Chile: First Gay marriage
Reuters reported on March 10 that two men in Chile, Javier Silva and Jaime Nazar, have become the first two men in the country's history to legally marry. A law allowing same-sex marriage that passed in December just came into effect.

Silva and Nazar have two young children, and have been together for seven years. They had had a civil union for three years before the marriage, which didn't provide the same benefits.

"Now our children can have the same rights [as other families] and they will be able to have, we hope, a better future, [and we hope] that they will not be discriminated against for having two parents who love each other," Silva told reporters after the civil ceremony.

"I think we're putting ourselves at the level the rest of the world is living in, which is great," Nazar said. "I know our society is very conservative, but I also know we have a promising future as a country."

President-elect Gabriel Boric, who will take office on March 18, congratulated the couple on Twitter.

Bermuda: London rules Gay marriage ban constitutional
Reuters reported on March 14 that a London tribunal has ruled that Bermuda's 2018 ban on same-sex marriage is constitutional in the British overseas territory. This comes three years after Bermuda's top court ruled that the ban violates the constitutional freedom of conscience. The Bermuda government appealed the decision at the time, which brought the case to London's Privy Council.

The lead co-plaintiff in the case against the ban, Roderick Ferguson, said in a statement by advocacy group OUTBermuda, "Our supporters often say 'love wins.' This time it didn't. Our work as a society is not done until everyone's humanity is recognized both in law and in life."

The organization has pushed for clarification on how the government will handle the lawful same-sex marriages that were performed since 2017.

Supporters of the ban, thousands among the Atlantic island's population of 60,000, claim that legal domestic partnerships provide the same rights as marriage. Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affairs Kathy Simmons said in a statement that the government is "pleased with the outcome of the appeal" and that it will "take time to consider the full judgment and its impact."