JURIST - Paper Chase: Aruban court says government must recognize Dutch same-sex marriage

[JURIST] Aruba's Superior Court has ruled that a lesbian couple legally married in the Netherlands has the right to register their marriage in the autonomous Caribbean republic that is part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands [Wikipedia backgrounder] (includings the Netherland, the Netherlands Antilles, and Aruba) even though same-sex marriage [JURIST news archive] is not authorized under Aruba's civil code. Lawyers for the Aruban government had argued that although same-sex marriage is legal in the Netherlands, Dutch laws that require members of the Kingdom to recognize each other's legal documents do not trump the island's right to self-rule. The court ruled in favor of the couple, saying that "The Dutch marriage can be inscribed in the register. Since Aruba is part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, it must comply with demands of the Kingdom." The Aruban government has said it will appeal the decision to Holland's Supreme Court. AP has more.

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