of love, every kind of family is beautiful as it is,

his partner Apiwat said

Don’t put a limit just because they are same sex or whatever they are. Love is a beautiful thing. We should not stop them,

Pisit said

We can love, we love equally, legally,

said Sappanyoo

I believe our heart is bigger.”

Striking a comparison between that “powerful country” and Thailand’s mid-sized population and smaller economy, he said

I want Thailand to be a country that inspires our neighbors in ASEAN to open the door to freedom for all humanity,

newly married Setthapas Na Thalang, 43, told the BBC

Today I feel particularly excited that we will have the law to protect both of us,

Chanatip Sirihirunchai told the BBC

In the eyes of the law biological parents are still recognized [in terms of] a man as a father and a woman as a mother,

Yangyuenpradorn said, ... meaning in

Every love is the same, every love is the same inside,

Porsch Apiwatsayree told broadcaster Sky News

Our next official plan is to change my paperwork, because I have him listed down as my brother. Now I can officially call him my spouse,

Sirihirunchai's new spouse Pisit told the British network

We're so happy that Thai people here — now they can express their love in public and they can be accepted worldwide,

Ruchaya Nillikan, 45, who was married at the ceremony, told CBS News' partner network BBC News

When the district officer was signing, I felt my tears brimming inside. We have fought for two years, but others have fought for 20 years, and today is a success,

said Klinthaworn, a live-streamer and salesperson who goes by the name Maple

We celebrated our couple, our marriage with our community. It was very exciting. But it was not legal,

Sangchai said

We wanted to get married awhile already, and once they approved the law, we just went ahead with it,

said Ploy, who is Conner’s cousin

I feel it has unlocked everything,

said Thanomkhet, a human resources manager who goes by his English name, Kevin

Even if these other countries don’t follow Thailand’s example of marriage equality, they can at least consider decriminalizing same-sex activities,

said Conner, 27, who was born and raised in Phuket

Paetongtarn Shinawatraprime Minister

23 January is the day that we all mark in history, that the rainbow flag has been planted in Thailand gracefully,

Paetongtarn posted in Thai on her Instagram account last week

I have counted down the date since the day the law passed for today,

said Pisit Sirihirunchai, a police officer who married his partner Chanatip Sirihirunchai

He doesn’t say he’s happy, but we can see from his action that he is now open about us,

he said

This means that with some same-sex couples, there can be cases where one parent has no legal protection or no legal connection to their own child,

he said