WILLEMSTAD - Immediately following the Supreme Court ruling, the first lesbian couple has registered their intent to marry at Kranshi, the civil registry of Curaçao. Ruthline Haddocks, the director of Civil Affairs, indicated that Kranshi is fully prepared.
“The software we use comes from the Netherlands. However, the section regarding same-sex marriages was restricted,” said Haddocks. “In anticipation of the ruling, we had already made arrangements with the supplier, and now, in accordance with the verdict, this restriction has been removed from the system.”
The legal battle to lift the exclusivity of marriage for heterosexual couples began four years ago when Danique Marquez and Melinda Angel applied to marry at Kranshi and were denied based on Curaçaoan law. The civil code stated that a marriage could only take place between two people of different sexes.
Supported by Human Rights Caribbean, the couple filed a lawsuit and won. However, the government appealed. The couple was also upheld in the appeal, after which the case was taken to the Supreme Court by the Pisas government, which yesterday confirmed the earlier verdict of the Court in Willemstad.
Refusing Officials
According to Haddocks, the Dutch concept of a 'refusing official' does not exist on Curaçao. An official who refuses to conduct marriages between two men or two women due to conscientious objections is not known.
She mentioned that there will undoubtedly be some officials who have difficulty with lifting the exclusivity that heterosexual couples had for marriage, but time will tell how this develops. “In any case, we have enough officials who can perform these marriages,” said the director.