Earlier this week, Pope Francis publicly called for the creation of civil union laws for same-sex couples, in a dramatic shift in his support of LGBTQ+ rights.
His comments have been received both warmly and harshly from Catholics around the world, with many activists hoping it could push Catholic countries to becoming more supportive of LGBTQ+ rights.
And one such country could be Venezuela, as the country’s disputed president Nicolás Maduro has called on his country’s Congress to look to legalising same-sex marriage in its next session.
Reuters reports that Maduro said: “I have friends and acquaintances who are very happy with what the Pope said yesterday. I will leave that task, the task of LGBT marriage, to the next National Assembly.”