Poland’s new coalition replaces conservative children’s rights official with LGBT-friendly successor
Parliament has chosen a new commissioner for children’s rights, in one of the first appointments made by the coalition of parties set to form a government this month.
In a symbolic change, the outgoing commissioner – a conservative figure who has opposed LGBT “ideology” and was once accused of endorsing the spanking of children – has been replaced by a candidate who has expressed support for LGBT rights and opposition to corporal punishment
The five-year term of the current incumbent, Mikołaj Pawlak, expires this month. Pawlak – a 43-year-old specialist in church law – has often been a controversial figure. Earlier this year, he announced an inspection of schools that had been ranked as the most LGBT friendly in the country. This was necessary to “protect children from criminals”, he said.
In 2020, Pawlak claimed that sex educators try to give children sex-change drugs.
Last month, after PiS lost its parliamentary majority in elections, Pawlak wrote a column warning that Christian crosses will be replaced in Polish schools by LGBT rainbow “rags” and the crescent, a symbol of Islam.
This week, parliament approved a new figure, Monika Horna-Cieślak, to replace Pawlak now that his term is ending. She is a 32-year-old lawyer and social activist who has been involved in promoting the rights of children and young people since she was a teenager.
During her confirmation hearings, Horna-Cieślak declared that she would support “Rainbow Friday”, an annual event in solidarity with LGBT people held in some schools. By contrast, Pawlak declared in 2019 that “schools must be free from the ideology that hides behind the tolerance of Rainbow Friday”.
In the end, Horna-Cieślak’s candidacy was supported by a majority of 246 votes in the Sejm, made up of MPs from the three incoming ruling groups, Civic Coalition (KO), Third Way (Trzecia Droga) and The Left (Lewica). She was opposed by 195 votes, mainly from PiS and Confederation.
Comments (1)
Как сторонник полного равноправия ЛГБТ, я рад этим переменам. Одно дело - безумие, творящееся на западе, когда всем детям подряд навязывают идею смены пола и прочие гендерные заморочки, и совсем другое - когда Польша избавляется от религиозной гомофобии.