Declaration of Intent

1998

On 30 November 1998, two lesbian couples took New Zealand to the United Nations Human Rights Committee. In Joslin v New Zealand, they argued that being shut out of marriage breached the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.

Declaration of Intent responds with a wedding that couldn't legally take place. It's a Winamp playlist, an .m3u file, and the work is the list itself. Ten track titles follow the running order of a ceremony, from Prelude and Please Be Seated through Any Lawful Impediment and Vows (Unwitnessed) to Between a Man and a Woman and First Dance. The last entry, Wife and Wife, points to a file that doesn't exist. When the playlist reaches it, Winamp finds nothing to play and stops.

The Committee gave its decision in 2002 and found no breach. Same-sex couples in New Zealand couldn't marry until 2013.