This weekend, a new military law came into force in Argentina. Among the measures, which only exist in European countries, is the decriminalization of homosexuality in the Armed Forces.
The new law (26.394) replaces the old Code of Military Justice that had been in effect since 1951 and punished homosexual acts within the army. Furthermore, the Code transfers the trial of military crimes to common justice, putting an end to the death penalty.
In an interview with BBC Brasil, Colonel Manuel Lozano declared that the changes are an evolution. "Argentina has gone from being perhaps the most backward country on this issue to being at the forefront, where the rights of military citizens are the same as those of civilian citizens," he said.
In Brazil, article 235 of the Military Penal Code (1969) punishes a soldier who "performs, or allows a soldier to commit a libidinous act with him, whether homosexual or not, in a place subject to military administration" with 6 months' imprisonment.
