Chile’s Congress passed a law to legalize same-sex marriage on Tuesday in a milestone for the conservative South American nation after a decade-long legal battle and with the country delicately poised ahead of a crossroads election this month.
Today is a historic day, our country has approved same-sex marriage, one more step forward in terms of justice, in terms of equality, recognizing that love is love,’ Minister of Social Development Karla Rubilar said after the vote.
Chile’s Senate and lower house of parliament both voted heavily in favor of the bill on Tuesday, which had previously been partially approved in November before the Senate sent it back to a committee to clarify ambiguities.
Current President Sebastian Pinera, who will leave office in March, has backed the bill and is expected to sign it into law.
The bill received the backing of 82 members in Congress while 20 voted against it and three abstained.
The vote culminates a process that began in 2017, when the first bill was introduced, backed by then-President Michelle Bachelet.
Chile is now poised to join 30 countries globally with legal same-sex marriage, including Argentina, Ecuador, Brasil, Colombia, Costa Rica, Uruguay in Latin America.
The union between people of the same-sex is also legal in 24 Mexican states while eight other states require an injunction for the marriage to become valid.