Peruvian Cardinal Juan Luis Cipriani on Saturday rejected a
proposed bill which would allow gay and lesbian couples to enter a
civil union. The leader of the Peruvian Roman Catholic Church
described such unions as a “caricature” of marriage.
Last week, Congressman Carlos Bruce announced that he would
sponsor the legislation.
“This will strengthen families, because it'll add a new kind of
family that is going to join their assets, they're going to have more
disposable income, and they're going to pay more taxes,” Bruce is
quoted as saying by Peru21. “And lastly, something else, the most
important: They're going to be happier, which they have every right
to be.”
Bruce explained that his bill would not allow gay couples to marry
or adopt children. He's previously said that marriage remains out of
reach for now.
On his Saturday radio program Dialogue of Faith, Cipriani
told listeners that gay nuptials “go against all the rules and
precepts of humanity,” according
to a report by Notimex.
“It's an old strategy started in Spain, Italy and France,
putting the shoe in the door by this law and ending up with marriage
equality between homosexuals,” he said. (Italy has not legalized
marriage equality)
Cipriani, also the bishop of Lima, insisted that there was no need
for the lawmakers to do the “caricature” of marriage, saying that
gay couples can achieve similar goals through legal contracts.