News
2007-02-09
Colombia court
orders property rights for gay couples
Colombia's
constitutional court ruled Wednesday that same-sex couples
should have the same property rights as straight couples.
Colombia's
constitutional court ruled Wednesday that same-sex couples
should have the same property rights as straight couples.
The landmark decision will apply to those couples who
have lived together for a minimum of two years.
The court
concluded that the expression "men and women" used in a
1990 law, granting property rights only to straight couples,
was unconstitutional.
Gay rights group
Colombia Diversa claimed that at least 100,000 couples
would benefit from the new legislation.
Colombia Diversa
leader Marcela Sanchez said the ruling was "a great
step" but suggested that more needs to be done to end
discrimination against gay men and lesbians.
"Laws are not
enough; an important cultural shift is needed...for
discrimination to end," said Sanchez.
She explained
that previously, gay and lesbian couples who wanted to
share their property had to do so through commercial means,
ensuring that if one partner died, the surviving one
would inherit the shared property.
This move follows
a Colombian senate ruling in October that extended
patrimonial rights and social security benefits to same-sex
couples.
Wednesday's
ruling adds momentum to Latin America's growing legal
acceptance of same-sex couples, despite angry criticism from
local Catholic officials who said the court was "going
against the family and matrimony." (Hassan Mirza,
Gay.com U.K.)
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