Brazil’s coat of arms. (Photo courtesy of Wikipedia)

While the Brazilian congress continues to delay discussion of gay marriage legislation, the justice system made a decision yesterday, 14th May, determining that same-sex couples cannot be denied marriage licenses.

Although Congress is still debating the issue, the judicial decision makes gay marriage legal by outlawing denial of licenses to same-sex couples.

The National Justice Council (CNJ), a panel that oversees the country’s justice system, approved the measure yesterday with a vote of 14-1. The resolution states, “it is prohibited for the related authorities to reject the authorisation or celebration of civil marriage or the conversion of a civil union to marriage of people of the same sex.” It also indicates that authorities that fail to recognise the court order would be penalised.

Yesterday’s CNJ announcement is the first major decision regarding the subject since the Supreme Court approved civil unions of same-sex couples in 2011. Since that date some gay and lesbian couples have received marriage licenses, although others have only been able to attain civil union recognition, based on the discretion of individual notaries. Now, denial of this documentation based on the sexual orientation will be illegal.

Upon hearing yesterday’s decision, Carlos Magno Fonseca, President of the Brazilian Association of LGBT People (ABLGBT) stated: “This is a great step–a victory, because it is advancing something that many civil notaries have failed to recognise. We are living in a moment of celebration”.

With yesterday’s decision, Brazil became the world’s fifteenth country to permit gay marriage on a national scale. This aligns the country with its neighbours Uruguay, which legalised gay marriage last month, and Argentina, which made the decision in 2010. However, Brazil’s legalisation is not complete as it stands, and detailed legislation still warrants congressional approval.

Brazil is the world’s most populated Catholic country and home to an estimated 60,000 same-sex couples. Religious and conservative members of Congress have consistently rejected same-sex marriage legalisation, and opponents could challenge the CNJ decision in the Supreme Court.

Both supporters and opponents of gay marriage have gathered in Bogotá’s Bolívar Square to conduct protests as lawmakers planned to discuss the issue of same-sex marriage. However, the debate has been postponed until 23^rd April, when it will it will be televised live across the country.

Colombia’s Congress started debating on Wednesday over a same-sex marriage bill, spearheaded by opposition senators Armando Benedetti and Alfonso Prada.

Various social and political sectors have critised the Colombian government for not supporting the bill. Benedetti, a prominent promoter of gay-marriage said: “There has been a disregard among congressmen, political parties, and the government to legislate on the subject.”

Regarding the indifference of the Colombian Government, the senator claimed that the authorities do not want to lose an important ally in the Catholic Church, which has expressed their disapproval of same-sex marriage, calling it “a nonsense approach” that goes against the country, where 80% of the population is Catholic.

“They don’t want to lose that ally and they have preferred to keep silent when the rest of the planet is already talking about equal marriage,” continued Benedetti.

Supporters of the bills held up signs reading, “God loves me just the way I am,” and demanded respect for their rights. Those against the bill wore wedding dresses to symbolise “traditional values,” according to one protestor.

The Uruguayan Senate voted yesterday, 2nd April, to pass a bill legalising marriage between couples of the same sex.

After seven hours of debate, the bill won unanimous approval by senators of the Frente Amplio (FA) party and partial endorsement by those of the opposition parties, Partido Nacional and Partido Colorado. The legislation passed with a total of 23 to 8 votes in the Congressional upper house.

The legislation recognises marriage between homosexual couples by defining how the state constitutes marriage. The law states, “Civil matrimony is the permanent union, arranged under law, of two people of different or the same sex.” The bill also includes modifications of the country’s Civil Code to equalise the marital status of same-sex couples with that of heterosexuals, by replacing the words “man” and “woman” with “spouse”, for example.

The same-sex marriage proposal will now be returned to the Lower House for approval, and if it passes, will then be signed into law by President José Mujica, who has indicated support for the bill.

The Catholic Church has announced its disapproval of the Senate’s decision, stating that the measure devalues the institution of marriage. Senator Monica Xavier responded to these claims stating that the bill does not, in fact, diminish the sanctity of marriage nor have to do with religion at all, stating, “Here we are speaking about ‘rights,’ with capital letters. Rights that were denied and repressed for a long time, and which a society that is trying to be modern and inclusive necessarily must recognise, to advance in equality.”

Since 2007 Uruguay has begun approving more rights for homosexual people, including legalising enlistment in the armed forces and allowing for same-sex civil unions. In 2009 Uruguay became the first country in the region to allow for homosexual couples to adopt children.

If the lower chamber of Congress approves the bill, Uruguay will become the 12th country in the world to legalise gay marriage and the second in Latin America, after Argentina did so in 2010.

Uruguay’s congress plans to consider a bill that would give same-sex couples the right to marriage.

The proposed “marriage equality” law would entitle gay and lesbian couples to marry, and provide them with the same rights and responsibilities as heterosexual married couples, including the possibility of adopting children.

The bill was originally drafted by gay rights activists from a group known as the “Black Sheep Collective” and has received support from members of the ruling Frente Amplio (FA) coalition. If passed, it would change civil code that has existed in the South American country for almost 100 years.

Federico Grana, a member the “Black Sheep Collective” told local media yesterday, “today’s society is much broader than the heterosexual, and the civil code should reflect this: a marriage institution that applies equally to all.”

“This goes well beyond homosexuality — it’s a law that gives everyone the same rights and responsibilities,” concluded Grana.

The announcement comes following a recent wave of liberal reform in Uruguay, which has seen the legalization of abortion and plans to allow for the sale of government-grown marijuana to all citizens, in the past few months.

For the first time in South American history, a foreign gay couple will get married today in Rosario, province of Santa Fe.
Simón Cazal and Sergio Lopez, two Paraguayan citizens, will be the first homosexual foreigners to tie the knot in Latin America.

The Argentine Homosexual Community (CHA) is celebrating this union as an inclusion of foreign people into the “exercise of a constitutional and human right.”

Cazal and Lopez, leaders of the Paraguayan organization SomosGay (WeAreGay), worked with the local LGBT Argentine Federation to make this marriage possible. 

They decided to get married in Rosario after the Socialist municipality passed a resolution ordering civil servants to accept marriage requests coming from all foreigners and tourists. To be granted the right to get married in Santa Fe people have to stay for at least four days. In Buenos Aires, foreign gay couples have to wait at least for three months to get a work/study visa that would allow them to get married.

After the honeymoon, the couple is travelling back to Paraguay where they will ask for the official recognition of their marital status.

“One of the options for us was [to get married in] Spain,” told Simón Cazal to a journalist. “Sergio lived there for a while and part of his family still lives in Tarragona, he could have applied for citizenship there. But when heard about marriage here, so close, literally across the river, we got very excited and we opted [for Argentina]. It was available, it was real.”

Cesar Cigliutti, president of the CHA, wrote in an official statement that “the marriage of Simon and Sergio is also an act of defiance against discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity.”

The marriage took place today at 11am at the Civil Register in Calle Wheelwright 1486, Rosario.

On the 20th anniversary of the first gay pride march in Buenos Aires, The Argentina Independent spoke to 31-year-old Leon Agustin Labraña about his upbringing in Mar del Plata, coming to terms with his own sexuality, and how attitudes are changing in Argentina.

Camera: Brian Funk
Editing: Joe Crewe

Plans for a law condoning same-sex marriage are being considered by the ruling left wing coalition party, Frente Amplio, in Uruguay. A project created by Uruguay’s first transexual lawyer, Michelle Suárez, will be unveiled shortly to the Constitution Commission and the Chamber of Deputies.

Suárez warned however that when legal advances are made but not accompanied by public policies, “we are in danger of taking a step backwards”.

“A law, winning votes, can pass through a closed file, but what we consider to be more fruitful is the debate that stems from it”.

The debate process began last 17th June, when the First Congess of Sexual Diversity was held in the Salto province.

Federico Graña, member of the Black Sheep Collective and the Uruguayan Federation of Sexual Diversity said that for this project to be possible, they had to work with diverse social organisations linked to human rights.

They put together an audiovisual campaign and worked on a blog, which is open for citizens of Uruguay to offer their support for the law.

Suárez and Graña opened the debate last Friday in San José de Mayo, in the southern province of San José.

They were promoted by the “truth sets you free” campaign run by the community radio station FM Timbó, 96.9, which is also a member of the AMARC Uruguay network.

Story Courtesy of Agencia Pulsar

In the wake of the passing of the law which legalised same-sex marriage in Argentina on the 15th July 2010, a realm of possibilities has been opened for gay couples who have found themselves newly emancipated. A dynamic duo have taken advantage of the new law by setting up their own venture; their aim being to providing fantasy weddings for those that have had to wait for the legal system to legitimise their ceremonies.

courtesy of Fabulous Weddings

Pablo Rouco, co-founder of Fabulous Weddings, tells me of the day that the law came into being. In an excited whirlwind he telephoned his friend Laetitia Orsetti with the idea of providing “the most fabulous weddings for gay couples” on the market. With Pablo’s background in art and set design and Laetitia’s experience in finance and marketing, they believe themselves to have the perfect combination of skill sets to provide an innovative and fun service to those that want to fulfil their wildest dreams.

“Since July when the law was originally passed, over 500 gay couples have got married,” Pablo says, highlighting how the change in the legal system has created a completely new market, which has so far remained untouched. When asked if the pair is experiencing competition in the new market, Pablo was quick to highlight that “no one is doing weddings like ours – they’re just not fabulous enough!”

The new business has been stretching the energetic partners’ creativity to provide a range of different wedding scenarios of which couples can take advantage. Options include “luxury three-day celebrations with the ceremony performed in the vineyards of Mendoza” or in a postcard location with snow-capped mountains. Other elements that can be offered include an all-female 25-piece swing orchestra. Everything is tailored to the dreams of the client, which, according to Pablo and Laetitia, makes their service unique.

With profiles set up on their website so that couples can fill out questions about their relationship and their ideas and images of their wedding day, Pablo and Laetitia interact with their clients on a personal level in order to achieve a fabulous end result.

The venture has raised some interesting questions about the same-sex marriage law and its effect on Argentine society but Pablo assures me that there is nothing “extreme” about their business and that it does exactly what it says on the tin rather than having a deeper message running at its core. “Our aim is to help people to celebrate a fabulous wedding. Since the passing of the law, there is the new market, but we know a lot of people [regardless of sexuality] that want their weddings to be fabulous, that have invited us to organise them.” To be gay is not a pre-requisite to work with Pablo and Laetitia, who stress that they are working for the happiness of their clients, rather than creating an exclusively gay project that in a way could serve to perpetuate segregation. In short, everybody is welcome.

courtesy of Fabulous Weddings

Buenos Aires seems to be the perfect city to get the business off to a roaring start. Pablo believes in a sort of “organised chaos” that exists in here, which helps contribute to the vibe of the city and constitutes a real sense of freedom that exists on the streets. He argues that this makes gay equality less of an issue and more of a norm in society.

With tongue in cheek, Pablo tells me that he would like to see the business’ philosophy expand to places such as Japan, where similar liberties are curbed. The business has plans to eventually build posts in Miami and Paris, where Pablo and Laetitia hold interested associates. With the website’s recent launch and the company’s modern, all-inclusive philosophy, Fabulous Weddings is well underway to achieving its goals of being a gay friendly, creative and fun wedding planning service for the Buenos Aires community.

After 14 hours of debate, the Argentine Senate legalised same-sex marriage at 4am today as hundreds of opponents protested outside Congress in the bitter cold. Argentina is the first Latin American country to confer full marriage rights to same-sex couples.

The final vote was 33-27, with three abstentions.

While poles show that 70 percent of Argentines favour same-sex marriage, analysts contend that the real reason for the bill’s passage was largely political. President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner was looking to prove her efficacy, rally her base and take a stand against the Catholic Church.

Kirchner, who is expected to sign the bill when she returns from a state visit to China, called the law “positive step that defends minority rights.”

The Catholic Church led the opposition, helping to organize thousands in coordinated marches in seven provinces on Tuesday.

Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio, archbishop of Buenos Aires, called the law a “destructive attack on God’s plan” on Sunday.

Catholics within the Senate also promoted alternative legislation – civil unions that would not allow same-sex partners to adopt – that ultimately failed.

Mexico City legalised same-sex marriage in March, and Uruguay and Colombia permit civil unions.

The National Institute Against Discrimination, Xenophobia and Racism (Inadi) announced yesterday that a civil union law currently being debated in the Argentine senate would infringe civil rights and violate the country’s anti-discrimination laws, making it unconstitutional. Nine senators proposed the civil union law last week as an alternative to same-sex marriage, which they oppose.

Though Inadi’s decision is non-binding, it will be considered in upcoming debate in the senate, and can be used in future court cases should the civil union law pass. The group’s evaluation warned that the proposed legislation could lead to lawsuits against the state.

“Someone who suffers an act of discrimination can demand moral or material compensation,” Claudio Morgado, Inadi director, told the Buenos Aires newspaper Página 12. “It’s our job to prevent discriminatory acts.”

Inadi’s main objections to the proposed legislation were that it would not automatically give same-sex couples the same automatic access to social services that married persons receive; that it would prevent co-adoption; and that it would establish a “conscious objection” clause so that Civil Registry employees who oppose same-sex unions would not be required to grant them.

Civil unions have actually been legal in Argentina since 2002, but this new legislation would make them recognized in every province.

The proposed legislation was largely influenced by recommendations from the Catholic Church. After the Argentine senate began debating same-sex marriage on 1^st June, the Church recognized strong possibility that these marriages could become legal, and changed their tactic from outright opposition to favouring civil unions that would confer some rights to same-sex couples but specifically prohibit others. The biggest concern for Church leaders was preventing same-sex adoption, but they also strongly advocated the “conscious objection” clause.

But despite the introduction of the civil union ‘alternative’, Catholic, Evangelical, and other religious groups have organized rallies in seven provinces to protest same-sex marriage today.

In Buenos Aires, the protesters will march on the National Congress at 6:30pm, holding signs with the slogan “children have the right to a mom and dad”.

“It’s not against anyone, but rather in favour of marriage between one man and one woman, like the civil code establishes, and for the well-being of children,” Gastón Bruno, vice president of the Christian Alliance of Evangelical Churches (ACIERA), said. ACIERA is one of the principle organizers of the march.

A number of same-sex marriages have been performed in Argentina since last December, but subsequent court cases have retroactively annulled most of the unions.