LGBT rights in Aruba
LGBT rights in Aruba | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Status | Legal |
| Military | Yes |
| Discrimination protections | Discrimination based on "heterosexual or homosexual orientation" prohibited |
| Family rights | |
| Recognition of relationships | Registered partnerships from 2021 Same-sex marriages performed in the Netherlands recognized |
| Adoption | No |
Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people in Aruba, which is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, have evolved remarkably in the past decades. Both male and female same-sex sexual activity are legal in Aruba, but same-sex marriage is not legal. Same-sex couples with Dutch nationality[nb 1] must travel to the Netherlands or its special municipalities to get married and the legal protection of marriage is not unconditional. Since 1 September 2021, registered partnerships have been available to both opposite-sex and same-sex couples.
Law regarding same-sex sexual activity[edit]
Same-sex sexual activity is legal in Aruba. The age of consent is 15 and is equal for both heterosexual and homosexual intercourse.[1]
Recognition of same-sex relationships[edit]
As part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, Aruba must recognize same-sex marriages registered in the Netherlands as well as in Bonaire, Sint Eustatius and Saba (also known as the Caribbean Netherlands) as valid. The Aruban Government initially did not recognize these marriages, but was challenged by a lesbian couple who had legally married in the Netherlands and then moved to the island. The case went to the Dutch Supreme Court, which ruled on 13 April 2007 that the Kingdom's constituent countries must recognize all of each other's marriages.[2][3] Same-sex couples cannot legally marry on the island itself.
In April 2015, representatives of all four constituent countries agreed that same-sex couples should have equal rights throughout the Kingdom.[4] The same month a registered partnership bill was submitted to the Estates of Aruba.[5]
On 22 August 2016, Desirée de Sousa-Croes, an openly gay MP, who married her same-sex partner in the Netherlands, introduced a bill to legalize registered partnerships. However, a vote on the bill was postponed to 8 September 2016 because some MPs still needed time to make up their minds.[6] On 8 September 2016, the Aruban Parliament voted 11–5 to legalize registered partnerships.[7] The law took effect on 1 September 2021.[8] Registered partnerships are open to both opposite-sex and same-sex couples.
Discrimination protections[edit]
The Aruba Criminal Code (Dutch: Wetboek van Strafrecht; Papiamento: Kódigo Penal), enacted in 2012, prohibits unfair discrimination and incitement to hatred and violence on various grounds, including "heterosexual or homosexual orientation".[9] Article 1:221 describes discrimination as "any form of discrimination, exclusion, restriction or preference, which has the purpose or effect of impacting or affecting recognition, enjoyment or the exercise of human rights and fundamental liberties in political, economic, social or cultural fields or in other areas of social life." Articles 2:61 and 2:62 provide for penalties ranging from fines to one year imprisonment.
Living conditions[edit]
Aruba is frequently referred to as one of the Caribbean's most LGBT-friendly islands,[10] with various venues, hotels and restaurants catering to LGBT clientele or otherwise advertising as "LGBT-friendly". Several specific gay bars and clubs have opened in the capital city of Oranjestad. According to local LGBT group Alternative Lifestyle Federation Aruba, "Aruba has always been accepting, as long as it's not in their face. People are out, but discreetly out. There has never been anything official."[11] There are numerous LGBT associations in Aruba, including Equality Aruba (Igualdad Aruba), Equal Rights Aruba and Alternative Lifestyle Federation Aruba.
Despite this, some same-sex couples living in Aruba have claimed that this openness is a more recent phenomenon. Charlene and Esther Oduber-Lamer, whose court challenge forced Aruba and the other Dutch islands in the Caribbean to recognize same-sex marriage, reported frequent harassment and having rocks thrown at them. The Aruban Government was particularly vocal in its opposition to same-sex marriage during the court challenge, which occurred between 2004 and 2007. The Roman Catholic Church, being the largest denomination on the island, has also contributed to more mainstream societal opposition to LGBT rights and same-sex marriage, especially compared to the Netherlands. Nevertheless, in 2016, the Aruban Parliament voted to legalise same-sex and different-sex registered partnerships with many of the same rights as marriage, the first time a Caribbean parliament had done so.[12]
Summary table[edit]
| Same-sex sexual activity legal | 
|
| Equal age of consent |
|
| Anti-discrimination laws in employment | (Since 2012)
|
| Anti-discrimination laws in the provision of goods and services | (Since 2012)
|
| Anti-discrimination laws in all other areas | (Since 2012)
|
| Same-sex marriage |  [13]
|
| Same-sex civil unions | (Since 2021)
|
| Stepchild adoption by same-sex couples |
|
| Joint adoption by same-sex couples |
|
| LGBT people allowed to serve in the military |
|
| Right to change legal gender |
|
| Access to IVF for lesbians | 
|
| Commercial surrogacy for gay male couples | (Banned for opposite-sex couples as well)[citation needed]
|
| MSMs allowed to donate blood |
|
See also[edit]
- LGBT rights in the Netherlands
- LGBT rights in the Americas
- LGBT rights in Curaçao
- LGBT rights in Sint Maarten
- Same-sex marriage in Aruba, Curaçao and Sint Maarten
- Politics of Aruba
Notes[edit]
- ^ Citizens of Aruba have Dutch nationality by jus sanguinis.
References[edit]
- ^ State-sponsored Homophobia A world survey of laws prohibiting same sex activity between consenting adults Archived 17 October 2012 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "Caribbean island Aruba has to recognize gay marriage: Dutch supreme court". Yahoo! News. 13 April 2007. Retrieved 16 April 2007.[dead link]
- ^ "Aruba vote on civil partnerships could finally extend LGBT rights to all Dutch citizens". openDemocracy.
- ^ "Snel homorechten in alle delen van het Koninkrijk". Caribisch Netwerk. 22 April 2015.
- ^ "Wetsvoorstel geregistreerd partnerschap op Aruba ook voor gelijke seksen - Dutch Caribbean Legal Portal". www.dutchcaribbeanlegalportal.com.
- ^ "This island in the Caribbean is about to make history. But they need your help". All Out. Archived from the original on 28 September 2018. Retrieved 4 September 2016.
- ^ "Aruba Parliament approves civil unions for same-sex couples". Yahoo News. AP. 9 September 2016. Archived from the original on 9 September 2016. Retrieved 9 September 2016.
- ^ LANDSBESLUIT van 2 juni 2021 no. 1, houdende inwerkingtreding van de Aanpassingsverordening aanvulling Burgerlijk Wetboek van Aruba (AB 2021 no. 43) en de Landsverordening van 23 september 2016 tot wijziging van het Burgerlijk Wetboek van Aruba (AB 1989 no. GT 100) in verband met een aantal onderwerpen die nog een regeling of aanpassing in het Burgerlijk Wetboek van Aruba behoeven (AB 2016 no. 51)
- ^ "LANDSVERORDENING van 27 april 2012 houdende vaststelling van een nieuw Wetboek van Strafrecht van Aruba". overheid.aw (in Dutch). Archived from the original on 18 November 2019. Retrieved 12 July 2019.
- ^ "Caribbean Gay Friendly Travel Destinations - Aruba LGBT Vacations". aruba.com.
- ^ Richard Ammon (September 2012). "Gay Life in a Tolerant Society in Aruba". Globalgayz.
- ^ "Aruba Votes for LGBT Civil Union as first Island in the Caribbean". aruba.com. 9 September 2016.
- ^ Vordev. "Court rules in favor of same-sex marriage on Aruba and Curaçao". www.curacaochronicle.com. Retrieved 6 December 2022.
