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Esta página no está disponible en español. New Cause At Puerto Rico Gay Parade: Calls For Repeal Of Anti-Sodomy Law, Protection For Homosexuals Against Domestic Violence
New Cause At Puerto Rico Gay Parade: Why Don't Local Laws Protect People Attacked In Domestic Violence? By LILLIAM IRIZARRY May 30, 2003 SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) - Gay Puerto Ricans who take to the streets Sunday in a celebration traditionally marked by panache, outrage and wit have a new gripe: the Supreme Court's refusal to protect them against domestic violence in a close vote. Homosexuals abused by partners are not entitled to protection under Puerto Rico's domestic violence law, the U.S. territory's Supreme Court said in a ruling published last week. Gay rights advocates say the decision opens homosexuals to attack with no legal recourse - one available to all other people. "It's a discriminatory decision," Margarita Sanchez said Thursday. A lesbian activist who heads the local Amnesty International chapter, she said the ruling cuts off homosexuals from protections offered every other type of citizen. In its 4-3 decision, the Puerto Rico Supreme Court said the Caribbean territory's 1989 law against domestic violence wasn't intended to apply to homosexuals. The assenting judges said the legislative record "shows clearly that the original focus of this legislation is the protection of the abused woman" in a heterosexual couple. Three judges agreed, saying their colleagues were missing a "historic opportunity." Minutes from the Puerto Rico Senate that approved the law in 1989 do not mention gays. But former Sen. Marco Rigau, then-president of the Senate's legal commission, said "the legislative intent was to include couples of the same sex." Gender-free language was used for that purpose, he said. Puerto Rico's Justice Department challenged the ruling, but the Supreme Court upheld it last week. The law penalizes crimes including physical and psychological abuse, sexual abuse, and abuse through threat or restriction of freedom. It provides for sentences of 1 to 99 years imprisonment and allows victims to seek protective orders. The decision to exclude gays brings renewed intensity to a long-standing debate about gay rights on the Caribbean island, which promotes gay tourism and enjoys its lucrative dollars at the same time that police officers raid gay bars under what appear to be pretexts. Most Christian leaders back the ruling. Roman Catholic Archbishop Roberto Gonzalez Nieves says it "goes against the institution ofmarriage." The territory's officials get ambivalent around Gay Pride day. Puerto Rico's parade is known for its colorful and witty costumes and banners and public statements of kissing and affection. As the day goes on, the scene degenerates with participants seeming to bait the police to arrest them. They desist. It seems there's one day a year that an often homophobic society will enjoy the display, and the authorities turn a blind eye to any perceived infractions. Back at the Capitolio, legislators are considering a revision of a century's old sodomy law that makes gay sex a crime punishable by six to 12 years in prison. No one has been prosecuted in recent decades under the law, which dates to 1902. But the island's Network of Evangelical Churches is demanding a referendum because it wants the law enforced. "There are laws that are on the books, not to punish anybody but as a frame of moral reference," said Angel Esteban Martinez, president of a group of about 200 Protestant churches. More than 50 domestic violence cases have been reported by homosexuals in Puerto Rico the past three years, police say. It's unclear how many cases have gone to court, and no one knows how many are not reported. The case in question involved Leandro Ruiz Martinez, who was charged with aggravated abuse of partner Juan del Valle. Neither will talk about it. The new ruling means prosecutors can pursue only a charge of battery - a misdemeanor. Gay, lesbian and bisexual groups say that makes them second-class citizens.
Puerto Rico Gay Parade Calls For Repeal Of Anti-Sodomy Law, Protection For Homosexuals Against Domestic Violence By YANIK DELVIGNE June 1, 2003 SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) - Thousands of Puerto Ricans marched through the streets in support of gay and lesbian rights, calling for a repeal of laws against sodomy and for protection of homosexuals against domestic violence. Some 4,000 people joined the island's annual gay parade Sunday, and organizers said they hope to convince the U.S. territory's legislature to do away with a law currently on the books that makes gay sex a crime. "Today we are requesting a repeal of the sodomy law, which is against our constitutional rights," event coordinator Olga Orraca said. "We are demanding a peaceful place in our society." The law, Article 103 of the penal code, makes gay sex punishable by six to 12 years in prison. A Senate commission is reviewing recommendations for changes, but so far they include only reducing the maximum sentence to three years. All sexual orientations were represented among the parade's colorful costumes. One car drove the 2-kilometer (1-mile) route through San Juan with a mattress strung to its trunk and two dummies - male and female - suggestively arranged on top. "Arrest me!" an attached sign read. "I am practicing Article 103!" One truck pulled a platform holding about 15 people dressed as prisoners and dancing inside a jail cell. The Senate commission has said it does not want to address the sodomy law until the U.S. Supreme Court resolves a case involving Texas' sodomy law. No one has been prosecuted in recent decades under the law, which dates to 1902. But the island's Network of Evangelical Churches is demanding a referendum because it wants the law enforced. There are 13 U.S. states that still outlaw sodomy, either between homosexuals or between both homosexuals and heterosexuals. As a U.S. territory, Puerto Rico is subject to federal law, and so could be affected by the Supreme Court ruling. Sunday's march was staged just one week after the island's Supreme Court published a ruling that homosexuals abused by partners are not entitled to protection under a domestic violence law. The 4-3 decision to exclude gays heightened a long-standing debate about gay rights on the Caribbean island. Many Christian leaders back the ruling, which was made in April. Roman Catholic Archbishop Roberto Gonzalez Nieves says it "goes against the institution of marriage." But gay rights advocates said the decision was just another legal obstacle for homosexuals. "There is a phenomenon of domestic violence in homosexual couples," said women's rights activist Ana Rivera Lassen, calling it a "second closet." The ruling will reinforce fears of discussing abuse openly, she said. Puerto Rico's Supreme Court said the legislative record "shows clearly that the original focus of this legislation is the protection of the abused woman" in a heterosexual couple. Three dissenting judges wrote that their colleagues were missing a "historic opportunity." The law penalizes crimes including physical and psychological abuse, sexual abuse and others. It includes sentences of 1 to 99 years imprisonment and allows victims to seek protective orders.
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