There is no such thing as the right to adopt a child
Lawrence Gonzi on the subject of ‘the right to adopt’, in Times of Malta today:
Unfortunately, however, this government decided to include a new aspect which was not part of the original drafts: the purported right for gay couples to adopt.
I believe that the PN Parliamentary group could never go along with this part of the proposal for a number of reasons, chief among which is the fact that there is no right to adoption. Heterosexual couples do not have a right to adopt. It is only children who have a right to be adopted by the best possible adoptive parents. It is indeed very sad that this government has subjected the child’s best interests to those of someone else.
(…)
Let me be clear: I would have disagreed even if somebody argued that a heterosexual couple who have been married for a number of years had a right to adopt. They do not have this right. Indeed in some cases it would be inadvisable for a child to be adopted by such parents for some very valid reasons.
The concept itself, therefore, is fundamentally flawed.
(…)
As a result we are now stuck with a law that discards the child’s best interests and contradicts the law regulating adoptions which seeks to protect the child’s right to be adopted by the best parent or parents possible in the circumstances.
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http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20140422/local/gonzi-gay-adoptions-in-unions-bill-wrong.515923
Hats off to a true gentleman and a real statesman. Joseph Muscat will go down in history, but for the wrong reasons. He will be remembered as the antithesis of the true leaders that made Malta, such as Eddie Fenech Adami and Lawrence Gonzi. Simon Busuttil is quietly and humbly leading the way, and gaining credibility every day.
This is the reasoning of a man who has high moral principles and who has the national interest at heart. On the other way, we have PM Joseph Muscat who lacks moral principles. He likes to break rules and tells lot of lies. The two men are miles apart.
Meantime, Malta as a nation is listing badly and is rapidly sinking.
Aptly said, the seasoned man and the new boy are worlds apart.
Can someone please point out where in the new Act the right of same sex couples to adopt is written? There is a paragraph (new Civil Code 100B) which states that “Children adopted jointly by partners to a civil union contracted between persons of the same sex shall…, be recognised for all intents and purposes of law as having parents of the same sex and all rights and obligations of parents towards their children and of children towards their parents under this Code or under any other law shall apply to such children and parents”. Is this what all the fuss is about?
My reading of this is that same sex couples are shall have the same rights and obligations as other parents, and that children of same-sex couples shall have the same rights and obligations as other children, once adoption has taken place. It does not, in my (admittedly limited) understanding, give special rights to same-sex couples to adopt. The normal provisions regarding adoption would apply.
So, is this a storm in a tea-cup created for political reasons, or is there something I am missing?
Luckily children don’t vote or we’d have the right to adopt pets enshrined in law next.
Dr. Gonzi: a man for all seasons.
Dr. Muscat: a populist in search of inflating his own ego.
Well said. Baħar jaqsam bejn it-tnejn. Dr Gonzi jaħdem għal pajjiżu u l-ieħor biex jintefaħ aktar milli hu u jħaxxen bwietu u dawk tal-qalba.
Giddieb prima kwalità, jikser kull regola basta tgħaddi tiegħu.
Qed jgħallimhom tajjeb it-tfal tiegħu jekk jieħdu l-eżempju tiegħu! Dr Gonzi kien jgħidilna imma kien hemm min ma riedx jisma’ għax ried bidla. U l-bidla ħadniha …gas down ġol-ħajt. Xejn aktar u xejn anqas.
What a breath of sane and fresh air. We miss Dr Gonzi’s logic and humility, never mind the genuine, fair outlook on Maltese life.
Pity he has to be so blindingly conservative when it comes to matters of personal faith.
Daphne has pre-empted his logical conclusions on the adoptions issues of course.
How right he was. Everything he told us would happen with Labour in government is now actually happening.
I truly miss him.
Super PBS have a completely different interpretation of Gonzi’s article. They’ve somehow managed to spin that Gonzi is attacking PN for abstaining.
http://www.tvm.com.mt/news/gonzi-jikser-silenzju-politiku-u-jikkritika-lil-dawk-li-qaghdu-gallarija/
Could not agree any more.
Unfortunately this counterargument is used as a red herring against the lobbyists for adoption by same-sex couples. It just does not follow.
Only a close inspection of each an every couple, conventional or not, should determine the couple’s capability to care for a child unto adulthood.
Labour xinxilli aside, I miss Dr Gonzi’s direct speech without rhetoric and his constancy.
Most are uncomfortable with having same-sex unions being put on par with marriage. Even more people are very uncomfortable giving same-sex couples the right to adopt.
Many people, however they vote, are very uncomfortable with having the values of a minority being imposed on our society. I am angry that the Member of Parliament I voted for was booed outside parliament.
I have friends who are gays and lesbians and I have no problem with that. What I have a problem with is that the NGO that represents them has become an adjunct to the PL and has allowed the gay and lesbian community to be used in a political chess game.
At the rate we are going, gays and lesbians will be disliked and marginalised not because of their sexual orientation but because of the way their values have been imposed, while the values of the vast majority of people have been side-lined and ignored.
For every action there is a reaction, and this will create a backlash of resentment and anger.
I agree with your statement. I feel that they want to instil the impression that they are the norm and heterosexuals are not.
Give me Gonzi anytime over this shallow, deceitful hypocrite of a prime minister.
Nimmisja wisq id-diskorsi ta’ Dr Gonzi. Zgur li l-prim li ghandna m’ghandux x’jaqsam ma’ li kelna.
Haduha l-bidla n-nies! Ifirhu issa tal-bidla li hadtu.