Bangkok They haven’t referred to themselves as family for six years.
When Thailand’s law on same-sex marriage went into force on Thursday, Pehthai Thanomkhet and Nathnicha Klinthaworn were officially wedded in a large wedding ceremony in Bangkok.
The 31-year-old Thanomkhet entered Paragon Hall, an event venue located in one of the largest shopping centers in the Thai capital, dressed in a tan Thai suit. There, as the pair formally announced their union, he held hands with 39-year-old Klinthaworn, who was dressed in a traditional Thai golden-white outfit.
According to Thanomkhet, a human resources manager who goes by Kevin in English, “I feel like it has unlocked everything.”
He responded, “We can now use the word family.”
About 300 couples registered for the daylong ceremony, according to Naruemit Pride, a Thai rights organization that arranged the mass wedding. The couples, ten at a time, showed their paperwork to desk-bound authorities who formally registered them as married.
Numerous newlyweds used the arches, which were arranged throughout the hall and decorated with vibrant balloons, flowers, and the phrase “Love wins,” as backdrops for their photos.
Thanomkhet and Klinthaworn, like many others getting married on Thursday, had long advocated for the legalization of same-sex unions in the Southeast Asian country.