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see: 2 Gay ex-priest-turned-model pens life story 4/03 3 Argentina: Gay rights landmark-New laws endorse same-sex relationships 3/03 4 Buenos Aires softens legal opposition against homosexual couples 7/03 5 Wary of past abuses, Argentine capital approves gay rights--can form civil unions 7/03 6 Argentine Gays Legalize Union, 1st in Latin America 7/03 7 Using New Law, Buenos Aires Men Celebrate Civil Union 7/03 8a Buenos Aires--Argentina's 'gay-friendly' gateway 3/04 8b Last tango for machismo as gay tourists flock to Argentina 6/04 9 Argentines march for Pride 11/04 10 Gay radio channel launches in Argentina 11/04 11 What’s New: Buenos Aires (Gay travel story) Winter 2004 12 Gays Kiss on TV as Argentina Ponders Same-Sex Unions 2/05 13 IGLFA WC2007 will be in Buenos Aires, Argentina 6/06 14 The Argentinean Supreme Court Recognizes Transgender Group 11/06 15 First Hurdle for LGBT Rights Passed Within Latin American Economic Union 8/07 16 Gay world cup to be held in Argentina 9/07 17 British teams fly the flag at gay World Cup 9/07 18 Trans youth to undergo surgery in Latin America 9/07 19 Argentine team beats British side to win gay world cup 9/07 20 Travel Briefs: 5-star gay lodging in Latin America 11/07 21 Thousands march in gay pride parade in Argentine capital Buenos Aires 11/07 22 You say 'Parada,' they say 'Marcha' 11/07 23 Macho Argentina warms to gay dollars and euros 11/07 24 In Macho Argentina, a New Beacon for Gay Tourists 12/07 December 13, 2002 1 by Craig
Fagan, Buenos Aires, Argentina The law recognizes the civil union of same-sex couples but does not term the union a marriage. "For us, the law is the state's recognition of our right to be a couple and will allow us to access social benefits that we were excluded from," said Marcelo Sunthein, an Argentine gay rights activist. The legislation was passed by the Buenos Aires city legislature early Friday after a lengthy debate interrupted by chants of "Get to work!" by gay rights supporters. It was approved despite opposition from Argentina's Catholic Church, which argued city legislators had no authority in defining civil unions. The new law is the first of its kind in this predominantly Roman Catholic and conservative country. Gay and lesbian groups described the legislation as the most far-reaching in Latin America despite their disappointment that it does not give gay couples rights to adopt children. Similar measures have been recently adopted in several European countries like France, Sweden, Denmark, Norway and Iceland, where same-sex couples have been granted legal status. April 9, 2003 2 Buenos Aires - He says he just wants to do his part for Argentina to become a more open country. So the ex-Catholic priest-turned-model has stripped off for a gay magazine and now has a life story in the works. "I didn't want to do what so many priests who lead a double life do," Andres Geoni, 31 - who made a bit of a splash with his photo layout in "Imperio G" magazine - told local media. Geoni, who hails from the western province of Mendoza, was ordained in 2000 after eight years of studies, and became catechisis director in his home province. He said he left the priesthood in mid-2001 shortly after having his first homosexual relationship. Though he tried to be "a good priest," as he said, he ended up leaving his order, and now is penning a memoir Lucifer: Angel or Devil, he says "to do my small part so that this society becomes more open." "If I had found this path before starting my religious life, I think I would have lost my values," he said, adding: "Now I know I am not just gay; I'm a person who wants to contribute to society and help build a better world." March 18, 2003 3 by Andrés
Gaudín They will be able to share social security services, claim leave when a partner is sick, and enter into agreements - such as buying a house - as if they were married. However, the so-called "Civil Union" laws do not permit same sex marriages or child adoption. Nor do they establish inheritance rights unless a prior agreement has been formalized. These three aspects were not considered because they are included in the national Civil Code. "We have taken a great step towards becoming a tolerant society, based on the dignity of all people, without distinctions. This is of the most importance because we can only achieve true democracy with the effective application of human and civil rights across the board," said Buenos Aires congressman Héctor Costanzo. From Río Negro, congresswoman and gay rights campaigner Regina Kluz said, "This is important, most of all because now we can talk about homosexuality without prejudices, permitting open debate about an issue which, until now, had been swept under the carpet." It is not known how many couples could benefit from the new laws. "There are no official or unofficial statistics on the number of homosexuals in Argentina," said César Cigliutti, president of the Community of Argentinean Homosexuals (CHA). "But, as we continue to break down the wall of prejudices, it is becoming clear that we are many more than previously imagined." Other beneficiaries of the new laws will include unmarried heterosexual couples. Women in such relationships with children will no longer be classified as single-mothers, a label that commonly leads to labor discrimination in the private sector. In Río Negro, where the Catholic Church has supported indigenous communities, workers and marginalized people since the dictatorship era (1976-83), there was no interference in the procedure and the law went unopposed. In Buenos Aires, however, the Catholic hierarchy and conservative lay groups were less cooperative. Bishop Jorge Bergoglio, Archbishop of Buenos Aires, said the new regulation "goes against natural law." Citing Pope John Paul II, he said that civil union couples are "caricatures of families that have neither a future themselves nor the ability to create a future society." Both laws are based on a proposal drafted and edited by Judge Graciela Medina, an expert on family rights, and the CHA. "We didn't use any existing laws as models," said Medina. "Here, the oppressive weight of the Catholic Church meant a law of this type had to be drafted from scratch. The Legislature has made a brave move by sanctioning the first such law in all of Latin America," she said. Three other provinces are considering the introduction of their own civil union laws. In the Buenos Aires province the Socialist Party is spearheading the campaign, while in Jujuy it is led by The Ones and The Others, a gay rights group. In Córdoba, leftist politicians have drafted a proposal. A similar proposal was presented to Congress several years ago but conservative and traditionalist lobbying groups successfully opposed it. Congresswoman Laura Mussa, who made the original proposal, doesn't hold out much hope for it being processed in the near future, "even less so in an electoral year when no one wants to upset the Catholic Church," she said. If the provinces of Buenos Aires, Jujuy and Córdoba approve the proposals, 59 percent of Argentineans will be living where civil unions are legal. A benchmark has been set for the rest of Latin America where, in countries such as Brazil (LP, Oct. 11, 2001) and Ecuador (LP, Oct. 18, 2001), anti-gay discrimination and violence is common.
July 13, 2003 4 Reporter: Brian Byrnes Hamish Robertson: Argentina is joining a growing list of countries where governments are softening their stance towards homosexual couples acquiring legal status for their relationships, despite opposition from religious organisations, especially the Catholic Church. From tomorrow, gay partners in the capital, Buenos Aires, will gather to participate in the first civil unions ever performed in Latin America. Brian Byrnes compiled this report in Buenos Aires Brian Byrnes: The vote came at the end of a marathon 18-hour session of the Buenos Aires city legislator last December. With a 29 to 10 vote, lawmakers approved the Bill, making Buenos Aires the first city in all south America to offer civil unions between homosexual couples. (Sound of Amelia Corenberg speaking) Amelia Corenberg and her partner, Maria Loda Olivier, were at City Hall the morning the law passed. She says she never thought the day would come were offered many of the same rights as other Argentine couples. Amelia Corenberg: (Translated) It was really intense for me, because I was there with my partner, happy and in love. On top of that, to now have the possibility to decide if we want to complete a civil union, it's everything, or almost everything, a person could dream for. Brian Byrnes: The new law applies to both gay and straight couples who have been together for at least two years and live in the city of Buenos Aires. The partnerships offer health and insurance benefits and hospital visitation rights, but do not allow same-sex couples to receive inheritance or adopt children. City Legislator, Rocky Belomo (phonetic), is the Co-Author of the Bill. (Sound of Rocky Belomo speaking) "This law is important because it is a recognition that the Legislator of Buenos Aires city has established this law for many people," Belomo says. "And this shows an effort to convert the prejudices that exist here and in another way to recognise the most indispensable rights for everyone." Of course, everyone does not support this change, least of all the Catholic Church, of which approximately 80 per cent of all Argentines are members. Alberto Bocheti: Well, for us it was really something very sad, and we don't agree with this law. Brian Byrnes: Father Alberto Bocheti (phonetic) is a Professor of Bio-ethics at the Catholic University in Buenos Aires. He says the Argentine Catholic Church does not turn its back on homosexuals but strongly opposes this new law and is concerned that many gay Argentines will equate their civil union with the holy sacrament of matrimony. Alberto Bochet: They say, well, this not really a marriage or something, only civil union, but this looks like real wedding, you know. And in fact, we are sure that in few days when we have the first official civil unions we will see the rice, and you know, dressing up and all this stuff. It's something that is not going really with the Argentinean culture. Brian Byrnes:
A culture that is considered by some to be the most progressive in the
region. In neighbouring Brazil, some municipalities extend gay couples
equal rights, but stop short of offering official civil unions. Across
the Andes in Chile, a civil unions bill has been introduced by lawmakers
but is not expected to gain approval. Gay activist, Marcelo
Suntheim, secretary of the Argentina Homosexual Community, and his partner will be among the first to complete a civil
union in Buenos Aires. He thinks the landmark decision is something
that other countries throughout Latin America will soon look to emulate.
(Sound of Marcello Suintime speaking) "Latin America is a very
Catholic continent, and now that the civil union law has been approved
in Argentina a barrier has fallen," Suintime says. It's really
important because it's not happening in the Northern Hemisphere, between
the most socially advanced countries. But here in Latin America, gay
activists like Suintime say they will keep fighting for equal rights
throughout all of Argentina. The Catholic Church says it will continue
to oppose any efforts to legalise same-sex unions nationwide.
July 14, 2003
5 by Brian
Byrnes, Special to The Christian Science Monitor The law goes into effect Friday, and Korenberg and Ms. Olivier plan on completing a civil union sometime soon. That Buenos Aires, in the heart of this Catholic country, would adopt such a policy may be surprising, especially because of the culture of machismo that still reigns here. But this cosmopolitan capital has long prided itself on its European-style sophistication and status as a cultural beacon of the region. Some experts say this open-mindedness is a natural development for a country trying to redeem itself following years of authoritarian rule and severe civil rights abuses. After seven years of a brutal military regime, democracy was restored in 1983, and the following year, gay Argentines began to speak out publicly and demand equal treatment for the first time. During that same era, more and more citizens began to reflect on the horror of what had passed during the "Dirty War" - when an estimated 30,000 people "disappeared" - and began to rethink their attitudes. "After the dictatorship ended in 1983 ... people became aware of the importance of being respectful about human rights and being tolerant toward different ideas, ideologies, sexual orientation, and ethnic and racial differences," Beatriz Gurevich, a sociologist in Buenos Aires. Resistance
from church "It doesn't mean that we are opposed to ... homosexual people at all as persons, as human beings, but we don't agree with this kind of legislation." Father Bochatey says Argentina's Catholic Church offers solutions and assistance to gay couples who have demanded more say in their partners' medical and financial decisions, but that having an established law guaranteeing these rights is causing many gay Catholics to equate civil unions with the holy sacrament of matrimony. "For us a marriage is a male and female forever," he says. Even though some 80 percent of Argentina is still Catholic, the church's power has dwindled significantly, causing it to make some quiet concessions, says Ms. Gurevich. She says this shift is in large part do to the church's much-criticized alliance with the military during the bloody 1976-1983 regime. "[The church's] relationship with the government was quite visible, and since then ... there's been a reconsideration of its positions," she says. "Not publicly expressed, but there is a difference." Requirements
of couples "The city of Buenos Aires has established this law for many people, and this signifies an effort to change existing prejudices and ... recognize for everyone their most indispensable rights," says Roque Bellomo, a city legislator and a coauthor of the bill. Although the law's wording opens the door for heterosexual couples, they are not expected to seek the official partnership as often as homosexuals. All couples must meet certain requirements that include living together for at least two years within the city limits. The law extends health and insurance benefits as well as hospital visitation rights to the couples, but does not allow them to adopt children or establish rights of inheritance. "Maybe in two or three years we can have legislation that gives us all of our rights: adoption, inheritance, pension," says Marcelo Suntheim, secretary of the Argentina Homosexual Community, a local nonprofit organization that lobbied to get the civil-unions law passed here. Mr. Suntheim also hopes to pass a civil-unions law nationwide, however observers say that outside the city there is more resistance to such laws. Prospects
for Latin America Korenberg and Olivier say they are proud to live in a city where gay rights are finally being recognized. They are thrilled to have a chance to live together as a family, but they say that they will continue to fight so that others in Argentina and Latin America will have the same rights. "This is an era of change," says Korenberg. "Ten years ago this could never have happened here."
July 18, 2003 6 by Hilary
Burke "Because of all the people who fought for this who are not here to see it, this is a very emotional moment," said Marcelo's partner Cesar Cigliutti, 45, referring to fellow gay activists who died of AIDS. Theirs was the first ceremony since the Buenos Aires legislature granted legal status last year to gay couples in a city of 3 million people that is known as one of the most progressive in this deeply Roman Catholic continent. The law has been hailed as a first in Latin America. Couples can now share insurance coverage and qualify as family members during hospital visits, but their union is not the same as marriage. They cannot adopt children, inherit each other's wealth or get spousal pension benefits. Several Limitations Nor will the law cover people who live outside the capital or allow access to federal benefits in this nation of 36 million people. The Argentine capital joined a handful of places, including some U.S. states and several European nations, that recognize legal status for gay unions. Before year's end, the nonprofit group Argentine Homosexual Community will push for a national measure granting same-sex couples the same benefits as heterosexuals who marry, said Cigliutti, the group's president. City Hall officials expect about 150 gay couples to seal their civil unions in coming months, a spokeswoman said. Though
the law was approved last year it did not go into effect until this
week. Buenos Aires - known as the Paris of Latin America with its boulevards,
cafes and vibrant cultural scene - has long seen itself as a beacon
of European enlightenment in the continent. While in much of Latin America
a macho culture dominates and gays are scorned, in Buenos Aires there
are gay activist groups, bars and parades. In neighboring Chile, for
example, even divorce - let alone gay civil unions - is illegal. Cigliutti,
who was sprinkled with rainbow-colored gay pride confetti, celebrated
with a glass of sparkling cider, saying: "Our society has really
demonstrated maturity in recognizing our rights." .
July 19, 2003 7 by Jon
Jeter, Washington Post Foreign Service This law frees gay men and women to be citizens." The municipal law is the first of its kind in a country whose social mores are deeply influenced by the values of the Roman Catholic Church. Abortion remains illegal here, and during elections earlier this year none of the five leading presidential candidates uttered a word on the topic. But passage of the civil union law in Buenos Aires last year led lawmakers in other Latin American countries - Chile, Mexico and Brazil - to introduce similar proposals, though none has been approved. Gay rights activists here first began pushing for the legislation two years ago, focusing first on Buenos Aires, which is known as one of South America's most urbane and sophisticated cities. "We didn't pursue those laws that go to the heart of forming a family like adoption," said Pedro Anibal Paradiso Sottile, legal director for the Homosexual Community of Argentina. "Those are national laws and we only sought to change the local law as it pertained to the rights of couples. We really think that helped to diminish the argument that the legislation represented a threat to the sanctity of the family." The new law, which took effect this week, applies to both gay and heterosexual couples who are at least 21 years old, have been together for at least two years and live in Buenos Aires. For Ciglutti, 45, and Suntheim, 35, the civil union statute has both symbolic and practical value. The two have lived together for five years, and following their registry as a couple this week, they can jointly apply for a loan for renovations on their 100-year-old colonial-style brick home. Ciglutti also can extend his health insurance benefits to Suntheim, who is currently unemployed. "This is not about anything other than living as a committed couple," Suntheim said. "Nothing more than what a heterosexual couple can do. Once the state recognizes us, legitimizes us, it makes it a lot easier for gays and lesbians to come out to their families, to their friends, to their communities and live without fear, to live free. This is a huge barrier that we have crossed in Latin America." Gay rights activists say they intend to press for changes to national laws on adoption and inheritance. Church officials insist they will oppose any such revisions. March 31, 2004 8a
But something
has changed in the past few months. At Besos Brujos (Bewitched Kisses),
a new pink-walled
tango salon in Buenos Aires, it is hard to tell who is leading whom as the
couples twirl in the dim light. They are all same-sex couples on
the dance floor – this
is gay tango.
29 November 2004 9 Some 10,000 people marched in Buenos Aires' 13th gay-pride parade Nov. 20. "It was much more fun than I would have ever thought," said first-timer Mariano Lago, 27. "We carried the big big big pride flag for a while, then went to dance along this truck all over Avenida de Mayo." The parade's theme was "All of society for the right to diversity -- civil unions for the whole country." Two hundred antigays protested in front of the Metropolitan Cathedral. "We have nothing against them and we didn't come to attack them, but we're not going to let them take the Catholic Church," one of the protesters told the daily newspaper Clarín. During last year's parade the cathedral was spray-painted with graffiti reading "Church = dictatorship", "Rapist priests" and "Nazi priests." The vandals chanted, "Here is the repression of the Holy Inquisition." To date, civil unions have been enacted only in Buenos Aires and in Río Negro province. November 22, 2004
by Rex Wockner members.aol.com/wockner 11 A few
days later she returned with an old bottle of Evita’s perfume.
It’s now in the museum’s collection, no longer a mystery,
its secrets unlocked after lying dormant for half a century. But
as it was with the scent of Evita’s clothes, waiting for the
right moment to be noticed, so it is with much of Argentina’s
history, from it secret gay past to the rhythms of the immigrants
who lifted her to the brink of global economic supremacy at the beginning
of the last century. To understand
tango, the lifeblood of Buenos Aires, one must visit two neighborhoods,
old underbellies of the city before she fought to compete with the
best of Europe and North America. The old port of La Boca lies along
the bay like Rio de la Plata. La Boca is Spanish for mouth, and like
the real orifice, it was how Argentina communicated with the world,
swallowing millions of immigrants into itself, and then speaking
back of her riches i~ product and soul. Buenos Aires residents call
themselves Portefios, forever associating themselves with this area. To while
away their time, they held one another, pressed against each other's
stubbly olive flesh, sensually, violently stroking each other. This
was the tango, a dance so obscene that a woman, even in a brothel,
could never dance it. Any modern tango performance worth seeing will
show this aspect of its roots, but it throws American audiences off. Now the
immortal Gardel will never leave his beloved city. His image smiles
from street corners everywhere, an awkwardly handsome man in a fedora,
the eternal voice of Argentina. The tumultuous mid 1930s were also
when the 15-year-old Eva Duarte came to Buenos Aires to seek her
fortune. Miremont is certain she threw herself into a dark world
where gay men, artists, tango singers, actors, and actresses drank
and danced their troubles away in a city fighting against their star-struck
dreams. This was detrimental to many aspects of Argentine culture, not just gays and lesbians. Still, homosexuals found ways to organize. Nuevo Mundo, South Americas first known gay rights group, formed on November 1, 1967, a date marked by Argentina's gay pride parade year after year. This was followed in 1970 by Frente de Liberacion Homosexual. Manuel Puig, the gay author of Kiss of the Spider Woman, was its most famous member. Homosexuals were persecuted to be sure, but Argentina's oldest gay club, Contramano, opened in 1984 in the waning days of the military regime after the ill-fated Falkland Islands War, known here as the Islas Malvinas. Machine gun-toting soldiers sometimes walked among the patrons, letting them know who was boss. Spider Woman detailed this oppressive era when the military kidnapped and murdered tens of thousands of people. To seek justice for their missing children, the Madres de Plaza de Mayo march every Thursday in front of the Casa Rosada, the presidential palace. Here, in the shadows of Evita's famous balcony, is also where today's gay rights events take place, continuing what Cigliutti calls "a political, cultural tradition," forever linking Argentina's past injustices with hope for a better future. This is
the Buenos Aires I have fallen in love with, full of inconsistencies,
bedeviled by its tragic circumstances. At the end of one of my many
trips I told a friend how pained I was to leave. He said that whenever
foreigners live in Buenos Aires, once their work is done they suffer
a sadness they cannot describe, one they have never felt before.
I understood completely. After my first trip, heading to the airport
with the city slipping into a blur behind me, I began to sob uncontrollably,
the only time in my life I'd ever done that. I wondered if I'd ever
see the city again, yet somehow I knew I would. The
Argentine Tango Heartbreaker: Julio Bocca While tango in the modern era celebrates this history, Bocca is unsure if during the military regimes of the 1950s to the 1 980s it occurred other than "in private spaces." I Since the passage of the civil-unions law in Buenos Aires, Bocca feels that "the country is a little more open:' He also welcomes the explosion of gay travel to Argentina. Bocca says he has heard 20% of all tourists to Argentina are now gay or lesbian, and he thinks he knows why: "What you have in Argentina is party time and a culture thing, a little more stuff to do than Rio." You can
tango the gay way at La Marshall, an exciting all-night gay tango
event that should not be missed. Held in the club La Salsera (Yatay
961; 011-54-114-912-9043) every Wednesday at 8:30 P.M., the event
begins with two hours of gay and lesbian tango lessons, heads into
a milonga, where people grab new partners, and then at midnight a
tango band plays.
Moderate: RESTAURANTS Expensive: Moderate: NIGHTLIFE ATTRACTIONS
February 25,
2005 Editor's Note: A popular dating show in Argentina marks the country's
greater acceptance of gays. But powerful forces oppose civil unions
for same-sex couples. June 3, 2006 13 Copenhagen - The International Gay and Lesbian Football (Soccer) Association (IGLFA) have officially announced in Copenhagen, Denmark the next host city for the 2007 IGLFA World Championship is Buenos Aires, Argentina. During the meeting IGLFA considered three South American cities: Lima, Rio de Janeiro and Buenos Aires. Buenos Aires got the support from all the IGLFA Board of Directors. This tournament will signal the first ever IGLFA World Championship in Latin America and the first recognized international gay soccer/football tournament in South America. The tournament will be held from 23 September to 29 September in Buenos Aires. The tournament will offer 11 vs. 11 for men’s and women’s teams and will likely offer 7 vs. 7 in order to allow more teams to participate. Tomas Gomez, a native of Peru and the IGLFA President, commented, “This tournament is extremely important to us. With this outreach initiative toward Latin America we want to developed IGLFA goals and membership into South and Central America. IGLFA is hoping that this tournament will have a positive impact on the future of the gay community in Latin America. We have the support from the Buenos Aires City and gay community, and we are sure this tournament will be different with a “Latin Style”.
14 November 22, 2006 Media Contact: Hossein Alizadeh, 212-430-6016, Buenos Aires - Yesterday, the Supreme Court of Argentina ruled that official legal recognition must be given to the Association for the Struggle of the Travesti and Transsexual Identity (ALITT). The court decision overrules earlier decisions by the General Inspectorate of Justice (a division of the Argentinean Justice Department dealing with the registration of the NGOs, "Inspeccion General de Justicia" in Spanish) and the civil court, which declared that ALITT's goals were unacceptable as "going against the common good." The Supreme Court's ruling not only extends recognition to ALITT as an organization, but gives full validity to the objective of advocating on behalf of the transgender community. The Court's ruling founded the denial of legal status to be unjustly discriminatory and a violation of the freedom of association. Mauro Cabral, Trans and Intersex Consultant for the International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission (IGLHRC) expressed his satisfaction with the ruling, "This is an incredible victory for travesti and transsexual communities in Argentina. The legal recognition given to ALITT constitutes a fundamental step in the struggle for travestis and transgender human rights in Argentina." IGLHRC worked with ALITT's leading representative Lohana Berkins to prepare an amicus curiae brief. Ms. Berkins is a former recipient of IGLHRC's 2003 Felipa de Souza Award. "We are very thrilled and proud of ALITT's achievement," said Paula Ettelbrick, IGLHRC's Executive Director, adding, "the legal recognition of the right to associate is a critical step of having a full voice in society." The new court order comes shortly after the authorities in the Argentinean province of Mendoza repealed Article 80, which mandated punishment for those who “in daily life wear clothes or attempt to pass as someone of the opposite sex.” In practice, this article criminalized travesti and transsexual gender identity. Also on June 29 of this year, Argentina witnessed the first National Travesti, Transsexual and Transgender March in its history. Nevertheless, travestis and transsexuals continue to be two of the most vulnerable communities in Argentina, frequently exposed to police violence, a repressive provincial penal code, and education, health, labor and housing discrimination.
August 30, 2007 15 For Immediate Release On August 7, 2007, the first significant step in promoting region-wide sexual and gender rights in Latin America was taken when the human rights committee of the Southern Common Market issued a declaration to recognize and promote an end to discrimination against sexual and gender minorities by member countries. Should the entire Southern Common Market pass the resolution, it will result in sweeping changes to the rights and policies affecting lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people in Latin America, according to the International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission (IGLHRC). The MERCOSUR (Mercado Común del Sur, or Southern Common Market) is a regional trade and integration agreement among a number of Latin American countries. Its origins date to 1985 when the Presidents of Brazil and Argentina signed an economic cooperation pact. Current full member states are Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay, and Uruguay. Associated members are Chile, Venezuela, Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru. In December 2004, the Associated States Human Rights High Authorities was formed to address the integration process among these Latin American members with regard to promoting human rights in the region. "This is a truly ground breaking opportunity for achieving the promise of full human rights throughout Latin America for sexual and gender minorities," said Marcelo Ferreyra, IGLHRC's Regional Coordinator for Latin America and the Caribbean, who participated in the session. "We are confident that the governments will adopt the subcommittee's declaration and set it on the road to a full resolution of the entire MERCOSUR." Over the last year, IGLHRC played an instrumental role in coordinating LGBT groups within the MERCOSUR countries to form a MERCOSUR LGBT federation to ensure that the rights of LGBT people would be integrated into trade and other agreements in the region. When the MERCOSUR met in early August in Montevideo, Uruguay, a specific session on Sexual Diversity, Identity and Gender was held. IGLHRC and the MERCOSUR LGBT federation joined a range of civil society, human rights, and government officials in presenting to the High Authorities the urgent need to adopt clear policies for eradicating sexual orientation and gender identity/expression discrimination in these countries. The declaration, reprinted below in full, calls on Latin American governments to Repeal of laws that discriminate against LGBT people Promote public awareness and education plans Increase involvement of LGBT people at all levels of public education Take action to end police harassment and persecution Adopt laws to protect same-sex couples and their families Ease name change and registration for transgender people Create government agencies to support and provide services to LGBT people Promote inclusion of sexual orientation and gender identity in the draft of the Inter-American Convention Against Racism and All Forms of Discrimination Convene a regional entity to monitor state compliance. The MERCOSUR LGBT working network was created in May 2006 in Rosario, Argentina, with the goal of having an impact on the human rights policies adopted by the MERCOSUR. "If this is declaration is ultimately adopted as a resolution by the MERCOSUR, it will mark the single biggest global development for the LGBT community since the range of inter-European entities set out to abolish discrimination and the criminalization of homophobia in Europe," said Paula Ettelbrick, Executive Director of IGLHRC. Having full government support from so many Latin American countries will have a substantial global impact as these countries vote on human rights measures at the Organization of American States and United Nations," added Ferreyra. .............................. What Does the Document Says: The MERCOSUR Human Rights High Authorities Seminary on Sexual Diversity, Identity and Gender, organized by the Uruguay Pró-Têmpore Presidency, expresses the urgent need to work for sexual orientation and gender identity / expression discrimination eradication in these countries and to recognize Sexual Diversity Rights as Human Rights. For this we considerer that it is necessary: - To revoke and/or to modify any kind of legislation and/or discriminatory regulation criminalizing lesbians, gays, bisexuals and trans people, and/or restrict any exercise and enjoyment of their complete civil rights. In this sense, to revoke any kind of legislation or regulation prohibiting gay, lesbian, bisexual and/or trans people from blood donation. - To generate and/or impel cross-sectional public policies in all Governmental areas (as the "Brazil without Homophobia" and the Argentinean "National Plan against Discrimination" policies intend to do), nondiscriminatory laws, programs and actions, in the scope of education, health, work, etc., that specifically promote sexual orientation and gender identity/expression nondiscrimination, specially those allowing trans people access to those areas. In the case of enacted laws, these should be applied in ways that guarantee their operability, overturning the burden of proof. To fulfill this task it is important to establish a direct bond with civil society so that political decisions will emerge from joint work. - To promote the inclusion of LGBT people's Human Rights content in education (public and private, institutional and non-institutional) at all levels, including educator trainings, and to stimulate campaigns that tend to lessen prejudices based on sexual orientation and gender identity/expression discrimination. To promote groups investigation of sexual diversity related issues. - To take political decisions and actions that definitively stop security force harassment, discrimination, persecution and repression of LGBT people, especially towards trans people, in each country. - To generate laws that guarantee the same protection and rights recognized for heterosexual family to LGBT people and their families, creating legal institutions like society of coexistence, concubinary union, civil union pacts or any comparable access to same sex marriage. - To create laws to allow trans people to change their name and sex registration without any kind of surgical or medical requirements, and that guarantees public and free access to sex reassignment treatments and surgeries for those that wish it. - To generate specific state institutional spaces to work on sexual orientation and identity/gender expression discrimination topics and to inform civil society about these bodies. To give those bodies the ability to receive and systematize complaints, to provide concrete answers according to each case, and, in addition, to allow them design and evaluate public policies in each place. - To compel its political will to urge the inclusion of sexual orientation and gender identity expression in the Inter-American Convention Against Racism and all Forms of Discrimination and Intolerance draft text that is being discussed at the OAS. - To urge the creation of a discriminatory practices Regional Observatory that includes discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity/expression where civil society organizations interacts with the MERCOSUR Human Rights High Authorities and MERCOSUR parliamentarians, between others, to investigate, study, discuss and attend to those issues. To make this observatory able to produce information annually on the situation of LGBT people in the region and to be presented before national and international forums. We recognize the need to advocate the development of the required measures enunciated in this declaration in each of our countries. We commit ourselves to organize another seminary, promoting the participation of the chancelleries and authorities of each different country; to permanently incorporate sexual diversity issues at the meetings of MERCOSUR Human Rights High Authorities (RAADDHH), across all groups, commissions and programs; to include sexual diversity issues on each country's periodic Human Rights reports, for instance those before the CCPR and the CERD; and to study and to consider inclusion of the Yogyakarta Principles as subject for the next meeting, with the objective being to consider States Members' support.
11th September 2007 16 South America has an impressive history when it comes to football, and this year it will be adding another great moment as gay teams meet for the 2007 Lesbian-Gay World Soccer Championship. Supported by the Federation of International Football(FIFA), Buenos Aires, Argentina will host gay and lesbian teams from across the globe at the event later this month. Gay and lesbian teams began to pop up almost three decades ago and the International Gay and Lesbian Football Association was formed to act as a governing body for the sport. The goal of the organisation is to "engender respect and understanding from the non-gay world, through the medium of football (soccer)." The event will be played in Buenos Aires' Sarmiento Park and is supported by the Argentina Soccer Association (AFA) and Argentine Homosexuality Community (CHA) along with FIFA. AFA has dedicated itself to finding volunteers and officials to help oversee the event and are determined to make it a success. AFA vice president Julio Grondona said: "The World Championship is a sports and political event with a clear message: every player has the right to calmly express his sexual orientation without any kind of prejudice." The opening ceremony for the championship will take place on Sunday, September 23rd at the Amerika Disco, and will kick off the week long event. In 2008 the Gay World Cup will be held in London.
21st September 2007 17 by Georgina Roberts Chris Basiurski, the Football Association Liaison and Campaigns Officer for the Gay Football Supporters Network and defender for Leftfooters, told PinkNews.co.uk: "We are very excited about taking part in a tournament for the first time in Argentina. We are looking forward to meeting many new people from across the world and reacquainting ourselves with old friends from previous tournaments. We know that Argentina will be fantastic hosts. As the only South American country where civil partnerships are permitted, it is fitting that the tournament be held there this year." The tournament at Buenos Aires' Sarmiento Park, hosted by the Argentina Soccer Association, kicks off with a ceremony at Amerika disco on Sunday 23 September. The final takes place a week later on Saturday 29. The annual tournament, which has been running for 16 years, will be coming to London next year, hosted by the Leftfooters FC. The teams will play in Regents Park for the 2008 title. The event will be supported by the FA, following the launch of the Football For All Campaign, which aims to stamp out homophobia in the sport. Mr Basiurski commented: "We are greatly looking forward to welcoming everyone to London next year, for what we believe will be the biggest gay sporting event ever held in the UK. It will be a chance to build on the strength of this year's tournament to ensure that we continue to promote the participation of gay men and women in football within a safe and tolerant environment."
27th September 2007 18 A 17-year-old transsexual boy has been granted gender reassignment surgery in Argentina. The Consulting Bioethics Committee of the Córdoba Judiciary decided that the child, known as Nati, can now go ahead with surgery and can also have the gender changed on her official documents including her birth certificate. The landmark decision to allow Nati to receive the surgery follows three years of petitioning. The case was originally dismissed in 2004 on the grounds that parental permission did not extend to granting irreversible surgery. Nati will now focus on her surgery, which is imminent. She said: "I'm very happy that my real identity has been recognised." Nati suffers from Harry Benjamin Syndrome, a congenital intersex condition that is believed to start during pregnancy when the brain of an unborn child develops as one gender and the body as the other. This will be the first gender reassignment surgery performed on a minor in Argentina and in Latin America. In January this year a 12-year-old Austrian child had gender reassignment treatment after persuading her parents and doctors that she was sure she was a girl.
September 29, 2007 19 Buenos Aires (AFP) - Argentina's Los Dogos captured the gay football world cup Saturday, defeating British title-holders Stonewall 1-0 in Buenos Aires in the first final held in Latin America. The two teams were among 28 squads from Europe, the Americas and Australia that participated in the 10th gay football world championship aimed at highlighting the fight against homophobia and discrimination. With their victory, Los Dogos, named after an Argentine dog breed, automatically qualified for the 2008 tournament hosted by London. "The people supported us and I hope it's always like this," said Dogos coach Nestor Gammella, 51, after the final held at the Defensores de Belgrano stadium. "We beat the world champions and we are happy." It was the first time Latin American teams played in the tournament organized by the International Gay and Lesbian Football Association (IGLFA), with squads from Mexico, Chile and Uruguay. IGFLA president Tomas Gomez said Buenos Aires was chosen to host the cup this year for its "respect and social acceptance of the gay community." Buenos Aires is increasingly seen as a gay-friendly city. In 2002, the city's government approved gay and lesbian civil unions.
November 04, 2007 20 The first five-star gay hotel in Latin America has opened in the Argentine capital of Buenos Aires, an increasingly popular destination on the worldwide gay tourist circuit. The hotel, near the historic San Telmo neighborhood, is the second of its kind developed by Spain's Axel Corp., which opened a five-star gay hotel in Barcelona in 2003. "Like any other business, we have economic objectives," general manager Nacho Rodriguez said. But "we're also about fighting to help the normalization and acceptance of gays in society." The hotel's top floor is a glass-bottomed pool that draws visitors' gazes upward as they enter the breezy lobby. The 48-room hotel is "hetero-friendly," company officials say, noting about a quarter of the Barcelona hotel guests are heterosexual and predicting a similar pattern in Buenos Aires.
November 18, 2007 21 Buenos Aires, Argentina (The Associated Press) - Thousands of Argentines waving rainbow flags marched in the annual Gay pride parade Saturday in Buenos Aires, where some said they still face discrimination in one of the most gay-friendly cities in Latin America. The capital became the first city in the region to pass same-sex civil union laws in 2002, and this year played host to soccer's "gay world cup" and saw the opening of the first five-star hotel catering to homosexuals.
November 18, 2007 22 This is Gay Pride weekend here in Buenos Aires, where my partner and I are living for the rest of this year. My first reaction was to the small size of the event, since B.A. bills itself (repeatedly) as "the gay capital of South America." I would put the numbers at tens of thousands, certainly smaller than most big city Pride events I've attended, and a tiny, tiny percentage of the millions who filled Avenida Paulista for the world's largest Gay Pride, in São Paulo, Brasil, back in June. The location yesterday was perfect, however, on the Plaza de Mayo, scene of Evita's famous speech on the balcony of the Casa Rosada. From that picturesque square, the parade proceeded through the Centro to the Plaza de los Dos Congresos. The event here in BsAs is called the "Marcha del Orgullo," or Pride March, and it did have a more political feel than the "Parada de Orgulho" in São Paulo. There were political banners for the event's theme, "Equality, Liberty, Diversity," as well as, "The same rights with the same names," a direct call for marriage and not simply civil union recognition for gay couples. Still, drag queens dressed in wedding gowns, gyrating to "The Wedding Song" is unlikely to change many minds on the subject. Gay marriage is a hot topic right now in Argentina, since the election earlier this month of Cristina Kirchner, the current first lady and a former senator. A prominent Cristina backer in the Senate introduced a gay marriage bill in the weeks leading up to the election, but gay Latino blogger Blabbeando has raised a number of legitimate questions about whether that support can be attributed to the prime candidate herself. Reading his analysis, Cristina comes off a bit like her cautious and calculating counterpart running for president back home in the U.S. It's a mistake to judge a community by its Gay Pride, but overall I'm surprised that gay Argentinians are pushing for marriage. Moreso than in Rio or São Paulo, many gays here seem to be fairly closeted, although many would have you believe they are post-gay rather than pre-gay. Perhaps a bit of both is fair, but it speaks well of the activists here and the political scene that gays can be a political force with such a (relatively) small visible presence.
November 29, 2007 23 By Alexei Barrionuevo "There is so much more freedom these days," said Mauricio Urbides, a 28-year-old fashion designer, who sipped red wine with two male friends at the hotel recently. "You see gays on television here, in government. Just 15 years ago it was a completely different situation." The three friends were among a mixed crowd of gays and heterosexuals who laughed as Kyra and Sharon, two drag queens from Barcelona poked fun at the Argentine president-elect, Cristina Fernández de Kirchner, and sang a Marilyn Monroe-inspired "Happy Birthday" to a male guest near the hotel's outdoor pool. In other parts of the world, such as San Francisco's Castro district, gays have struggled recently to maintain cultural relevance in the face of gentrification. In the Castro, America's largest gay neighborhood, San Francisco's most popular Halloween party was canceled last month, striking a blow to the neighborhood's identity. But Buenos Aires has become more accepting of gays despite having no traditional neighborhood of its own. The first gay bar here opened in 1983, just as the military dictatorship was being toppled. Then in 1992, President Carlos Menem signed a decree promising legal protection for homosexuals. Argentine social mores began loosening in the 1990s, when the pegging of the peso to the dollar gave Argentines more spending power, allowing many to travel abroad, including Urbides, who said he journeyed to Florida and Sint Maarten. "People traveled and found there were other ways of living that were completely different than what they were used to," Urbides said. After Argentina plunged into economic chaos in late 2001, discrimination based on sexual orientation seemed like a petty concern. "When people are eating out of garbage cans it really doesn't matter if you are gay or not," said Osvaldo Bazán, a journalist and author of the book "History of Homosexuality in Argentina from the Conquest of America to the 21st Century." The devalued currency made Buenos Aires a relative bargain for Western tourists, including many gays who liked the city's European sophistication. In recent years, marketers have more aggressively sought to promote the city as a gay tourist destination. Gay tango bars and wine shops have sprouted up, and a new "friendly card" helps travelers and locals alike to get discounts at gay-friendly shops and restaurants. A "Gay Map" lists gay-friendly nightspots and more. Travel industry experts estimate that about 20 percent of tourists that visit Buenos Aires are gay, or about 300,000 visitors a year that spend $600 million annually in the city. Even as tourism has been flourishing, so, too, has activism by locals to gain rights for gays and encourage more tolerance. In 2002, activists, including many in their early 20s with scant memories of the dictatorship, pushed successfully to legalize same-sex unions, despite some resistance from the Roman Catholic Church, of which some 90 percent of Argentines are members. Argentina's House of Representatives is expected to vote in the next few days on a new national law to extend health benefits to gay couples, with some members of the governing Peronist Party pledging their support. Argentina's more liberal treatment of sexual orientation on television has also stoked acceptance. Florencia De La Vega, a transsexual actress, made a splash when she played a transvestite in the 2004 soap opera "Los Roldán." A year later, the television dating show "12 Corazones - Especial," became the first in the county to exclusively feature gay men - who kissed on camera. Yet even as popular culture and the same-sex law have raised acceptance, visitors still complain of homophobic treatment, said Marcelo Suntheim, secretary of the Community of Homosexuals in Argentina, an activist group. He said the group received three complaints this year from gay couples who said that hotel concierges in Buenos Aires "asked them not to kiss in the lobby because children were present." In this way, some locals are hopeful that the new Axel Hotel will offer another place where same-sex couples can feel more comfortable. The hotel, which has billed itself as "hetero-friendly," is the second gay-themed hotel to be built by Juan Juliá, a 37-year-old entrepreneur from Barcelona, where the first Axel opened three years ago. He chose Buenos Aires after considering Rio de Janeiro; Puerto Vallarta, Mexico; and a host of European capitals. The Axel emphasizes both openness and a fun spirit. From the lobby area, guests look up and can see swimmers slithering about in a rooftop pool with a glass bottom. The 48 rooms feature amenities like a glass shower right next to the bed. Instead of the traditional "Do Not Disturb" sign is one that reads "Please Disturb." Condoms - with packages reading "Enjoy!" in both English and Spanish, are also supplied. "We provide everything for you to have fun," said Juliá. "Be safe, but have fun." He said he hopes the hotel becomes popular not only with tourists, but with local Argentines who will see it as a place to socialize. "The majority of the gay community is looking more and more for hetero-friendly places," said Luciano Fus, a 29 year-old translator who watched the drag show. "But this will be another after-work spot." Urbides said he would "definitely come back." He smiled. "Especially if the hotel brings Madonna back to Buenos Aires, or better yet, if it brings Cher here."
December 3, 2007 Buenos Aires Journal by Alexei Barrionuevo “There is so much more freedom these days,” said Mauricio Urbides, a 28-year-old fashion designer, who sipped red wine with two male friends at the hotel recently. “You see gays on television here, in government. Just 15 years ago it was a completely different situation.” The three friends were among a mixed crowd of homosexuals and heterosexuals who laughed as Kyra and Sharon, drag queens from Barcelona, Spain, poked fun at Argentina’s president-elect, Cristina Fernández de Kirchner, and sang a Marilyn Monroe-inspired “Happy Birthday to You” to a male guest. In other parts of the world, like the Castro district in San Francisco, gay people have struggled recently to maintain a cultural presence in the face of gentrification. Buenos Aires has no traditional gay neighborhood, but acceptance of |
