September 7, 2011 (LifeSiteNews.com) – The Argentinean military has given permission to two male officers, a lieutenant colonel and a captain, to enter into a “marriage” under Argentina’s new law permitting same-sex “matrimony,” according to reports in the national media.
The union will be the first such in the history of Argentina. The Argentinean newspaper La Nación reports that two enlisted men are in line to be the second same-sex soldier couple to “marry.” The names of both couples have been withheld from the public.
César Cigliutti, leader of the Argentinean Homosexual Community (CHA), rejoiced at the news, commenting that “the visibility of gays, lesbians, and bisexuals in the armed forces is important. It’s an area that traditionally has been strongly conservative.”
Although the officers sought permission for the union, the Spanish-language news agency Télam cited military sources who said that permission was not strictly necessary. “No member of this force must ask for permission to marry in accordance with a resolution that the then minister of defense, Nilda Garré, signed in 2008,” the source was quoted as saying.
Homosexual “marriage” was approved by Argentina’s national congress and signed into law on July 15th of last year, making Argentina the first and only country in Latin America to approve such unions on a national level.