The Slovakian Referendum

       Among all the countries that belong to the European Union, the Slovak Republic is one of the few territories whose constitution still restricts some civil rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) groups. Consequently, a referendum has been scheduled by the Slovakian President Andrej Kisha in order to decide if the rights mentioned above should be yielded or not (Janicek, 2015). In this sense, it is crucial to analyze this political phenomenon through three fundamental aspects: what a referendum theoretically is, a brief description of what the social issue of same-sex marriage is, and the primary contenders involved in the political scenario.

       First of all, in terms of political concepts, one should know that the word “referendum” means a policy proposal drafted by electoral officials and put to a vote by the electorate. Second of all, it is important to recall that the major issue exposed in this brief analysis is the recognition or not of the same-sex partnership in Slovakia. Because of this, the reading of the Constitution of the Slovak Republic is crucial. For instance, according to this document, marriage is defined exclusively as a union between a man and a woman (The National Council of the Slovak Republic, 1992). As a result, it brings many other effects concerning civil rights for same-sex couples. That is why the referendum that is going to take place on Saturday, February 7th will ask voters three questions: Do you agree that only a bond between one man and one woman can be called marriage? Do you agree that same-sex couples or groups should not be allowed to adopt and raise children? Do you agree that schools cannot require children to participate in education pertaining to sexual behavior or euthanasia if their parents don’t agree? (The Economist, 2015).

       Finally, the third aspect in regard to this analysis is the political players and the interest groups that are lobbying before the referendum occurs. On the one side, there are Slovakia's anti-gay activists, who are represented basically by the Catholic Church, the Alliance for Family (ARZ), and over 100 more organizations. Under the current circumstances, one can take into consideration that the Catholic Church is the most influential player due to the fact that 63% of Slovaks consider themselves members of the Church; therefore, there is an enormous opportunity to mobilize voters to restrict the family rights of the LGBT community. On the other side, there are human rights activists who are encouraging people not to vote at all, because the “turnout in the ballot must be more than 50 percent” (Janicek, 2015). To illustrate, one of Amnesty International’s researchers on Slovakia, Barbora Cernusakova, said, “This referendum could lead to a significant step back for Slovakia. If the public says yes to these questions and they’re adopted into law, Slovakia bolsters homophobic discrimination and undermines sexuality education.” In addition, she said that this ban on same-sex adoption of children might violate the United Nations Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW).

      In conclusion, it goes without saying that both the electoral system and the referendum topic itself play very meaningful roles in the Slovakian politics currently. Undoubtedly, these kinds of electoral processes bring a great impact on the social life regarding democratic aspects, civil rights, and so forth.