AFAD Statement on the Constitutional Amendment in Slovakia
We received the news of the adoption of the amendment to the Constitution of the Slovak Republic in Parliament with grave concern. The protection of human dignity, equality, and legal certainty has been fundamentally undermined. The Slovak Republic is failing to respect its obligations arising from the European and international human rights protection system.
The proposed amendment, under the vague wording of “national identity,” weakens the core of human rights guarantees, disregards the primacy of EU law, the binding nature of conventions, and effective judicial protection. In this form, the amendment legitimizes arbitrariness, reduces the predictability of law, and prolongs access to justice for all of us. It will most harm those who are most in need of protection.
From the perspective of children’s rights, the constitutional preference for only heterosexual marriages in adoption and the rigid definition of parenthood deny children the legal recognition of their actual families. The best interests of the child and their right to family life must take precedence over ideological definitions as well as unfair political practices.
Reducing sex to a purely “biological determination” will, in practice, exclude intersex people from legal existence and prevent transgender persons from obtaining legal recognition of their identity. This constitutes an interference with the right to dignity, privacy, and equal treatment, with possible implications also for parental rights.
Making education on intimate life and sexuality conditional on the general consent of legal guardians will mean restricting the right of children and young people to information about health, bodily integrity, and the prevention of violence and abuse. The vagueness of the rules will lead to active self-censorship in schools and deprive students of knowledge meant to protect them.
The adoption of the amendment confirms that in Slovakia, human rights, the rule of law, and equality are not a binding commitment for politicians, but merely a variable political preference.