Gay rights in chile

Insights

A growing number of countries are legalising same-sex marriage, and Chile is no exception. However, this recognition of the rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) Chileans is the product of years of debate.

The project on legislating equal marriage dates back to March 2008, when a group of parliamentarians presented the initiative but did not own sufficient support for its approval. Then, in 2010, the initiative was again proposed, but it was also rejected.

In 2015, a Civil Union law was passed and recognised the union between same-sex couples but differentiated it from civil marriage itself. Even though civil union law made some progress in protecting family diversity, it did not provide equal rights, for example, parental and adoption rights.

So, on 28 August 2017, former President Michelle Bachelet sent the equal marriage bill to the National Congress. Processing began in September 2017, and finally, on 10 December 2021, the Matching Marriage Law (Law No. 21,400, which ‘Amends Various Legal Texts to Adjust on Equal Terms the Marriage of Persons of the Same-Sex’), was published. On 10 March 2022, the law entered into force.

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gay rights in chile

Chile

Chile has made significant progress on LGBTIQ equality. Same-sex marriage and adoption have been legal since March 2022. Since 2012, Chile’s hate crime law has included sexual orientation and gender persona as aggravating circumstances, and since 2015, same-sex civil unions have been legally recognized. There have also been positive judicial developments in recent years, including a landmark decision of a family court in 2020 recognizing two women as the parents of a child born through assisted reproduction. In 2019, a comprehensive legal gender recognition law based on self-determination was passed, and a third sex option has been available for intersex children on birth certificates since 2006. While there is no legal ban on medically unnecessary surgeries (IGM) on minors, in 2023, the Minister of Health published non-binding intersex-affirming guidance, including recommendations against IGM.

Societal opinion of LGBTIQ people is primarily positive. However, there has been recent pushback on transgender people’s rights. Tracking the Cass Report in the United Kingdom, Chile established a parliamentary investigative commission in 2024 to analyze public policies

‘Historic day’: Chile passes marriage equality legislation

Antofagasta, Chile – Chile has become the latest country to legislate marriage equality, as both chambers of Congress legalised same-sex marriage in landslide votes on Tuesday.

“This is an historic day,” said Pedro Arraya, a recently re-elected senator from the Antofagasta region, as he cast his vote in favour of the bill.

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Chile’s Senate voted 21-8 in favour of the marriage equality legislation around midday on Tuesday, with three abstentions. An hour later, the Chamber of Deputies passed the bill 82-20, with two abstentions, in a final floor vote.

The law includes recognition of parental ties, full spousal benefits and adoption rights for married same-sex couples. It also will renew gendered terms with the words “spouse” and “parent” in the country’s civil code and other laws, among other reforms.

Chilean President Sebastian Pinera, whose t

Human Rights Violations of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender People in Chile

This submission, made jointly by fourteen national, regional and international organizations outlines some of the organizations’ concerns regarding the implementation of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) for homosexual woman, gay, bisexual and transsexual people in Chile. The organizations submit the document to the Human Rights Committee in advance of its review of Chile and hope it will inform the Committee’s consideration of the Chilean government’s compliance with the ICCPR.

This submission covers recent developments in Chile affecting the rights of lesbian, lgbtq+, bisexual and transgender persons (LGBT). Despite the protections of non-discrimination and independence of violence enshrined in the Chilean Constitution for all people, LGBT people in Chile continue to be discriminated against and vulnerable to violence in Chilean society. Recently, Chile has adopted anti-discrimination legislation that includes sexual orientation and gender identity as protected grounds, but this legislation fails to stop discrimination against LGBT people in their enjoyment of some of the hum