Colombian court grants marriage rights to gay couples
Pastor Dale Morgan
Friday February 9, 1:40 AM Reuters
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Colombian court grants marriage rights to gay couples*
BOGOTA (Reuters) - Same-sex couples in Colombia will have rights similar
to their straight counterparts following a court ruling seen as the
biggest advance ever for homosexuals in this conservative Roman Catholic
country.
In a decision embraced by rights groups but blasted by the church, the
Constitutional Court late Wednesday granted gay couples living together
for more than two years the same estate inheritance guarantees as
heterosexuals in common law marriages.
"This is not only an advance for equality between heterosexuals and gay
men and lesbians but an achievement for the public interest, especially
for those committed to a more fair and open society," Marcela Sanchez,
head of rights group Colombia Diversa, said in a statement.
The church had a different view.
"This goes against the family and marriage," said Aurelio Cadavid,
spokesman for Colombia's Board of Pontifical Laymen. "It opens the door
for them (gays and lesbians) to adopt children. The judges have become
corrupters of children and young people."
A bill granting social security guarantees to gay couples is pending in
Congress. Backers of that measure, including President Alvaro Uribe, say
they do not support gay marriage or adoption.
The Argentine capital of Buenos Aires legalized same-sex unions in 2002,
a move hailed as a first in Latin America.