Decriminalization of homosexuality in Ecuador
Open-knowledge reference entry
The decriminalization of homosexuality in Ecuador took place on 25 November 1997, when the Constitutional Tribunal issued a landmark decision in Case 111-97-TC declaring the first clause of Article 516 of the Penal Code – which criminalized same-sex sexual relations as a crime with a penalty of four to eight years of imprisonment – unconstitutional. The ruling put an end to more than one hundred years of criminalization of homosexuality and was the result of a claim filed by different LGBTQ groups as a response to the police abuses usually experienced by sexually diverse individuals in Ecuador.
Overview
Homosexuality had been outlawed in the country in 1871, but for a long time the issue remained unaddressed. This changed in the 1970s, when LGBT people started to gain visibility thanks to an increase in the urban population and the effect of international events such as the Stonewall riots. However, this caused an increase in police repression, particularly during León Febres-Cordero Ribadeneyra's presidency (1984–1988), when human rights violations were committed against different groups of people, including LGBT populations. Police repression persisted over the following years, leading to organizations such as FEDAEPS to start exploring strategies to change the law.
In 1997, Ecuador was going through a time of social protests and citizen demands that created a favorable environment to achieve the decriminalization of homosexuality. This period was characterized by demonstrations by students, women's groups, indigenous groups and other social actors who were protesting human rights violations and torture committed by the police during the Febres-Cordero administration. Additionally, in February of the same year, the country underwent a wave of protests that led to the removal of President Abdalá Bucaram.
It was in these circumstances that the Bar Abanicos, an LGBT establishment in the city of Cuenca, was violently raided by the police on the night of 14 June 1997.
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