Aruba continues court fight against same-sex marriage

The Aruban government is filing a cassation appeal against the Curaçao Joint Court's ruling last December on the opening of same-sex marriage in Aruba and Curaçao. The Aruban government believes that the court "sat in the government's chair" with the ruling.

Under current Aruba and Curaçao legislation, marriage can only be between a man and a woman. However, the court ruled Dec. 6 that the exclusion of same-sex marriages violates the prohibition of discrimination and government regulations.

The Joint Court (Aruba, Curaçao, Sint Maarten and Bonaire, Sint Eustatius and Saba) ruled on two cases simultaneously, one filed by Curaçao and one by Aruba. Curaçao already announced on Dec. 13 that it would file a cassation appeal. The country sees no legal obligation, national or international, to open traditional marriage to same-sex couples.

In the Curaçao case, the court also ruled that the non-introduction of a registered partnership violates human rights treaties. In Aruba, this form already exists.

A bill is currently before the Aruban parliament that would allow same-sex marriages. According to the government in Oranjestad, this is independent of the decision on the appeal. The government wants clarity on whether the way the court expresses its "legislative task" is correct.