More than 80 non-governmental organizations and experts have endorsed a statement that describes alternatives to a husband-and-wife family, "particularly … same-sex unions" as "socially destructive."
"We are convinced that the natural family, marriage, and birth and rearing of children are inseparably linked to each other. Artificial separation of the birth and rearing of children from the natural family, family life, and marriage violates the genuine rights of the child and leads to the destruction of any society."
The powerful statement in support of the traditional family comes from more than 80 NGOs and experts who assembled in St. Petersburg, Russia, recently for a series of public hearings to address concerns about a draft recommendation offered by the Council of Europe on children's and parental rights.
According to officials with the Home School Legal Defense Association, who monitor such statements on the important issue of the definition of family, the result of the meeting was to raise a concern about the "destructive tendencies" of the document "which purported to create policy on the rights and legal status of children and parental responsibilities.
"This is just another example of non-governmental organizations [Council of Europe] attempting to increase the power of the state over individual citizens and families and to advance a radical agenda," the American-based organization said. "HSLDA applauds the work of these pro-family groups and agrees with their concerns. This demonstrates why it is critically important to pass a parental rights amendment to the United States Constitution and to be vigilant in the defense of our own freedoms."
It cited the concerns from the 80-plus organizations, who stated," [We] categorically object to the possible approval of the Draft Recommendation … If the representatives of the Council of Europe take action to approve this Draft Recommendation or any similar document, such action could be regarded as destructive for the traditional culture of Russia, including the Russian traditions of family life and child-rearing."
The HSLDA said the Council of Europe "is an independent European organization whose website states that it exists to protect the principles enshrined in the European Convention of Human Rights, a document that recognizes marriage in Article 12 and parental rights in Protocol 1, Article 2."
But it noted the draft resolution "promotes an alternative view of the family and would seek to increase the power of the state over families and children."
It quoted Pavel Parfentiev, chairman of a Russian family advocacy organization, explaining, "We hope that COE representatives and other national authorities will take into consideration the positions presented in the resolution, being the consolidated voice of the civil society of the Russian Federation and Ukraine."
The statement from the 80 organizations was definitive:
"We are strongly convinced, that the natural (traditional) family, inscribed in human nature, and based on the voluntary union of a man and a woman in a lifelong covenant of marriage, intended for the birth and upbringing of children, is 'the natural and fundamental group unit of society' (Art. 16 (3) of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights). Its place in the history and in the life of each human society is absolutely unique, and no other form of domestic relationship can be regarded as having equal status and value. Any attempt to provide the equal status to any other form of domestic relationship, particularly to same-sex unions, is socially destructive."
The organizations said, "We are convinced that children have a natural right to be born into their natural (traditional) family, from a married man and woman, and to live with their parents, that is with their natural mother and father, receiving from them the upbringing and example of life, including that of family life, conforming to human nature."
Members expressed serious concern "about the actions of some international organizations, that, during recent years, acting contrary to the interests of the sovereign peoples and manipulating the notion of 'human rights,' have artificially created so-called rights that were previously unknown and did not have any foundation in human nature and in the nature of the society, such as 'the right to choose sexual orientation and gender identity.'"
They continued, "It causes serious angst that, when trying to attain their destructive aims, these groups seek to use the resources of authoritative international organizations, such as the United Nations and the Council of Europe. Using opaque and far from genuinely democratic procedures, and masking their true designs with the eloquent words, they attempt to induce authoritative international organizations into approving documents that worsen the condition of the natural family in the various states, leading to the family's (and by extension the states') gradual destruction."
Such moves have been pushed through in the United States in recent years, where judges in several locations simply have imposed same-sex "marriage" on society. Mostly recently, the homosexual lobby in Congress rammed through its plan to encourage open homosexuality in the military ranks despite documented concerns over its negative impact on the nation's military power.
The Russian organizations appeared to want no such "advances."
"We have a great concern over the fact that today, under the pretexts of defending so-called sexual minorities' rights and children's rights under an unreasonably broad nterpretation with the support of the UN and the Council of Europe, the traditional culture of family life (which includes rearing children in that context) is being systematically destroyed for many peoples, including the Russian people."
The statement continued, "We have to regard it as a form of ideological violence, violating the right of our sovereign people to preserve its cultural identity and its traditions of family life and child-rearing."