International
Equal marriage comes into force in Thailand
Equal marriage came into force this Thursday in Thailand, the first country in Southeast Asia that allows same-sex unions and only the third in Asia to do so, after Nepal and Taiwan, a milestone that will be celebrated today with hundreds of links.
It has taken 120 days since the law was published in the Royal Gazette on September 24, after being approved by Parliament in June, so that it could become effective and begin this Thursday to allow equal marriages in tourist Thailand.
The records will receive today for 10 hours the couples who wish to formalize their links, and the first to do so were the women Ployanapat Jirasukorn, 33, and Kwanporn Kongphet, 32, who sealed their marriage in a ceremony for hundreds of couples convened in the Bangkok Siam Paragon shopping center.
Around 300 couples are expected to be part of that collective wedding today in the Thai capital, a symbol of the step achieved in the Asian country that will accompany a speech by Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra, while in parallel a multitude of events will be held in provinces throughout the country.
A festive atmosphere to applaud the advances of the LGBTI collective in Thailand, stagnated for years by the two military coups since 2006 that restricted civil liberties, and that now place the country at the head of the entire Southeast Asian region, and most of Asia.
While homosexual couples in Thailand will from today have the same rights as heterosexual ones, including those related to the inheritance and adoption of children, the setbacks are palpable in countries such as Indonesia, Malaysia or Brunei, with a Muslim majority, which criminalize same-sex relationships.
Modern Singapore did not repeal until November 2022 the law that penalizes homosexual sex – section 377A, inheritance of the British colonial period -, in parallel approving a constitutional amendment to shield marriage as an exclusively heterosexual union.
In China, homosexuality has been legal since 1997, although the collective still faces numerous prejudices and challenges. Although India decriminalized in 2018 as Singapore the colonial law that criminalized homosexuality, marriage is only for couples of opposite sex.
Japan, for its part, is the only member of the G7 that does not recognize same-sex marriage, although in recent years its courts and local authorities have taken a series of steps that pave the way for future legalization.
Thailand thus joins the few places in Asia that recognize equal marriage, following Nepal, which legalized it last year, and Taiwan, which was a pioneer in approving it in 2019
International
Mexican government prioritizes 191 communities after deadly floods
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum confirmed on Wednesday that the death toll from recent rains and floods across several central states has risen to 66, while the federal government has activated air bridges and prioritized assistance in 191 isolated communities.
“Unfortunately, 66 people have died, and 75 remain missing,” the president said during her morning press conference. She added that the official death toll will be updated later in a new report.
As of Tuesday, authorities had reported 64 fatalities. Sheinbaum also announced the creation of a public information center to centralize official data on the deceased, missing persons, damaged homes, and cut-off communities.
According to the president, the number of missing persons has decreased thanks to coordination with state authorities.
“Through calls to phone line 079, 103 people who had been reported missing have now been located,” she explained.
Priority Municipalities
The president noted that the federal government has classified 191 communities as ‘priority’, a designation based mainly on the percentage of homes affected.
International
New road and bridge explosions raise alarm amid indigenous protests in Ecuador
Ecuadorian authorities are investigating two explosions that occurred early Wednesday, one on a road in the southern part of the country and another under a bridge in Guayas province. These incidents follow the car bomb explosion in the coastal city of Guayaquil, also in Guayas, which occurred the day before and left one person dead and 30 injured.
Press reports indicate that one person was injured and several vehicles were damaged in the explosion on the Cuenca-Girón-Pasaje road in the south.
“Besides yesterday’s explosion in Guayaquil, we have received reports of explosives placed on bridges along the Guayaquil-Machala and Machala-Cuenca routes to disrupt traffic,” said Roberto Luque, Minister of Infrastructure and Transport (MIT).
On his X social media account, Luque reported that authorities have been deployed to the sites to assess the damage and determine the current condition of the structures.
“What they haven’t achieved with their call for a strike, some are trying to achieve through terrorism,” he stated, referring to the 24 days of protests organized by the Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities (Conaie) against rising diesel prices and other demands.
The protests, called at a national level, have Imbabura province as their epicenter. Roadblocks have also been reported in the northern part of Pichincha province, whose capital is Quito, while activities in the rest of the country continue normally.
International
Armed forces target illegal mines in Northern Ecuador with bombing raids
Ecuador’s Armed Forces carried out an operation on Monday — including airstrikes — against illegal mining in the town of Buenos Aires, in the country’s north, Defense Minister Gian Carlo Loffredo reported.
The mountainous, gold-rich area has been a hotspot for illegal mining since 2017, located in the Andean province of Imbabura.
In 2019, former president Lenín Moreno deployed around 2,400 soldiers to the region in an attempt to curb the illegal activity. “The operation began with mortar fire, followed by gunfire and bombing runs by Supertucano aircraft,” Loffredo said in a video released by the Defense Ministry.
He added that the operation would continue on Tuesday with patrols across the area to locate possible members of “irregular armed groups that may have crossed from the Colombian border.”
The Armed Forces stated on X that the intervention focused on the “complete elimination of multiple illegal mining tunnels” in the areas known as Mina Nueva and Mina Vieja.
The operation coincided with the deployment of a military and police convoy into Imbabura, which has been the epicenter of protests against President Daniel Noboa since September 22, following his decision to scrap the diesel subsidy.
Mexican government prioritizes 191 communities after deadly floods
New road and bridge explosions raise alarm amid indigenous protests in Ecuador
Armed forces target illegal mines in Northern Ecuador with bombing raids
Tec de Monterrey honors one of its students for his contribution to nanotechnology in medicine
Defense Minister commends salvadoran soldier for Central American Cross Country victory
Extension of the state of emergency approved in southern Chile
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