Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto on
Tuesday proposed legalizing same-sex marriage throughout Mexico.
“I signed reform initiatives that
would write #MarriageEquality into the Constitution and the Federal
Civil Code,” Pena Nieto tweeted.
Last June, Mexico's Supreme Court
struck down state marriage bans as unconstitutional. While its
ruling effectively settled the issue – lower courts must follow the
court's decision – individual state bans must first be challenged
in court before they can be struck down.
Pena Nieto's proposal would change
Article 4 of the Mexican Constitution to reflect the Supreme Court's
opinion.
In making the announcement on Twitter,
Pena Nieto's profile photo was updated to include the rainbow colors.
The Rev. Hugo Valdemar, a spokesman for
the Catholic Archdiocese of Mexico City, criticized the proposal as a
“distraction” and called on lawmakers to oppose the initiative.
Amending the Mexican Constitution
requires a two-thirds majority vote in congress.