Recognition of same-sex unions in Honduras

Last updated

Same-sex unions are currently not recognized in Honduras. Since 2005, the Constitution of Honduras has explicitly banned same-sex marriage. In January 2022, the Supreme Court dismissed a challenge to this ban, but a request for the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights to review whether the ban violates the American Convention on Human Rights is pending. A same-sex marriage bill was introduced to Congress in May 2022.

Contents

Background

In 2005, the Constitution of Honduras was amended to expressly ban same-sex marriage and civil unions. [1] The constitutional amendment also forbids the recognition of same-sex marriages or unions that occurred legally in other countries. It also prohibits same-sex couples from adopting. [2] [3] Article 112 reads: "The right of a man and a woman to contract marriage is recognized, as well as the legal equality of spouses. [...] Marriage and de facto unions between persons of the same sex are prohibited. Marriages and de facto unions between persons of the same sex celebrated or recognized under the laws of other countries shall not be valid in Honduras." [lower-alpha 1] In January 2021, the National Congress of Honduras passed a constitutional amendment banning abortion under any circumstance and establishing that future modifications of the articles on abortion and marriage require approval by three-quarters of Congress rather than two-thirds. [5] Human Rights Watch opposed the amendment, saying that it "contravene[s] constitutional and international obligations to protect and guarantee human rights." [6] [7]

Before the November 2017 elections, three candidates running in the Francisco Morazán Department for the National Party and the Christian Democratic Party announced their support for same-sex marriage, adding that they would be open to introducing a same-sex marriage bill to the National Congress. [8] However, none of the three candidates won a seat in the National Congress. [9] On 12 October 2018, President Juan Orlando Hernández told reporters at a press conference, "Personally as a Christian, I am against marriage of persons of the same sex; obviously, it is the judiciary that, according to Honduran law, has to rule on it. [Regardless of sexual preferences] people should be treated with dignity, no matter what their inclination. People should be treated with dignity and this issue is very important." [10]

2018 Inter-American Court of Human Rights ruling

Homosexuality laws in Central America and the Caribbean Islands. .mw-parser-output .legend{page-break-inside:avoid;break-inside:avoid-column}.mw-parser-output .legend-color{display:inline-block;min-width:1.25em;height:1.25em;line-height:1.25;margin:1px 0;text-align:center;border:1px solid black;background-color:transparent;color:black}.mw-parser-output .legend-text{} Same-sex marriage Other type of partnership Unregistered cohabitation Country subject to IACHR ruling No recognition of same-sex couples Constitution limits marriage to opposite-sex couples Same-sex sexual activity illegal but law not enforced v t e Homosexuality laws in Central America and the Caribbean Islands.svg
Homosexuality laws in Central America and the Caribbean Islands.
  Same-sex marriage
  Other type of partnership
  Unregistered cohabitation
  Country subject to IACHR ruling
  No recognition of same-sex couples
  Constitution limits marriage to opposite-sex couples
  Same-sex sexual activity illegal but law not enforced

On 9 January 2018, in advisory opinion OC 24/7, the Inter-American Court of Human Rights (IACHR) ruled that countries signatory to the American Convention on Human Rights are required to allow same-sex couples to marry. [11] [12] [13] The ruling states that: [14] [15]

The State must recognize and guarantee all rights derived from a family bond between persons of the same sex in accordance with the provisions of Articles 11.2 and 17.1 of the American Convention. (...) in accordance with articles 1.1, 2, 11.2, 17, and 24 of the American Convention, it is necessary to guarantee access to all the existing figures in domestic legal systems, including the right to marry. (..) To ensure the protection of all the rights of families formed by same-sex couples, without discrimination with respect to those that are constituted by heterosexual couples.

Honduras ratified the American Convention on Human Rights on 8 September 1977 and recognized the court's jurisdiction on 9 September 1981. [16] The ruling set binding precedent in favour of same-sex marriage for Hondurian courts. In May 2018, a group of LGBT activists filed a lawsuit with the Supreme Court to legalise same-sex marriage in Honduras and recognize same-sex marriages validly performed in other countries. [17] A second case was filed shortly thereafter but was dismissed on technical grounds in November 2018. [18] In February 2019, it was reported that the Supreme Court was expected to rule on the case within "the next few days", but it was later announced in May 2019 that they were "expected to rule later this year". [19] [20] The court ruled in January 2022 that same-sex marriages violate the Constitution of Honduras and the Family Code, and dismissed the case. [21]

In September 2022, members of Somos CDC Honduras (Centro para el Desarrollo y la Cooperación LGBTI), the non-profit organization that filed the lawsuit in 2018, asked the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights to review Honduras' same-sex marriage ban. [22] [23]

2022 same-sex marriage bill

In May 2022, José Manuel Rodríguez Rosales, a deputy from the governing Liberty and Refoundation party, introduced a same-sex marriage bill to the National Congress. The bill was quickly opposed by religious organizations. The president of the Tegucigalpa Pastors' Association, Gerardo Irías, called the bill an "aberration in God's eyes" and urged President Xiomara Castro to oppose "immoral laws". The bill has been under discussion since 24 May 2022. [24] In December 2022, the Minister of Human Rights, Natalie Roque, said that the legalization of same-sex marriage was "not on the agenda" of the Castro Administration. [25]

Public opinion

According to a Pew Research Center survey conducted between 9 November and 19 December 2013, 13% of Hondurans supported same-sex marriage, while 83% were opposed. [26] [27] According to the 2017 AmericasBarometer, 19% of Hondurans supported same-sex marriage. [28]

A 2018 CID Gallup (Consultoría Interdisciplinaria en Desarrollo) poll found that 75% of Hondurans opposed same-sex marriage, while 17% were in favor and the remaining did not know or refused to answer. [17]

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ In Spanish: Se reconoce el derecho del hombre y de la mujer, que tengan la calidad de tales naturalmente, a contraer matrimonio entre sí, así como la igualdad jurídica de los cónyuges. [...] Se prohibe el matrimonio y la unión de hecho entre personas del mismo sexo. Los matrimonios o uniones de hecho entre personas del mismo sexo celebrados o reconocidos bajo las leyes de otros países no tendrán validez en Honduras. [4]

Related Research Articles

Same-sex marriage has been legal in Chile since 10 March 2022. In June 2021, the President of Chile, Sebastián Piñera, announced that his government would sponsor a bill to legalize same-sex marriage. The Senate of Chile passed the legislation on 21 July 2021, and the Chamber of Deputies gave its approval on 23 November 2021. Disagreements on some aspects of the bill led to the formation of a mixed commission to discuss it. Both chambers of the National Congress approved an identical version of the bill on 7 December 2021. President Piñera signed the legislation into law on 9 December, and it was published in the Diario Oficial de la República de Chile on 10 December. The law took effect 90 days later, with the first same-sex marriages taking place on 10 March 2022.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Same-sex marriage in Mexico</span> Overview of the status of same-sex marriage in Mexico

Same-sex marriage is legally recognized and performed throughout Mexico since 31 December 2022. On 10 August 2010 the Supreme Court of Justice of the Nation ruled that same-sex marriages performed anywhere within Mexico must be recognized by the 31 states without exception, and fundamental spousal rights except for adoption have also applied to same-sex couples across the country.

Same-sex marriage has been legal in Costa Rica since May 26, 2020 as a result of a ruling by the Supreme Court of Justice. Costa Rica was the first country in Central America to recognize and perform same-sex marriages.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">LGBT rights in Honduras</span>

Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) persons in Honduras face legal challenges not experienced by non-LGBT residents. Both male and female same-sex sexual activity are legal in Honduras.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">LGBT rights in Panama</span>

Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people in Panama face legal challenges not experienced by non-LGBT residents. Both male and female same-sex sexual activity are legal in Panama, but same-sex couples and households headed by same-sex couples are not eligible for the same legal benefits and protections available to opposite-sex married couples.

Several countries in the Americas grant legal recognition to same-sex unions, with almost 85 percent of people in both North America and South America living in jurisdictions providing marriage rights to same-sex couples.

Same-sex marriage has been legal in Ecuador since 8 July 2019 in accordance with a Constitutional Court ruling issued on 12 June 2019 that the ban on same-sex marriage was unconstitutional under the Constitution of Ecuador. The ruling took effect upon publication in the government gazette on 8 July. Ecuador became the fifth country in South America to allow same-sex couples to marry, after Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay and Colombia, but adoption by married couples remains restricted to opposite-sex couples. The country has also recognized same-sex civil unions since 2008.

Venezuela does not recognize same-sex unions. In 2008, the Supreme Tribunal of Justice ruled that the Constitution of Venezuela neither prohibits nor requires the recognition of same-sex marriage. In January 2015, a lawsuit seeking to legalise same-sex marriage in Venezuela was filed with the Supreme Tribunal, which announced in April 2016 that it would hear the case, though no decision has been made as of June 2023. On 24 February 2022, a deputy of the opposition Cambiemos Movimiento Ciudadano party introduced a same-sex marriage bill to the National Assembly.

El Salvador does not recognize same-sex marriage, civil unions or any other legal union for same-sex couples. A proposal to constitutionally ban same-sex marriage and adoption by same-sex couples was rejected twice in 2006, and once again in April 2009 after the Farabundo Martí National Liberation Front (FMLN) refused to grant the measure the four votes it needed to be ratified.

Paraguay does not recognize same-sex marriage or civil unions.

Same-sex marriage is legal in the following countries: Andorra, Argentina, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Denmark, Ecuador, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Iceland, Ireland, Luxembourg, Malta, Mexico, Nepal, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, Slovenia, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, the United Kingdom, the United States, and Uruguay. Same-sex marriage is recognized, but not performed in Israel. Furthermore, same-sex marriages performed in the Netherlands are recognized in Aruba, Curaçao and Sint Maarten.

Same-sex marriage has been legal in Chiapas in accordance with a Supreme Court ruling issued on 11 July 2017 that the ban on same-sex marriage violated the equality and non-discrimination provisions of Articles 1 and 4 of the Constitution of Mexico. The ruling, published in the Official Journal of the Federation on 11 May 2018, legalized same-sex marriage in the state of Chiapas.

Same-sex marriage has been legal in Morelos since 5 July 2016. A bill to amend the State Constitution to legalize same-sex marriage in Morelos passed Congress on 18 May 2016 by 20 votes to 6. Ratification by a majority of the state's 33 municipalities was confirmed on 27 June 2016. The law was published in the official state gazette on 4 July 2016 and took effect the following day.

Same-sex marriage has been legal in Querétaro since 13 November 2021. On 22 September 2021, the state Congress passed a law legalizing same-sex marriage in Querétaro. The law was published in the state's official gazette on 12 November, and took effect the following day. Previously, same-sex couples could marry in eight of the eighteen municipalities of Querétaro, comprising 60% of the state's population, despite a state law prohibiting same-sex marriage.

Same-sex marriage is legal in Puebla in accordance with a ruling from the Supreme Court of Justice of the Nation. On 1 August 2017, the Supreme Court ruled that the same-sex marriage ban containted in the state's Civil Code violated Articles 1 and 4 of the Constitution of Mexico, legalizing same-sex marriage in the state of Puebla. The ruling was officially published in the Official Journal of the Federation on 16 February 2018.

Same-sex marriage is legal in Nuevo León is legal in accordance with a ruling from the Supreme Court of Justice of the Nation on 19 February 2019 that the state's ban on same-sex marriage violated the Constitution of Mexico. The ruling came into effect on 31 May 2019 upon publication in the Official Journal of the Federation. By statute, in Mexico, if any five rulings from the courts on a single issue result in the same outcome, legislatures are bound to change the law. In the case of Nuevo León, almost 20 individual amparos were decided with the same outcome, yet the state did not act. On 19 February 2019, the Supreme Court issued a definitive ruling in an action of unconstitutionality, declaring the state's same-sex marriage ban unconstitutional, void and unenforceable. Same-sex marriage was codified into law by the Nuevo León Congress on 14 June 2023.

Same-sex marriage is legal in Aguascalientes in accordance with a ruling from the Supreme Court of Justice of the Nation on 2 April 2019 that the state's ban on same-sex marriage violated Articles 1 and 4 of the Constitution of Mexico. The ruling came into effect upon publication in the Official Gazette of the Federation on 16 August 2019, legalizing same-sex marriage in Aguascalientes.

Same-sex marriage has been legal in Veracruz since 13 June 2022. On 30 May 2022, the Mexican Supreme Court ruled that the state's same-sex marriage ban violated Articles 1 and 4 of the Constitution of Mexico. The Congress of Veracruz passed a bill to legalize same-sex marriage three days later on 2 June 2022. It was published in the official state journal on 13 June and went into effect the same day.

Same-sex marriage has been legal in Yucatán since 4 March 2022. On 25 August 2021, the Congress of Yucatán removed a constitutional ban on same-sex marriages. The new law entered into force on 7 September 2021. Congress had 180 days to change statutory law to accommodate same-sex marriage, and did so unanimously on 1 March. The law took effect three days later, and made Yucatán the 25th Mexican state to legalize same-sex marriage.

Same-sex marriage has been legal in Durango since 19 September 2022 in accordance with an executive order issued by Governor Esteban Villegas Villarreal the previous day, addressed to officials of the state civil registry that same-sex couples can marry in the state. The Congress of Durango passed same-sex marriage legislation three days later.

References

  1. ↑ University of Toronto - Faculty of Law (2011). "Honduras: Country Report for use in refugee claims based on persecution relating to sexual orientation and gender identity" (PDF). Retrieved 6 October 2016.
  2. ↑ "Gay Honduras News & Reports". archive.globalgayz.com.
  3. ↑ "Honduras: Constitución de 1982". pdba.georgetown.edu.
  4. ↑ "La Constitución de Honduras" (PDF). OAS (in Spanish). Retrieved January 7, 2023.
  5. ↑ "Ratifican en Honduras reforma que prohíbe aborto y matrimonio igualitario". Deutsche Welle (in Spanish). 29 January 2021.
  6. ↑ "The unconstitutionality of a constitutional reform: the case of Honduras". constitutionnet.org. 31 March 2021.
  7. ↑ "Honduras: Ataque a los derechos reproductivos y el matrimonio igualitario". Human Rights Watch (in Spanish). 23 January 2021.
  8. ↑ "Estas candidatas a diputadas apoyan el 'matrimonio gay' en Honduras". Diario La Prensa.
  9. ↑ "Estos son los 128 diputados que conforman el Congreso Nacional (2018-2022)". Diario El Heraldo.
  10. ↑ Diario, El Nuevo. "El Nuevo Diario". El Nuevo Diario.
  11. ↑ Pretel, Enrique Andres (January 10, 2018). "Latin American human rights court urges same-sex marriage legalization". Reuters. Archived from the original on June 2, 2020. Retrieved January 12, 2018.
  12. ↑ Chinchilla, Sofía; Cambronero, Natasha (January 9, 2018). "Corte Interamericana ordena abrir la puerta al matrimonio gay en Costa Rica" (in Spanish). La Nación. Archived from the original on June 2, 2020. Retrieved June 2, 2020.
  13. ↑ "Inter-American Court endorses same-sex marriage". Yahoo7. Agence France-Presse. 9 January 2018. Archived from the original on 9 January 2018. Retrieved 9 January 2018.
  14. ↑ "OPINIÓN CONSULTIVA OC-24/17 DE 24 DE NOVIEMBRE DE 2017SOLICITADA POR LA REPÚBLICA DE COSTA RICA" (PDF) (in Spanish). Inter-American Court of Human Rights. Archived (PDF) from the original on June 2, 2020. Retrieved June 2, 2020.
  15. ↑ Contesse, Jorge (July 26, 2018). "The Inter-American Court of Human Rights' Advisory Opinion on Gender Identity and Same-Sex Marriage". American Society of International Law. Archived from the original on June 5, 2020. Retrieved June 5, 2020.
  16. ↑ "ANNUAL REPORT OF THE IACHR 2001 - Annex III". cidh.org (in Spanish).
  17. 1 2 "Más del 70% de los hondureños rechaza el matrimonio homosexual". Diario La Prensa.
  18. ↑ "Comunidad gay en batalla legal por matrimonio igualitario en Honduras". Diario El Heraldo.
  19. ↑ "Sala de lo Constitucional admite nuevo recurso que permita matrimonio gay". Proceso Digital (in Spanish). 6 February 2019.
  20. ↑ Postema, Mirte (2019-05-23). "LGBT Hondurans March Against Hate: Activists Call for Gender Identity Law, Equal Marriage, Adoption". Human Rights Watch. Retrieved 2019-06-12.
  21. ↑ Vallecillo, Luis (21 January 2022). "Corte Suprema de Justicia de Honduras impide que personas LGBTQ puedan casarse y tengan derechos civiles". The Washington Blade (in Spanish).
  22. ↑ "LGTBI pide a CIDH intervenir para que Honduras registre matrimonio homosexual". swissinfo.ch (in Spanish). 22 September 2022.
  23. ↑ "Comunidad LGBT+ de Honduras pidió a la CIDH intervenir para registrar un matrimonio gay". Infobae (in Spanish). 23 September 2023.
  24. ↑ "Presentarán iniciativa de ley para que el matrimonio igualitario sea legal en Honduras". 18 May 2022.
  25. ↑ "Matrimonio gay no está en agenda de presidenta Xiomara Castro, asegura ministra Natalie Roque". El Heraldo (in Spanish). 2 December 2022.
  26. ↑ "Social Attitudes on Moral Issues in Latin America". Pew Research Center. 13 November 2014.
  27. ↑ "Appendix A: Methodology". Pew Research Center. 13 November 2014.
  28. ↑ "CULTURA POLÍTICA DE LA DEMOCRACIA EN LA REPÚBLICA DOMINICANA Y EN LAS AMÉRICAS, 2016/17" (PDF).
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.