Javier Silva and Jaime Nazar have become the first gay couple to legally wed in Chile.
“Being the first couple to get married in Chile for us is an honor, something to be proud of,” Silva said after the ceremony took place today. “We did it! It’s something we didn’t think could happen.”
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He added that the couple of seven years is so happy their two kids will now have the same rights as other children. Until now, only one member of the couple could be the legal parent.
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“They will be able to have, we hope, a better future, that they will not be discriminated against for having two parents who love each other.”
“My congratulations to Jaime and Javier for being the first couple to marry under the new #EqualMarriage law,” tweeted President-elect Gabriel Boric, who will take office tomorrow. “To continue advancing for a Chile with equal rights and freedoms for all people,”
Chile passed marriage equality legislation in December, making it the 31st country in the world to legalize same-sex marriage. The law took effect today and also updates some existing ones to include LGBTQ couples.
Chile has allowed couples to form civil unions that provided some protections, but lacked parentage and adoption rights.
The new law removes restrictions on same-sex couples around parentage, adoption rights, and assisted reproduction. It also removes a requirement that transgender people get divorced before having their gender legally recognized.
Two other LGBT couples also got married as the law took effect today, including Consuelo Morales and Pabla Heuser. They, too, are most excited at what it will mean for their daughter, Josefa.
“Today Josefa ceases to be an illegitimate daughter,” Morales said.