THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AFP): The Dutch Supreme Court on Friday ordered the Caribbean island of Aruba to recognise same-sex marriages registered in the Netherlands.
The ruling puts an end to a conflict between Aruba, a former Dutch colony in the Antilles, and a lesbian couple who moved to the island having married in the Netherlands in 2001.
Although independent in internal politics, Aruba is part of the kingdom of the Netherlands and comes under the jurisdiction of the Dutch Supreme Court.
After moving to Aruba the women wanted to register, but were told that same-sex marriages were not legal on the island.
The Supreme court ruling, published on the internet, stated that a marriage certificate signed by an official of the Netherlands, carried the "same force of law" in Aruba.
"The couple can insist that they be registered as married in the municipal registry," the court added.
The Netherlands became the first country in the world to allow same-sex marriage in 2001.
The kingdom of the Netherlands includes the continental Netherlands, Aruba and the five islands of the Dutch Antilles. | 
