Mexican lawmakers vote against legalization of same-sex marriage

Jardine Malado Saturday, November 19, 2016

A woman holds a cardboard sign as thousands of Catholics and conservatives gather against the legalization of gay marriage and to defend their interpretation of traditional family values in Monterrey City, Mexico last Sept. 10. | REUTERS/Daniel Becerril

Mexican lawmakers recently voted against Mexican President Enrique PeÃ±a Nieto's proposal to amend the constitution to legalize same-sex marriage after several mass protests against the proposed amendment.

The amendment was rejected by members of the Committee on Constitutional Matters by a 19-8 vote, with one abstention, according to Life Site News. Ten of those who voted against the proposal were members of Nieto's own party, the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI).

The National Front for the Family, a coalition of more than 1,000 pro-family groups, described the vote as "an historic decision for the country, because it lays the foundations necessary for the citizens to be heard in the legislature . . . above all regarding topics of great relevance like the family."

Apart from same-sex marriage, the proposed amendment also would have allowed same-sex couples to adopt children, which is opposed by a majority of Mexicans.

The defeated amendment stated, "Each person who has reached the age of 18 years has the right to contract marriage and cannot be discriminated against on the basis of ethnic or national origin, gender, physical disability, social condition, health, religion, sexual preference, or any other reason that offends human dignity."

Nieto also recommended the removal of a phrase in the Federal Civil Code which stated that the purpose of marriage is "the perpetuation of the race."

Hundreds of thousands participated in pro-family rallies on the streets of Mexico when the initiative was announced in May.

PRI lost a significant number of seats in the elections held last June. The president's proposal to legalize same-sex marriage had been cited as a possible cause of the party's defeat.

In September, it was reported that over one million people gathered at an event sponsored by the National Front to voice out their opposition to same-sex marriage. Pope Francis expressed his support for the Mexican bishops who participated in the campaign.

Polls have indicated that a majority of Mexicans are opposed to homosexual marriage. The percentage of those who are against it ranged between 44 and 62 percent while those who are in favor ranged between 36 and 52 percent over the last three years.