IACHR asks Panama to guarantee equal marriage, equality and non-discrimination

( Spanish) — The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) asked Panama to guarantee the right to equality and non-discrimination of diverse families and regretted that the country’s Supreme Court of Justice does not recognize the right to civil marriage between people of the same sex.

The call for attention from the IACHR, stated in a statement, is because on March 1 the Court of Panama declared constitutional the norms of the family code and the code of private international law, which limit civil marriages only to persons of the same sex. opposite.

The CIHD asked Panama and all the states in the region that do not allow equal marriage to reform and guarantee same-sex couples the same rights, freedoms, responsibilities and opportunities that opposite-sex couples have.

“This decision has a negative impact on the principle of equality and non-discrimination,” said the IACHR statement, and recalled that family life and the right to marry are linked to the principle of dignity and free autonomy of persons, as well as to the right to form their life project “without abusive interference” from the State.

asked the Supreme Court of Justice of Panama for its reaction to the IACHR statement, however, so far they have not responded.

The IACHR is a principal and autonomous body of the Organization of American States (OAS), which derives its mandate from the OAS Charter and the American Convention on Human Rights, and has the mandate to promote respect for and defense of human rights in the region.