Committee for the Abolition of Illegitimate Debt

Since November 2020, 24 women’s organizations and collectives have set up the “Committee on Family Law and Consensus Joint Custody”, expressing our strong concern about the Greek government’s initiative to introduce a bill entitled “Reforms regarding parent-child relations and other issues of family law”, which changes and alters the child-centered character of Greek Family Law, including provisions that violate the Istanbul Convention, International Human Rights Law and the International Convention on the Rights of the Child.

The bill has been strongly criticized both for its legal quality and for the violation of human rights, by the Association of Greek Judges and Public Prosecutors, by scientific bodies such as the Family Law Society, the Child Psychiatric Society of Greece, by distinguished law professors with Family Law as scientific subject, by lawyers, social workers and psychologists, while it is rejected by all women’s organizations as well as by NGOs that support abused women in Greece.

Such arrangements harm the children and the weaker parent, being usually the mother, they increase litigation, but at the same time limit the judicial review of each child’s interests and the protection of the weaker parent due to abuse or other reason. They undermine the independence of the Legal System and limit the work of judges. Thus, they violate the Constitution and European and International Law and make Greece accountable to international auditing bodies.

The “Committee on Family Law and Consensual Joint Custody”

CLAIMS

• To stop any intervention in Family Law, especially in the relations between parents and children.
• To improve the administration of Justice, with the establishment of family courts, in application of Law 2447/1996.
• To introduce a compulsory social investigation, in order to enlighten the court in the cases of parental care Care Le concept de « care work » (travail de soin) fait référence à un ensemble de pratiques matérielles et psychologiques destinées à apporter une réponse concrète aux besoins des autres et d’une communauté (dont des écosystèmes). On préfère le concept de care à celui de travail « domestique » ou de « reproduction » car il intègre les dimensions émotionnelles et psychologiques (charge mentale, affection, soutien), et il ne se limite pas aux aspects « privés » et gratuit en englobant également les activités rémunérées nécessaires à la reproduction de la vie humaine. , in proportion to those that apply to the adoption (article 1557 of the Civil Code), and for this purpose,
• To establish immediately, pursuant to Law 2447/1996, a body of family social workers, with adequate and appropriate staffing and the necessary material and technical means, which will be strengthened with psychologists and will also cooperate with the court mediator.
• To provide a special monthly support allowance for low-income divorced parents who have custody of a child, pursuant to article 21 par. 1 of the Constitution.