Panama Supreme Court rules against same-sex marriage as a fundamental right

Panama’s Supreme Court ruled against same-sex marriage, claiming that it was not a fundamental right, according to a March 1 ruling. 

"There is a reality, and it is that, until now, the right to equal marriage is no more than an aspiration, even though a legitimate one for the groups involved, and it does not fall into the category of a human right or a fundamental right," the Court said in the ruling dated February 16. 

The Court has been considering the issue since 2016 after several same-sex couples married in other countries were trying to get their unions recognized in Panama 

The case went through several appeals in which the plaintiffs claimed that the Central American country’s family code was “unconstitutional.” 

"No matter how many changes happen in reality," same-sex marriage "lacks conventional and constitutional recognition," the Court said, according to a report by AFP. 

The Court added that the family code was “objectively and reasonably justified” given the general interests of the “unions capable of establishing families” and giving continuity to the “human species” and “society.” 

 “The Panamanian justice system has rejected the recognition of the dignity of same-sex couples and their right to build a family in Panama,” said Ivan Chanis, president of the gay rights organization Fundacion Iguales. 

Currently, the only Central American country that recognizes same-sex marriages is Costa Rica. 

In 2018, the Interamerican Court of Human Rights ruled that same-sex couples are entitled to the same rights as opposite-sex couples.

The ruling purportedly applies to all the Court’s member states, including Panama.