The group in favor of same-sex marriage is not giving up the fight now that the law has failed to pass in Parliament. There is still a way to go, including awaiting the decision from the Court of Cassation, for which the Attorney General has given a positive opinion.
Miguel Mansur, a parliamentarian from the Accion21 faction, was visibly disappointed with the vote in Parliament on the same-sex marriage bill. Since there was yet another tied vote, it means that nothing further will be done with this bill.
“Today is a sad day for our democracy because we have seen members of parliament hide behind prejudice, exercising cowardice to stand for the Constitution. All 21 members of Parliament are sworn to respect and defend the Constitution of Aruba, and today we did not achieve that. We are all imperfect beings.”
He expressed deep concern for the state of democracy, noting how certain religious groups have corrupted politics and denigrated Aruba’s Constitution. He explained that the LGBT community represents 6,610 people, which is three times more than the congregants of all ICA (Iglesia Cristiana Aruba) churches. “Now it’s time for them to mobilize. A total of 5,420 LGBT individuals have the right to vote, and if you count their brothers, mothers, fathers, uncles, aunts, and other family members, it is much more than the 16,000 people who signed against equality.”
The parliamentarian is confident that marriage equality will come. Besides this, he prays for more understanding and respect for others. Most of all, he hopes that no one will use their faith to harm others. “If your faith tells you to hate someone, you need a new religion.”
The Orguyo Foundation (Pride Foundation), representing the LGBT community, also had representatives in Parliament to witness the vote. One of them, Egmar Irausquin, said the fight started in 2019, and “we never expected that today, in 2024, we would still be here. We find that it is progressing quickly, but there is still a way to go.”
After this vote, they will now look at the next option and will go to The Hague to hear the decision of the Court of Cassation. This institution, since last December, has been handling the appeal of the decision by the Court, which stated that same-sex marriage must be accepted. The government appealed this decision, feeling it was stepping into the legislator’s and ruler’s roles. Now the date of July 18 has been set to announce their decision after the Attorney General advised following the Court’s decision.
Irausquin said they will wait for this decision to see what more they can do. The fight for same-sex marriage is not just about the right to marry, he said. It’s about the consequences it has for everyone, the rights that are not the same as for a heterosexual married couple.
Now they are waiting for the decision of the Court of Cassation. “We have waited long enough, and a couple of extra weeks is not a problem.”
David Wever, Orguyo Foundation’s lawyer and writer of the initiative law, was also present. He feels that politics wants to wait for the decision of the Court of Cassation. Some have already publicly expressed that they wished to wait for that decision. He hoped some would have voted in favor anyway, as there was nothing stopping Parliament from passing the law. However, he acknowledges that they are waiting to take the direction given by the judge.
