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Argentine marriage bill signed into law

by Rex Wockner

International News Briefs

Argentine President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner signed the bill legalizing same-sex marriage July 21 at the Casa Rosada in a ceremony attended by gay leaders.
In an interview with the newspaper Pagina/12, Fernandez said: "This is another milestone in the expansion of civil rights. They tried to disguise it as a religious issue, but it is strictly social. … I think we should take it very naturally, without drama."
She added that "marriage comes from Roman law," where it was created to deal "with private property (and) property rights."
"It arose in a pagan society, which the Roman society was," she said. "So to give a religious connotation to the union between two people isn't even historical truth."
Fernandez said that although Argentina is only the 10th country to legalize same-sex marriage nationwide, "without a doubt more countries will follow."
"Holland was the first and today already there are nine (other) countries," she said. "The other day the president of Iceland got married to her (female) partner. The president of Iceland! … In a few more years, this debate is going to end up anachronistic." (Editor's note: It was actually Iceland's prime minister, not president.)
The marriage bill cleared the Senate 33-27 on July 15 following 15 hours of debate.
City officials have said the first wedding will take place Aug. 13 in Buenos Aires' trendy Palermo area. A longtime gay couple in their 60s will tie the knot at the office where they were turned away when they tried to marry three years ago.
Same-sex marriage also is legal in Belgium, Canada, Iceland, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Mexico City, Connecticut, Iowa, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Vermont and Washington, D.C.

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