Home affairs in Port Elizabeth refuses to marry gay couple

01 Feb 2016 | Admin Author

A Port Elizabeth man seeking to set a date for a civil union has been turned away at the department of home affairs offices in North End.

Lance Ledingham says two weeks ago he wanted to set a date for his marriage to his partner Craig Durant.

Ledingham says a manager at the offices turned him away, saying home affairs branched do not conduct same sex marriages.

He says he felt completely humiliated..

"I just felt absolutely humiliated. It has taken me 2 weeks to come forward, but it was also just how to deal with this. I was angry and upset. This kind of thing has been dealt with so it came as a complete shock"

Meanwhile, The Eastern Cape Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender Intersex Organisation says this is an ongoing problem

Organisation Chairperson, Zama Mzimela says she does not understand why this is happening again..
"We were promised that any homosexual couple that comes to home affairs won't have a problem to get married. It is a problem, because it was addressed and then there was an agreement, and apology saying it would not happen again" she said.