Flash Action “For a Natural Family” on 2.02

The association “Family” plans to hold a flash action “For a Natural Family” on 2 February, in which every resident is invited to send e-mails to European Parliament President Martin Schulz and to our Members of the European Parliament.

The action will take place in order to express protest against the prepared draft resolution “Roadmap against homophobia and discrimination on grounds of sexual orientation and gender identity”. If adopted, our country’s legislation would also have to be changed - same-sex marriage would be legalised in all European Union (EU) member states. Janis Lulle, representative of the association “Family”, explains in an interview why this resolution has caused outrage not only among Christians and why it is so important for Latvia that such a resolution not be adopted by the EU.

- You have carefully studied the text of the resolution proposed by Austrian MEP Ulrike Lunacek, a defender of homosexual rights. In your opinion, what is most dangerous in this resolution?

- We are not the only ones concerned about it. On 2 February many Christian and non-governmental organisations will hold broad protests in Europe, while the vote is expected in the European Parliament on 4 February. It is significant that the initiator is Ulrike Lunacek from Austria, who also works in the European Parliament intergroup promoting the rights of gays and lesbians.

Why should Christian organisations be concerned about this resolution? One point provides that member states must introduce or review legal gender recognition procedures so that the rights of transsexual people to dignity and bodily integrity are fully respected. It is being advanced that transsexual people are equal to others. If we say that men and women are equal, that is normal, but the equality of men and women cannot be implemented literally. With this plan, member states are being forced to recognise homosexual rights.

Recently in England a law was discussed under which homosexual people, if they wished to abandon this lifestyle, would be denied help from a psychotherapist. Therefore standing for a natural family is at the same time also standing for the rights of homosexual people to abandon their current lifestyle and form a natural, heterosexual family.
A very dangerous point is this: member states must ensure that freedom of association and expression is guaranteed, especially regarding pride marches and similar events.

The European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights must help member states improve comparative data collection on homophobic and transphobic hate crimes. In my view, it is very dangerous that states are being asked to review already existing laws. This means that Christians will not have the right to say what is written in the Bible, that homosexuality is sin.

There are several articles in the resolution indicating that these homosexual people want to elevate themselves above others. Current legislation already protects homosexual people. A person cannot be dismissed from work only because he or she is homosexual.

- Are there points in the resolution that threaten the family?
- This resolution imposes an obligation on the European Commission to develop guidelines to ensure that all forms of family are respected in all member states, and also to provide proposals so that partnership and marriage documents registered in other European countries are recognised.

They justify this by the fact that homosexual couples who have registered their relationship in Belgium, Poland and other countries, for example, cannot enjoy the same rights. If this resolution enters into force, pressure may be placed on Latvia to recognise homosexual marriages, which from our Christian point of view is not acceptable.

Homosexuality was once called sodomy, because according to the Bible God judged Sodom and Gomorrah precisely because of homosexuality. The Christian world does not allow such sin. Judaism and Islam also do not allow it. My duty as a Christian is to stand against the practice of this sin being imposed. I must stand for this sin not being recognised.

- In the Christian world homosexuality is sin, but this resolution would prevent Christians from saying that aloud.
- This is shown by a court precedent in America. A person had distributed leaflets with the inscription “Homosexuality is sin”. Defenders of gays and lesbians sued him for hate speech. He explained to the court that as a Christian he loves homosexual people, but stands against homosexuality. The court did not take this argument into account and convicted him.

It was also recently reported that in a small town in France a mayor was forced, contrary to his Christian conviction, officially to register a homosexual partnership.

The UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights says that every person is guaranteed freedom of religion, including the right to manifest one’s faith in practice. This resolution means a restriction on Christians’ rights. A very small group of society raises its rights at the expense of restricting the rights of the majority. That is not acceptable.

- Why did you choose a flash action as the form of protest?
- We cannot gather thousands in the streets, but we can urge people to send e-mails. To send them both to European Parliament President Martin Schulz and to Latvian deputies, calling on them to vote against this resolution. An electronic flash action is convenient because I can send an e-mail from any computer in any place. I do not have to go somewhere to participate in the action. Not everyone who supports us will be able to come to Riga.

This also does not exclude a small number of activists joining in a flash action in any Latvian city or populated place, thereby expressing support for a natural family. We received the warning about this resolution very late and could no longer complete the formalities to hold a protest action with people gathering. I borrowed the idea of an electronic flash action from America, where such calls are regular. In America they have results. There have even been cases when White House e-mails stopped working because an extremely large number of letters arrived.

Our action will be introduced by a press release planned to be sent out on 31 January. The electronic flash action will take the form of sending protest letters to the following e-mail addresses:
To EP President Martin Schulz (in English) - martin.schulz@europarl.europa.eu;
To the head of the EP President’s office Markus Wrinkler - markus.wrinkler@europarl.europa.eu;
To the leader of the European People’s Party group Joseph Daul - joseph.daul@europarl.europa.eu;
To Latvian deputies in the EP - sandra.kalniete@europarl.europa.eu, inese.vaidere@europarl.europa.eu, tatjana.zdanoka@europarl.europa.eu, ivars.godmanis@europarl.europa.eu, roberts.zile@europarl.europa.eu, krisjanis.karins@europarl.europa.eu, karlis.sadurskis@europarl.europa.eu, aleksandrs.mirskis@europarl.europa.eu, alfreds.rubiks@europarl.europa.eu.