Colombia passes Civil Union Law

And the US slips further and further behind the rest of the world in terms of equality for GLBT citizens.  The law, which gives same sex couple who are of legal age and who have been together for at least two years most of the rights of married couples, has been working its way through the Colombian legislature since 1999. The primary opposition to it has come from the Catholic church, a powerful political force in Colombia.

This past winter, the Constitutional Court (think Supreme Court) decreed that GLBT couples must have the same property rights as unmarried, cohabitating heterosexual couples. This was seen creating the necessary momentum to finally get the law through the Congress.

Colombia is the first Latin American country to grant marriage-like rights nationwide. Mexico City, Mexico; Buenos Aires and Rio Grande do Sul Province in Brazil also have similar laws.