Lima, Peru, Jun 24, 2011 / 18:33 pm
All public establishments could be required to post a notice declaring that the Peruvian capital supports “gender and sexual orientation equality,” in a new Lima ordinance drafted by the city mayor of Lima, Susana Villaran.
“The mayor should at least respect democracy and open this ordinance up for public debate. If she refuses to do so, it is because she already knows how unpopular her measure is,” said Carlos Polo, Director of the Population Research Institute’s Office for Latin America.
Peruvian media reported that officials would like to see the norm passed before July 2, when the 10th Gay Pride March will take place in Lima.
Polo told CNA that the most troubling aspect of the ordinance is that “while everyone is focusing on the public notices, the ordinance would affect the curriculum at public schools.”
It would be very difficult to convince parents to allow their children to be taught that “homosexuality, transexuality or bisexuality are valid options for living sexuality,” he commented.
Carlos Vega, a spokesman for the city of Lima, told CNA on June 22 that the ordinance is the initiative of a number of city council members, led by Manuel Cardenas.
Vega said the measure would have to be approved by the city council, which won’t meet again until June 30.
Polo said he has contacted various city council members and “none of them has the text of the ordinance, although they were all aware of the mayor’s interest in the issue and even in the date of its promulgation.”
He called it hypocritical that Villaran created difficulties for the builders of a huge statue of Christ that will overlook the Peruvian capital, but is hiding the contents of an ordinance she is seeking to impose on the city.
The statue, dubbed the Christ of the Pacific, rises 121 feet and was financed by former president Alan Garcia and other donors. The mayor of Lima and other left-wing activists have criticized the project. The statue will be unveiled during a ceremony on June 29, the Solemnity of Sts. Peter and Paul.