During his brief stay in Costa Rica, Uruguay's ex-President José Mujica (2010-2015) commented on his administration’s experience passing controversial laws, including medical marijuana and gay common-law marriage.
The bill would reform several articles of the family code to formally recognize “stable" relationships of more than three years between two people, regardless of their “sex, identity, sexual orientation or choice” with all the personal and property protections of legal marriage.
Presidency Minister Sergio Alfaro Salas told reporters that Casa Presidencial will focus its strategy on building consensus on bills that could be passed, but the ambitious agenda will have to contend with a recalcitrant legislature that has shown little interest cooperating with President Luis Guillermo Solís.
The movement, fomented by a photo-editing tool that Facebook launched Friday, is a response to major news events that we've seen before: Profile picture change campaigns have become as common as cat videos on certain social networks. There were green filters for Iranian protesters in 2009, yellow ribbons for Hong Kong in 2014, black dots to oppose sexual violence in India, Arabic "Ns" to support Iraqi Christians.
Floats festooned with rainbow flags and balloons inched their way down San José’s main thoroughfare, Paseo Colón and Avenida 2, between marchers carrying flags and signs in support of equal rights for Costa Rica’s LGBT community. Thousands participated, including Vice President Ana Helena Chacón and several large corporations, including Intel, Hewlett-Packard, IBM, and Thompson Reuters, among others.
WASHINGTON, D. C. – Justice Anthony Kennedy was opposed by gay rights groups when he was chosen for the U.S. Supreme Court, but on Friday he cemented his legacy as the court's most influential champion for their cause.
WASHINGTON, D.C. – The U.S. Supreme Court ruled Friday that gay marriage is a nationwide right, a landmark decision in one of the most keenly awaited announcements in decades and sparking scenes of jubilation.
Along with being the first legal recognition of a same-sex relationship in Central America, the decision could set an example for judges elsewhere in the country to recognize gay relationships and even adoption. But both supporters and opponents of the ruling expect a forthcoming legal battle.
Ireland on Saturday became the first country in the world to approve gay marriage by referendum with an overwhelming 62 percent "Yes" vote, further denting the once all-powerful Irish Catholic Church.
Final opinion polls suggested the "Yes" camp was heading for victory, but campaigners for change warned against complacency, wary of a large block of shy "No" voters.
