The Catholic bishops of Slovakia are opposing ratification of an
international convention on violence against women, because the
convention uses language that reflects “gender ideology.”
“Any form of violence committed on women is condemnable and
absolutely inadmissible,” said Archbishop Stanislav Zvolensky of
Bratislava.
However, he continued “all concealed attempts of
simultaneously advocating for other issues, such as the gender ideology
or teaching of so-called non-stereotypical roles in schools, are
unacceptable.”
The archbishop said that some sections of the proposed
convention—for example, a claim that children are born without a
specific gender—“contradict human experience and common sense.”
The net impact of the convention, Archbishop Zvolensky said, would be
to harm the work of organizations and institutions that reject gender
ideology—such as the Catholic Church.
Many such organizations, he
pointed out, have been deeply involved in efforts to stop violence
against women, and could not “face direct discrimination” because of the
proposed international accord.