There is room for pro-life initiatives

Belarus is a Country in Europe where the protection of human life and dignity from the moment of conception to natural death is supported not only by the Catholic Church and Christian confessions, but also by the State. Danka Jaceckova interviewed for Sir EUROPE Uladzislau Valakhovych, chairman of one of the largest pro-life and pro-family organizations in the Country.The Open Hearts Foundation is a secular organization. Could you describe your cooperation with official Church bodies? "Our foundation was set up in 2007, its activity is run with the blessing and support of Catholic bishops of Belarus, the bishop of Vitebsk in particular. Although we are not an institution founded and managed by the Church, we work in close contact with its representatives and structures. Based on our experience, in order to defend pro-life values in all levels of society in the most efficient manner, it is best to be an officially recognized civil organization. In this way we can also visit schools, without limitations or prejudice by the public." What has been the personal motivation that has led you to become involved with the pro-life movement?  "I consider it a vocation. The first thrust came from the congress on the Family in Warsaw in 2007, where I was shocked by the findings of research highlighting the horrible situation of high numbers of artificial abortions in the world and the use of contraception. I said to myself: how can it be that us Christians remain silent before all of this? That was the beginning of my commitment. I decided to take on personal responsibility for the future development of this sector in Belarus."  What are the main areas of interest of the Open Hearts Foundation eight years after the beginning of a pro-life movement in the Country? "At present we provide daily counseling inside two clinics in Belarus where abort is practiced. We pray and we talk to women who intend to perform an abortion or who are in the waiting room prior to this intervention, we tell them there are other ways to solve their difficult situation. Until now we contributed to saving the life of over 120 children, which is very encouraging. In addition, we hold conferences and debates in schools, universities, parishes in across the various communities on themes linked to pro-life and pro-family issues, based on natural values and the respect of human dignity. We speak of chastity, large families, demography, contraception risks… Last year we held a tout with a special education campaign under the form of an exhibition. We also carry out birth preparation courses and special counseling for pregnant women, since we realized that many of them are afraid to give birth after negative experiences with their first child, and for this reason they don’t want other children. This approach has proved useful and has prevented abortions. Another initiative consists in organizing pro-life prayers, since also the spiritual aspect is very important." How has Belarus society responded to your efforts? "It may seem strange, but we had the greatest difficulties with some faithful who at times have shortfalls in terms of penance and openness to this subject. It’s a paradox, but we did experience these kinds of problems in our parishes. On the other hand, people who don’t follow any religion or don’t regularly go to church tend to be very open on certain themes like chastity, love and respect. It’s very encouraging that the young generations in particular respond in an active way. The mentality of the old generation is still influenced by the ideas of Communism, when abortion was viewed like something normal, almost natural, and many woman have had five or even ten abortions in their youth. It’s not easy to change this mentality. In general, I think we stand good chances for development of the pro-life and pro-family movement in our Country. Large families enjoy State benefits, authorities take a stand against abortion… but changing people’s mentality is usually hander than changing the law: we realize there is a lot of work still needs to be done."