BRATISLAVA, August 1, (WEBNOVINY) — The Christian-Democratic Movement (KDH) still considers the conscientious objection to be a current topic, said leader of the party Jan Figel in an interview for SITA news agency. “We in KDH are still prepared to discuss it,” Figel said. Before approving the revision to the Labor Code, the Christian Democrats discussed the objection of conscience with the liberal Freedom and Solidarity (SaS) party. Figel said that with Labor Minister Jozef Mihal (SaS), they agreed on formalities to protect the right to a conscientious objection within a general employment contract, as well as concerning state employees. The KDH chairman further said he believes that in the near future, political consensus for adoption of a concrete final solution of this issue will be adopted.
Figel opines that conscientious objection is a nice topic for liberals, too. According to him, the Christian Democrats, as well as liberals should both agree that freedom of conscience is the basis of every human freedom, which the SaS party has in its name.
In 2006, the KDH left the governing coalition due to a clash with the SDKU of Mikulas Dzurinda over the draft objection of conscience treaty with the Vatican, one of the KDH’s stated priorities. Early elections were then held in June of that year, based on which opposition parties SMER-SD, SNS and HZDS formed a ruling coalition led by Robert Fico.
According to the planned treaty, Slovak citizens were to be able to refuse to carry out any action that contradicts their conscience based on religion or ethics, mainly in the medical profession and armed forces. It would allow individuals to refuse to serve in the military or physicians could refuse to conduct abortions, assisted conception, sterilization or prescribe contraceptive pills.
The liberal SaS party does not have a problem agreeing to incorporation of conscientious objection in the Labor Code, says its MP, Marin Poliacik. He said that the Labor Code represents a suitable opportunity to protect freedom of conscience. He said that the SaS has always wanted to have the protection of conscience anchored in Slovak legislation but not as something dictated and placed above Slovak law. “In the event that conscientious objection were part of working and legal relations between employer and employee incorporated in an agreement, we do not object to it. Everybody has the right to freely define work conditions,” he underscored, adding that the SaS had this in its program. According to Poliacik, if KDH leader Jan Figel had not opened the issue of conscientious objection today, the SaS could have come up with it: “It is the solution of our agenda,” he said.
SITA