For a country that has so few families that have been tangibly touched by divorce, the amount of people with opinions and prejudiced, preconceived and baseless notions on the effects of divorce on children simply beggars belief.

From mental problems to the prospect of abuse by new stepfathers, we have heard it all. At least we hope we have heard it all.

So many people are preaching divorce’s supposed ill effects on children that it would appear that Malta has had divorce legislation for decades now, that generations of divorced children have come and gone and that this country has become something of an expert on children and divorce. But, in reality, what we have are armchair experts bent on scaremongering.

There are, however, a figurative handful of people on these fair isles that have been affected, and the word does not automatically imply a negative connotation, by the divorce of their parents. But these people, those who are truly familiar with the truth of the matter, are not consulted and they are not being heard from.

We would welcome either the pro- or the anti-divorce movements to assemble such individuals to hear their stories, be they positive or negative, so that those who have heard the horror stories can hear, or not hear, them straight from the horses’ mouths.

True, divorce is not an easy hurdle for children to overcome but, by the exact same reasoning, neither is the separation of the parents. It is, however, a much lower hurdle to jump than that presented by a childhood of growing up in an acrimonious, or worse, household rife with resentment and bitterness.

Here the Children’s Commissioner has made a grave error in her by now well-documented cherry picking of a report so as to conclude that children with divorced parents are at greater risk of mental illness than children in ‘stable’ families. She has since been appropriately rebuked by the report’s authors and, notably, by our sister daily newspaper this week. We stand fully behind the latter’s assessment and ask what lower level could have been stooped to in what appears to be a desperate defence of the anti-divorce line of argumentation, and no defence whatsoever of children.

One would like to hear the Commissioner’s thoughts on the risk of mental illness for children who grow up in the midst of acrimony, bitterness, bickering and much worse caused by parents who, despite their wishes, are forced to stay together as a married or even separated couple.

One must ask who is not in favour of the family. From the arguments being put forward from some quarters, it would appear that the pro-divorce lobbies have not given a second thought to children. Nothing could be further from the truth.

Divorce, far more than the separations that we have now, is in favour of the family. Parents are able to move on with divorce, they harbour less resentment toward their former partners and, perhaps, even less resentment toward the children born of that failed union.

Why not release the parents to go on to live happy lives, which, at the end of the day, moulds their children’s behaviour, attitudes and general outlook on life.

Yes, divorce is fully in favour of the family, and children, and maintaining the status quo with respect to the resolution of marriage breakdowns is against the family - the institution that we treasure so highly.

Divorce is, as far as the children as concerned, the same situation as the separations that we have today, at the very least. On this, we should not allow ourselves to be deluded. If one is to campaign against the introduction of divorce on the basis of the children involved, one must also campaign for the abolition of separations.

The argument that if one is in favour of divorce they surely cannot be in favour of the family is completely incongruous to reality. The only logic it matches is the twisted logic and reasoning being espoused by those who would seek to deprive couples of their civil right, and children of their human right to grow up in as stable and happy a household as possible.

Today Malta celebrates Family Day and we will all join in celebrating the institution of the family. And in so doing, we will celebrate the strength of the family and its continued strength, which stands to be made stronger still with the introduction of divorce.