Hollande to sign gay marriage bill

PARIS - French President Francois Hollande announced he would sign the bill on gay marriage into law the next day after it was approved by the Constitutional Council on Friday.

The validation of the long-disputed bill will open adoption and marriage to the same-sex couples. It made France the 14th country that legalized the gay marriage around the world.

The approval of the bill came in less than a month after it was passed by the French parliament on April 23.

As one of the campaign promises by Hollande, the "marriage for all" proposal has evoked wide arguments among French society. Former prime minister Jean-Pierre Raffarin once accused the Socialist government of adding "societal division to social crisis".

For months, the controversial bill have taken tens of thousands of French citizen, mainly the right-wingers and religious groups, to the streets in protesting.

But with the final approval of the Constitutional council, the opponents motion has failed. The Socialists hailed the success, seeing it "a victory for the French republic and for equality", said Herlem Desir, a senior party's leader. Hollande said it reaffirmed the importance of respecting the law of the Republic.

However, chief opponent leader Frigide Barjot blamed that it is to "change the civilization" of France and vowed to take a street protest on May 26 against the newly adopted gay-marriage bill.