Chilean President Sebastian Piñera
has reversed course on a stalled same-sex marriage bill.
According to Reuters, Piñera
backed the bill during his recent annual address to lawmakers.
“I think the time for equal marriage
has come in our country,” he said.
“All people, regardless of their
sexual orientation, will be able to live, love, and form a family
with all the protection and dignity they need and deserve,” he
added.
Piñera
served as president from 2010 to 2014. He returned to the office in
2018.
During his first term, Piñera,
a conservative, introduced a civil unions bill for gay and straight
couples who have lived together for more than one year. In backing
civil unions, Piñera
snuffed a burgeoning campaign for same-sex marriage in Chile. His
bill became law in 2015.
In 2017, former President Michelle
Bachelet, the first woman to hold the Chilean presidency, introduced
a same-sex marriage bill.
Gay and lesbian couples can marry in
neighboring Argentina. Other South American nations with same-sex
marriage include Brazil, Ecuador, Colombia, and Uruguay.