Argentina: 1 year after pension benefits were granted to same-sex couples, only 10 people have received them

It's been one full year since the Argentinian government announced that it would extend pension system coverage to same-sex couples. But today, quoting sources from the federal government, InfoBAE reports that only 10 gay people have received pension benefits in the year since the policy was announced.

When asked about the low number, César Cigliutti, President of the largest LGBT rights organization in the country - the Comunidad Homosexual Argentina (CHA) - said that many same-sex couples had never taken the time to make sure that they had proof of their partnership.

"These are incredible cases," Cigliutti said, "We get involved with gay adults, with very difficult experiences, tremendous histories of discrimination; We are talking about an era in which the word 'gay' didn't even exist."

Cigliutti said that most gay couples never thought they would see the day in which they could access the government's pension plan as couples and that there was still a learning curve in having people prepare for filing a case (to access pension benefits under the plan, a couple must have filed an affidavit and presented proof that they have lived together for at least five years). He said that the CHA had received more than 80 inquiries about the process and that he personal knowledge of several pension claims making their way through the system.

In September 23rd of 2008, 81 year old Alfredo Pasquale (above) became the first person to be covered by the policy after his partner of 59 years, José Miguel Castro, passed away. At the time, he had been fighting for more than 11 years to l