During the will of the people in a series of referendums last year more than 2 thirds of voters said marriage should only be defined as a union between a man and a woman but thats far from the minds of these rights activists celebrating what is a landmark day. All right joining me now is kyle nighties an elegy rights researcher for Human Rights Watch in new york mean this has to be seen as a Great Success for taiwans elegy community what was your reaction when you heard the news well its incredibly gratifying to see that the many years of advocacy on the ground in taiwan have paid off but i think over and above the victory in the outcome of same sex marriage recognition before the law is that this is an example of a Government Standing up against popular sentiment in some cases this is an example of a government saying we protect our minorities and respect them and recognize them as
equal before the law even when that might be on top kill or i think thats one of the Takeaway Messages f
equal before the law even when that might be on top kill or i think that s one of the takeaway messages from this whole thing regardless of whether same sex marriage is on the agenda in any particular country taiwan stands as a strong example of a government standing between an oppressed and marginalized minority and some people in public who would rather scapegoat and slur them and support them. as you mentioned i mean not everyone in taiwan is celebrating this news i mean how divided is the country on this issue. well. you know there was a referendum last fall on this issue it was a confusing referendum it had multiple questions and some delicate phrasing around exactly what people were trying to answer but ultimately when the votes were counted more than 2 thirds of voters in taiwan said they opposed same sex
there i would say, look, you have to totally reintroduce yourself. bill: martha: you think she s capable of that, at this point in her life, she s a remarkable woman, it is historic she s the first female speaker of the house but comes across as buying into everything, that she pushed for, which included a fletremens amount of new spending and that is not where the american people appear to be, which is cutting spending and the deficit. those were the two big takeaway messages from the election. i think she s capable of it and a great politician and i think she understands, or will come to understand. martha: where she needs to be. i think what it is, a lot of it is atmospheric and needs to remind people in ways big and also ways small, the democrats are there because they are the party that wants to help people, and we as democrats, that is what we re for that is the big issue, how do you effectively help people. we think the republicans are