NASSAU, Bahamas (CMC) – The President of the Grand Bahama Human Rights Association (GBHRA), Fred Smith, has dismissed claims by a small group of pastors that the June 7 referendum on gender equality opens the way for same-sex marriages in the Bahamas.

Smith, a Queen’s Counsel, in a statement Wednesday said that the door for same-sex marriages have been open for decades.

“Whether intentionally or through a misunderstanding of the law, the naysayers have managed to spread this very damaging myth about the proposed Bills causing same-sex marriages.

“The simple truth, however, is that the Bills couldn’t possibly have the effect they claim, as the path to such unions has been enshrined in our supreme law since independence,” Smith said.

Both Prime Minister Perry Christie and the “YES BAHAMAS Campaign” say that the Bill Number Four to be voted upon in the referendum does not open the way for same-sex marriages here.

When he launched the campaign, Prime Minister Christie said that the proposed referendum to amend the constitution will not allow for same-sex marriages to become legal in the Bahamas.

He said that the Bahamas will only recognise marriage as being between a man and a woman.

For its part, YES BAHAMAS Campaign said “any suggestion that giving men and women equal rights would somehow lead to same-sex marriage does not have any basis in fact or law.

“The lawyers who drafted Amendment Four went out of their way to guide future courts, by defining ‘sex’ as ‘male or female’, so that no judge could interpret ‘sex’ as ‘sexual orientation’,” it added.

But Smith, who said the GBHRA  “fully supports the ‘Vote Yes’ campaign” is urging Bahamians to unite in the name of equality and send a clear message to the world that The Bahamas is a country which believes in fundamental human rights for all.

He said that Article 15 of the Bahamas Constitution already protects individuals from discrimination on a number of grounds, including on the basis of their sex.

“This was decided by the Supreme Court and The Court of Appeal in The Bahamas in 1996 in a case argued by myself and Maurice Glinton QC before Dame Joan Sawyer in Harbor Lobster and Fish Co and Jeffrey Butler vs Attorney General, when the courts held that discrimination on the grounds of ‘sex’ and ‘gender’ were unconstitutional.

“Therefore, any couple (men or women) denied the right to be married can mount a constitutional challenge on the basis of this protection and have the courts ratify their union,” he said, adding that “the Privy Council in London, have, since 2013, already recognised same-sex unions.

“So this referendum has nothing whatsoever to do with same-sex marriage and everything to do with ending discrimination against Bahamian women, and in some cases men, solely on the basis of their gender.

“There is nothing hidden or even controversial in what the government is trying to do; the intention is simply to amend another section of the constitution so as to bring it in line with the protections outlined in Article 15.”

Smith praised the Christie Government for following through on gender equality noting that the GBHRA will do everything in its power to encourage Bahamians to vote for equal rights.

“Bahamian women have waited far too long for this day and the referendum cannot be allowed to be derailed by groundless fear-mongering,” he said.

“Let me be clear: while gender equality and gay rights are completely separate issues, the GBHRA fully supports both these struggles in The Bahamas. We believe that the LGBT community should benefit from all the rights and privileges of other members of society, including the right to marry whomever they choose.

“The GBRHA will push for the success of this referendum, even as we continue to fight discrimination in all its forms – whether based on race, gender, ethnicity, nationality, sexual preference, or any other arbitrary, morally indefensible consideration,” he said.