The Soldier Husband

2 December Presidential Palace, Capital Country Y

President Dong, sat in the sitting room attached to his office in the Presidential Palace sipping a cup of tea, waiting for his guests to be shown in. In signing into law, the changes that decriminalised same sex relationships, and the alterations to the marriage laws he knew that he had won the battle he had set out to win fifteen years ago when his only son Walter committed suicide.

Both he and his wife, were quite happy to accept a gay son, and never pressured him about relationships from the time that he admitted his sexual orientation. The only things they ever did was urge him due to such relationships being illegal, even in the privacy of a person's home, not to engage in any such relationships in Country Y. Walter understood that his parents, did not want to hide him but they wanted to protect him from the criminal law which could impose a death sentence on such behaviour.

It was barbaric, however religious and secular and beliefs had imposed a legal system that failed to recognise that not everyone is the same. Walter, hiding his sexuality at fourteen being the politically aware child he, was started campaigning, simply to change the law to have it accepted that if people in the privacy of their own homes engaged in a same sex relationship it should not be illegal.

Walter was pragmatic in his campaigning. He knew that changes had to be achieved step by step, and framed a campaign for changing the law on the one issue, while reinforcing the sanctity of what most people accepted as marriage, and proposed changes to protect religiously performed marriages in the absence of obtaining government issued marriage certificates.

President Dong, however, knew the toxic nature of what both his parents and parents-in-law from what they did when Walter was sixteen. They set him up on date after date with girls that they figured would be suitable for him to marry, despite Walter's objections. They could never accept the statement that Walter would find his partner if he was given the chance. They were determined to have Walter marry as soon as he turned eighteen.

During Walter's last year of high school in City K during which he turned eighteen, he met Phillip Rong and Chester Yao. Both a few months younger than him but became his rock in dealing with his sexuality. They both were gay and in love with each other however knew the realities of what the law meant. Chester, like Walter was being pressured by family elders to marry, and gave Walter the courage to stand up to them and say no.

The problem for Walter, was that the day his final high school results were released the family elders held a party. It was meant to be a party to celebrate Walter's good results but even unbeknown to both his wife and himself, his parents and parents-in-law had made it an engagement party where they told the world Walter was marrying the granddaughter of a friend.

Walter being the gentle soul he was, tried to tell the elders, and even his so-called fiancée that he did not want to marry, but no one would take notice of him. They simply overrode and any complaints and said they would arrange everything.

President Dong remembered the day after the party, his son breaking down in his arms with his wife watching about how he could not do this. They both promised Walter they would do everything they could to protect him, while ensuring their younger children were not drawn into the situation given, they were closer to their grandparents than Walter was.

No matter what they did, the elders refuse to listen. They ignored everyone other than their own wishes. President Dong remembered the day, a week before the scheduled wedding date when Phillip and Chester came to him and told him that they feared that Walter would commit suicide if no one stopped the travesty of a wedding. How true their words were.

What he found the morning of the scheduled wedding, still even now distressed him. Walter had located where a beam was in the roof of his room, punched enough of a hole in the roof to allow him to throw a rope over, and used it to hang himself committing suicide. The fallout was devastating for the whole family, but the one thing he swore at that time is that he would do whatever he could to prevent other families from facing the same situation. Fifteen years of hard work, and making enemies of religious groups, including being threatened by terrorist did not worry him. The change would be worth it.

His thoughts were interrupted by a knock on the door, and a secretary entered saying "Mr President, the President of JL International and the head of Jax Corp's entertainment division are here to see you."

"Send them in."