Petition to say yes to the family

A fight for protection of natural family. This is a very brief description of the recent efforts of the Alliance for Family (AFF) in Slovakia with one clear aim: To guarantee legally that the marriage is no other form of cohabitation but a bond of one man and one woman and that it’s a child’s right to be risen both by mother and father. Find out more in an interview with Dr. Anton Chromík, spokesman of AFF, conducted by Danka Jacecková. What are the reasons for the petition and what exact questions does it touch? “The petition was initiated by the Alliance for Family, supported by over 90 organizations of so-called third sector. It’s aim is to protect marriage as a bond of a man and a woman. We believe that no other form of cohabitation can be called marriage. Another aspect is adoption. The children that have been abandoned or lost their parents deserve to be risen by mother and father. That’s why we insist that the best interest of a child in the process of adoption should take precedence over the interests of adults. No two fathers or two mothers can substitute a natural family model. Children are naturally born only in a relationship between a man and a woman, that’s why the same sex couples can’t have the same rights in regard to marriage. Another question is sexual education also asked about in the petition. If parents don’t agree, school shouldn’t demand partiticipation of their children in education in the area of sexual behaviour or euthanasia. We don’t want any ideological experiments in education”. The petition defining the above questions started a few weeks ago. What is the current situation in regard do collection of signatures like? “We get around 8.000 signatures daily. By now, over 150.000 signatures have been registered. I need to say that this is only the support that we have got “internally”, which means through our personal contacts and streams. Only in the recent days we have started the collection of signatures on squares and streets, with aim to reach 350.000 signatures necessary for initiation of the referendum”. How would you describe a current state of protection of marriage and family in Slovak legislation and why does it need a change? “The actual state in the Slovak republic is satisfying but we need to be protected from proliferating efforts and attacks of various groups. That’s why we want to manifest the will of people in a referendum, to make politicians see that the family as a special and extraordinary value really matters and that many people see the difference between wanting to have children and not wanting to have them. The attacks are so strong that we need to protect family through the norms of higher legal power. Thus, we support the change of the Constitution of the Slovak republic. If we speak about some sort of a ‘Euro-court’ activism, the common law is not sufficient enough. That’s why we need to build higher ‘palisades’ of protection”. A few words about the Alliance for Family, organization that has taken up to enforce this change… It’s a citizens’ initiative founded in December 2013 to promote the values of marriage and family. It’s not based on any ideology, confession nor political adherence. Today, the list of our members and supporters includes dozens of organizations focusing on social work, support of families, work with abandoned children, single mothers, handicaped people, educational activities and protection of human rights. These member institutions represent about 200.000 citizens of Slovakia from various environments and of all age categories. Where do you see an intersection between the civil and the Christian value aspect? “It’s natural that the values belonging to all people are supported also by Christian organizations. We can see that many Christians realize that this fight is also their fight. Because without natural values there’s no development of supernatural values. It’s a common bridge for an encounter and a dialogue with people to whom the Christians are sent to evangelize”. We can’t neglect the European context of your initiative. What are the main challenges for the future in your opinion? “Europe is on the crossroad of its existence. Only few years remain and we’ll have to face this situation: either there is a natural family, or Europe as we know it won’t exist. It’s simple and natural. We can talk a lot about it, engage in a dialogue, but the conclusion is clear. With our own acts, with our respect towards marriage and family we choose life or death. If it seems to someone that the marriage and registered partnership is on the same level, he’s wrong. Marriage is here because two people – a man and a woman – have decided to become parents for their children and this is more than any other human relation. That’s why we need to suport it and search for the forms to guarantee its stability”.