The Slovak Parliament Rejected the Istanbul Convention
Slovak MPs rejected Council of Europe Convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence. In the 150-seat parliament, 96 of the 113 lawmakers present voted against ratifying the document, known as the Istanbul Convention, the Associated Press reported.
The rejection was proposed by the ultra-nationalist Slovak National Party, a member of the ruling coalition.
The opposition far-right People's Party Our Slovakia also voted against it.
Deputies also called on President Zuzana Caputova to inform the Council of Europe that Slovakia would remain out of the treaty.
Opponents of the convention in Slovakia, which is predominantly Roman Catholic, argue that some clauses will violate the constitution - for example, because the constitution defines marriage as a union of man and woman.
With a separate vote just days before Saturday's parliamentary elections, the two coalition parties voted, along with others, to approve a bill that gives retirees an additional 13th pension.
The center-right opposition parties, which have a good chance of forming a government, condemned the measure as populist.
Although the European Union and its member states have signed the treaty, some of them -- including Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Hungary, Lithuania, Latvia and Slovakia -- have yet to ratify the document, Anadolu News Agency reported.
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