Spanish Evangelicals criticise self-determination law

One of the laws that do not go well with the Federation is the self-determination law, Actualidad Evangelica reports. The Spanish government passed a proposal that allows minors to change their legal sex without their parents’ consent. FEREDE points out that in other countries, which have already legalised sex reassignment for children, problems arise when young people make irreversible decisions for their life “without being mature enough.”

Furthermore, it warns that the new law can have severe consequences for the legal security of parents. If parents request psychological help for their child with gender dysphoria, they could be accused of promoting conversion therapy, FEREDE argues. The new law also forbids conversion therapies in the broad sense of the word. According to the Federation, any advice a pastor or psychologist can provide to a person who doubts his or her sexuality can be called conversion therapy.

“This excessive regulation poses a threat to the free exercise of parental authority or guardianship of the parents or legal guardians and violates their right to educate their children in accordance with their religious and moral convictions.”

Abortion for minors without parental consent

Secondly, FEREDE strongly disagrees with the reforms of the abortion law that the Spanish government accepted. That is reported by Evangeliques.info. Under the new legislation, teenage girls of 16 and 17 years old will no longer need parental consent to have an abortion. According to FEREDE, the termination of a pregnancy is not “a trivial act”, and abolishing the need for parental consent “is a denial of the right and responsibility of parents to educate and guide their children according to their beliefs.”