Bolivia records its first same-sex civil marriage after a court ruling
Bolivia has recorded its first civil marriage between two people of the same sex, held on Friday, August 7, in Santa Cruz, the country's most populous city, following a legal process that lasted three years and ten months.
Bolivia has recorded its first same-sex civil marriage, occurring on August 7 in Santa Cruz, the nation's most populous city. This milestone followed a three-year and ten-month legal battle. Fabiana Banzer and Scarlett Rocha, the couple, formally applied for civil marriage on October 12, 2022. Legal support came from the NGO IGUAL Bolivia, which helped secure the union through two constitutional injunctions.
Banzer expressed her joy on social media, sharing that she and Rocha had been together for over four years. The decision does not change Bolivia's legal framework, as marriage is officially defined as between a man and a woman in Article 63 of the constitution. Bolivia thus remains among South American countries without legal recognition of same-sex marriage, alongside Peru, Paraguay, and Venezuela.
The first free union between two same-sex individuals was registered in December 2020, followed by dozens more since then. The transfeminist collective La Pesada Subversiva highlighted the legal struggle faced by the couple, emphasizing the distinction between free unions and marriage in social recognition.
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