(Santiago de Chile) A couple of men and a couple of women were the first to officially celebrate their union Thursday in Chile, after the adoption of the law on marriage for all at the end of 2021 and its entry into force, the result of years of struggle by organizations defending the rights of the LGBTQ community.
Posted at 10:18 a.m.
“We would never have imagined being able to experience this moment in Chile. It’s great to feel this change taking place and to say to ourselves that we are part of this change towards a better future,” said Jaime Nazar after marrying Javier Silva at the town hall of Providencia, a municipality in the metropolitan area of Santiago.
These first same-sex marriages are celebrated the day before the handover of power between conservative President Sebastian Piñera and his left-wing successor Gabriel Boric.
Mr. Piñera had accelerated the adoption of marriage for all at the end of December before the end of his double mandate (2010-2014 and 2018-2022), to the general surprise and dissatisfaction of the leaders of his right-wing coalition Vamos Chile.
Javier Silva, 38, and Jaime Nazar, 39, are getting married after seven years together and two children conceived by surrogate mother.
“We are particularly happy that this is a couple with children, because one of the main reasons that homosexual couples wanted to marry was to protect their children,” said the spokesperson for the Movement for integration and homosexual liberation (Movilh), Javiera Zuñiga.
Two women in a relationship for 18 years, Consuelo Morales and Pabla Heuser, parents of a little girl, also passed the ring on their finger in Providencia.
“We dedicate the advancement of this law to each of the same-sex couples and families who have been estranged, discriminated against, separated and whose most fundamental rights have been violated”, referring to “widowers” and “orphans”, has said Javiera Zuñiga.
Chile is now one of around 30 countries that allow marriage for all, including 16 in Europe, Denmark having been the global pioneer, and now seven in Latin America with Argentina, Uruguay, Brazil, Colombia , Ecuador, Costa Rica, with also half of the States of Mexico.