Bolivia Could Be A Step Closer To Legalising Same-Sex Marriages
A recent ruling from a Bolivian court could be the step needed in the country to legalise same-sex marriages. The court, the Second Constitutional Chamber of the La Paz Court of Justice, stuck down a ruling from officials against a same-sex couple who wished to have their union registered.
The abovementioned same-sex couple had lived together in La Paz for ten years and wished to have their union registered but Serecí, the Civil Registry Service, refused them last year. Both members of the court stated the decision was against the couple’s human rights.
In their ruling, they said: “It is not [our] role to distinguish the worth that one family bond has from another. However, this court considers that it is the obligation of the states to recognize these family ties and protect them according to the Convention.”
As ‘Gay Times’ reports, the court also elected to follow the 2018 decision from the Inter-American Court of Human Rights (IACHR), ruling that all countries under its jurisdiction, which includes Bolivia, need to treat same-sex couples “without discrimination.”
According to 2017 polls, 64% of people in Bolivia agreed that LGBT+ people should have the same rights, over a quarter of people (26%) believed that people in same-sex relationships should be charged with a criminal offence, with under half of people (45%) disagreeing with the statement.
Likewise, a 2017 AmericasBarometer poll found that only 35% of Bolivians were in favour of same-sex marriage.
Read related myGwork articles here:
Northern Ireland Finally Gets Religious Same-Sex Marriages
Thailand To Become First Southeast Asian Country To Legalise Same-Sex Unions
South Africa’s Parliament Passes Bill Barring Marriage Officers From Objecting Same-Sex Marriages
Gabon Lawmakers Vote To Decriminalise Homosexuality
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