The introduction of pro-divorce legislation in other countries did not solve any problem that was expected to be solved, such as cohabitation, births outside marriage, and the break-up of marriage, the Curia said.
Malta does not need to try solutions which have failed in other countries. What we need is to learn from the ugly experience of others, and go for different proposals, such as:
The setting up of an interministerial committee to plan and implement a global strategy promoting marriage and the family; education about marriage and the family should be introduced at all levels of education as part of the curriculum; a national family commission to propose and dissect laws, administrative decisions, curricula, and media productions promoting the family built on marriage; and a housing policy promoting the family, especially couples with a low income who wish to marry.
The Curia said that the Today Public Policy Institute published a report last May, called ‘For Worse, For Better’, proposing to the government the introduction of divorce legislation.
The report presents divorce as a solution to various social problems in society, the Curia said.
But the reality is not as bad as the TPPI depicts it, divorce does not offer any solution and indeed, in some cases, divorce had made situations worse.
The Curia said the report has a main author and lists board members without saying whether the members agree with the report, or how far they do so. Readers are given no references supporting the findings of the report, which has various mistakes where statistics are concerned.
The report mixes up separations, nullity declarations and divorce, and goes on to reach wrong conclusions based on these. The author says that many of those who separate, go on to cohabit and bear children, when in fact about 18.7 per cent go on to cohabit. The report claims that the children of couples who cohabit have no legitimacy.
The author says that new relationships formed after a marriage break up are happy, when in fact married couples are happier than cohabiting couples, the Curia said. The report reaches the conclusion, not backed by research, that pro-divorce legislation does not lead to more marriage break-ups. Various studies, the Curia said, show that the contrary is the case and some say that pro-divorce legislation is the cause of more marriage break-ups. A recent study in 18 European countries claims that pro-divorce legislation has caused 20 per cent more marriage break-ups.
It is claimed by those who are in favour of divorce that society is more stable with divorce because there are fewer cohabitations and births outside marriage. But, the Curia said, facts show otherwise. Wherever divorce has been introduced, the marriage rate has gone down and cohabitations have gone up in number.
The report discusses the harm done to children while a marriage is in the process of breaking up, but it does not say anything about the harmful effects which divorce and another relationship have on children.
The Curia said it seems that the TPPI report proposes pro-divorce legislation because of negative social situations in society. Studies have shown that with divorce none of these situations has improved, nor did any have its effects lessened.