Brazil congress rejects adoption by gay couples International Herald Tribune, France

Posted on August 22, 2008
Filed Under Gay News Blog

SAO PAULO, Brazil: Brazil’s lower house of Congress has rejected part of a pending adoption law that would have allowed gay couples to adopt children.

A Wednesday statement from the Chamber of Deputies says a measure giving gay couples the right to adopt was withdrawn because federal law doesn’t recognize same-sex civil unions.

A proposal granting same-sex couples the same rights as married heterosexuals has stalled in Brazil’s Congress for more than 10 years, prompting some states to take their own actions.

Southern Rio Grande do Sul state has permitted same-sex civil unions since 2004, and a Sao Paulo state court allowed a gay couple to adopt a 5-year-old girl in late 2006.

The current adoption bill now returns to Brazil’s Senate for further debate.

Brazil congress rejects adoption by gay couples
International Herald Tribune, France