Civil rights groups urge Spain's new president to axe abortion law

Madrid, Spain, Nov 22, 2011 / 12:35 pm

Spanish civil rights groups urged president-elect Mariano Rajoy to end the country's support for abortion and endorse legislation that protects the family.

Benigno Blanco, president of the Forum on Family, urged Rajoy to repeal Spain's abortion law as well as “enact real policies” that offer help to pregnant woman.

Mariano Rajoy, leader of the People's Party, was elected president in a landslide victory on Nov. 20. It was the biggest loss ever for the Socialist party, which has led the country over the last eight years under outgoing President Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero.

According to Europa Press, Blanco said the election results show that the Spanish voters have completely rejected the Zapatero administration's pro-abortion stance.

He also called on Rajoy to reestablish marriage “as an institution between one man and one woman” and to strengthen it by revising laws that favor easy divorce and same-sex unions.

Blanco added that the new administration should also work to “reinforce education” and “return to parents their rightful role.”

Ignacio Arsuaga, president of the civil rights website HazteOir.org, said his organization offered  Rajoy its best wishes “in the difficult task that lies ahead.” He also encouraged the new president to not only repeal the law on abortion but “promote policies that favor the family and marriage.”

Arsuaga added that Zapatero's leadership over the past eight years has been destructive to Spanish society.

“The electoral misfortunes of the Socialist Party are a symptom of the feelings of a large part of Spanish society that they have been under permanent attack since 2004,” he said.

The board of directors of the organization thanked supporters for working hard to ensure the campaign was focused on “numerous issues of vital importance that would have otherwise been overshadowed by the economic crisis.”