Story highlights The Netherlands was first country to legalize same-sex marriage in 2001

Several countries have pending legislation and may join that group soon

Uruguay and Vietnam are among the leading candidates

It's not just the United States grappling with the issue of same-sex marriage

Many countries around the world are re-examining their laws, and some appear to be on the brink of changing them.

Uruguay Senators in approved a marriage equality bill Tuesday that puts them on course to be the 12th country in the world to legalize same-sex marriage.

It "would be a major advance for our country in terms of equality of rights," said the French gay, lesbian and transgender rights group Inter-LGBT. "The law must allow all couples to unite themselves as they wish and must protect all families, without discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation or gender identity."

But like the United States, France is far from united on the issue. In January, hundreds of thousands of people took to the streets of Paris to protest same-sex marriage. Most of France is Catholic, and the Roman Catholic Church strongly opposes the bill, along with social conservatives and other religious groups.

"I do not personally agree with gay marriage, as I am a Christian and believe what the Bible says about marriage being between one woman and one man for a lifetime," said CNN iReporter Oluwasegun Olowu-Davies, who shot video of the Paris march on his phone . "If your lifestyle doesn't allow you to conceive, there is a reason."

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Photos: Photos: Protests over gay marriage bill Photos: Photos: Protests over gay marriage bill Protests over France's same-sex marriage bill – Protesters stand in the street as they face riot police on Sunday, May 26, in Paris on the sidelines of demonstrations against a gay marriage law legalizing same-sex marriage and adoptions for gay couples. President Francois Hollande s igned the measure into law on May 18 following months of bitter debate and demonstrations, including a suicide at Notre Dame Cathedral in the name of protesting same-sex marriage. Hide Caption 1 of 32 Photos: Photos: Protests over gay marriage bill Protests over France's same-sex marriage bill – Protesters gather and sit on the ground as riot police surround them on May 26. Tens of thousands marched through Paris today to protest the law. Hide Caption 2 of 32 Photos: Photos: Protests over gay marriage bill Protests over France's same-sex marriage bill – Protesters stand in a cloud of tear gas on May 26. Hide Caption 3 of 32 Photos: Photos: Protests over gay marriage bill Protests over France's same-sex marriage bill – Riot police stand in a line facing protesters on May 26. Hide Caption 4 of 32 Photos: Photos: Protests over gay marriage bill Protests over France's same-sex marriage bill – Police clash with and arrest protesters on May 26. Hide Caption 5 of 32 Photos: Photos: Protests over gay marriage bill Protests over France's same-sex marriage bill – Riot policemen face off with protesters on May 26. Hide Caption 6 of 32 Photos: Photos: Protests over gay marriage bill Protests over France's same-sex marriage bill – Riot police arrest a protester on May 26. Hide Caption 7 of 32 Photos: Photos: Protests over gay marriage bill Protests over France's same-sex marriage bill – Opponents of the law demonstrate in front of the headquarters of the Grand Orient de France, a Masonic order, in Paris on Friday, May 24. Hide Caption 8 of 32 Photos: Photos: Protests over gay marriage bill Protests over France's same-sex marriage bill – A member of the FEMEN feminist activist group with writing on her chest reading "May fascists rest in hell" is arrested by police officers after taking part in a protest at Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris on Wednesday, May 22. The protesters were demonstrating against the suicide of a far-right activist inside the cathedral the previous day. Hide Caption 9 of 32 Photos: Photos: Protests over gay marriage bill Photos: Protests over France's same-sex marriage bill – French police stand outside Paris' Notre Dame Cathedral on Tuesday, May 21, following the evacuation of the cathedral after a man shot himself dead in front of the altar. Historian and writer Dominique Venner killed himself in front of horrified tourists after denouncing same-sex marriage and immigration. Hide Caption 10 of 32 Photos: Photos: Protests over gay marriage bill Protests over France's same-sex marriage bill – People holding rainbow flags attend the event Concert pour tous! (Concert for all!) on May 21 at Place de la Bastille square in Paris. The concert was a countermovement in reference to the French anti-gay marriage movement Manif pour tous (Demonstration for all), and celebrated the legalization of same-sex marriage. Hide Caption 11 of 32 Photos: Photos: Protests over gay marriage bill Protests over France's same-sex marriage bill – Bare-chested men wearing white masks, members of anti-gay group Hommen, shout slogans as they are detained in a police bus during a demonstration against a bill legalizing same-sex marriages on May 17 in Paris. Hide Caption 12 of 32 Photos: Photos: Protests over gay marriage bill Protests over France's same-sex marriage bill – Members of groups opposing same-sex marriage gather on Thursday, May 16, in front of the Sorbonne in Paris. Hide Caption 13 of 32 Photos: Photos: Protests over gay marriage bill Protests over France's same-sex marriage bill – People celebrate at Paris City Hall on Tuesday, April 23, after the French National Assembly adopted a bill legalizing same-sex marriage and adoptions for gay couples. Hide Caption 14 of 32 Photos: Photos: Protests over gay marriage bill Protests over France's same-sex marriage bill – Supporters cheer in front of the Paris City Hall on April 23. If the measure is enacted, France would be the ninth country in Europe to allow same-sex marriage. Hide Caption 15 of 32 Photos: Photos: Protests over gay marriage bill Protests over France's same-sex marriage bill – People unfurl a rainbow banner in Toulouse on April 23 after the lower house vote. Hide Caption 16 of 32 Photos: Photos: Protests over gay marriage bill Protests over France's same-sex marriage bill – Supporters of same-sex marriage pose for photos during Tuesday's celebrations in Paris. Hide Caption 17 of 32 Photos: Photos: Protests over gay marriage bill Protests over France's same-sex marriage bill – Opponents of same-sex marriage shout slogans and wave French national flags in Lyon on April 23. Hide Caption 18 of 32 Photos: Photos: Protests over gay marriage bill Protests over France's same-sex marriage bill – Activists opposed to same-sex marriage demonstrate on Concorde Square in Paris on April 23. Hide Caption 19 of 32 Photos: Photos: Protests over gay marriage bill Protests over France's same-sex marriage bill – Opponents of same-sex marriage protest at the National Assembly in Paris on April 23. Hide Caption 20 of 32 Photos: Photos: Protests over gay marriage bill Protests over France's same-sex marriage bill – More demonstrations take place outside the National Assembly in Paris on April 23. Hide Caption 21 of 32 Photos: Photos: Protests over gay marriage bill Protests over France's same-sex marriage bill – Opponents of a gay marriage bill face riot officers at "La Manif Pour Tous," or demonstration for all, on Sunday, April 21. Hide Caption 22 of 32 Photos: Photos: Protests over gay marriage bill Protests over France's same-sex marriage bill – Police officers hold down a demonstrator at the "La Manif Pour Tous" demonstration on Sunday. Hide Caption 23 of 32 Photos: Photos: Protests over gay marriage bill Protests over France's same-sex marriage bill – Leader of the French Christian Democratic Party, Christine Boutin, center, and MP Gilbert Collard, right, participate in an anti-gay marriage demonstration on Sunday. Hide Caption 24 of 32 Photos: Photos: Protests over gay marriage bill Protests over France's same-sex marriage bill – Tens of thousands of the bill's opponents gather on Sunday. Hide Caption 25 of 32 Photos: Photos: Protests over gay marriage bill Protests over France's same-sex marriage bill – Paris Mayor Bertrand Delanoe speaks to journalists at Bastille Square during a pro-gay rights demonstration on Sunday. Hide Caption 26 of 32 Photos: Photos: Protests over gay marriage bill Protests over France's same-sex marriage bill – Thousands of people gather in support of the bill in Bastille Square on Sunday. Hide Caption 27 of 32 Photos: Photos: Protests over gay marriage bill Protests over France's same-sex marriage bill – Supporters of gay marriage gather on Sunday. Hide Caption 28 of 32 Photos: Photos: Protests over gay marriage bill Protests over France's same-sex marriage bill – Gay marriage supporters raise signs in Bastille Square on Sunday. Hide Caption 29 of 32 Photos: Photos: Protests over gay marriage bill Protests over France's same-sex marriage bill – People yell in support of the new law Sunday in Bastille Square. Hide Caption 30 of 32 Photos: Photos: Protests over gay marriage bill Protests over France's same-sex marriage bill – Members of the anti-gay marriage group Hommen demonstrate on Saturday, April 20, in Rennes, France. The group was created in response to Femen, a feminist group that organizes topless protests for social issues. Hide Caption 31 of 32 Photos: Photos: Protests over gay marriage bill Protests over France's same-sex marriage bill – The group Hommen gathers in Rennes to protest the bill on Saturday. Hide Caption 32 of 32

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United Kingdom is also considering legalization. In February, lawmakers in the House of Commons Across the English Channel, theis also considering legalization. In February, lawmakers in the House of Commons approved the second reading of a bill that would legalize same-sex marriage in England and Wales. (Scotland has its own legalization bill in the works, while Northern Ireland rejected a similar measure in October.)

More debate and more votes are still necessary before the bill can become law, but the wide margin of February's vote -- 400-175 -- suggests that it may have the support it needs to eventually pass. Prime Minister David Cameron is also in favor of the bill, despite opposition within his own party.

"I am a great supporter of marriage," Cameron said in the House of Commons. "I want to promote marriage, defend marriage, encourage marriage.

"The great thing about (February's) vote is that two gay people who love each other will now be able to get married, and I think that is an important advance. I think we should be promoting marriage rather than looking at any other way of weakening it."

A former British colony, New Zealand, could legalize same-sex marriage this month. After a marriage equality bill passed two readings in Parliament -- the latest in March by a 77-44 margin -- the third and final vote is widely expected to be a formality.

The public, however, might be more split than its lawmakers. According to a survey conducted last month by the country's largest newspaper, the New Zealand Herald, opposition to same-sex marriage has increased to 48% . That sentiment is more in line with nearby Australia, where lawmakers overwhelmingly voted against a legalization bill in September.

In Uruguay, the bill approved Tuesday by a 23-8 margin now goes back to lawmakers in the lower house of parliament. That house approved a different version of the bill in December.

But Argentina is the only country in Latin America that has legalized same-sex marriage, doing so in 2010. Brazil and Mexico, like the United States, have same-sex marriages only in certain states.

Of the 11 countries where same-sex marriage is legal, eight are in Europe. The Netherlands was the first, in 2001, and it was later joined by Belgium, Spain, Norway, Sweden, Iceland, Portugal and Denmark. Argentina, Canada and South Africa are the three non-European countries in the group.

There are no Asian countries where same-sex marriage is legal, but perhaps that might soon change.

Taiwan, where a legalization bill Last year, a same-sex Buddhist couple married in, where a legalization bill has been pending since 2003 . Taipei is also home to Asia's largest annual gay pride parade, according to organizers.

The Supreme Court of Nepal ruled in favor of legalization in 2008, but those rights haven't been put into effect because the country's new constitution has been stuck in limbo for years.

In July, the Justice Ministry in Vietnam said it would consider a provision for same-sex marriage rights in an amendment to the country's marriage laws.

"It's time for us to look at the reality," Minister Ha Hung Cuong said in an online debate at the time. "The number of homosexuals has mounted to hundreds of thousands. It's not a small figure. ... They may own property. We, of course, have to handle these issues legally."