IN AN official statement read May 28 at masses across Slovakia, Slovak bishops recommended that the faithful participate in the upcoming general elections and vote for parties that respect Christian values.
Among those who should not be supported, according to the bishops, are parties that support registered partnerships for homosexual couples or abortion, or that ignore international commitments.
Political analyst Juraj Marušiak said the message between the lines was that Catholic voters should not support the liberal New Citizen's Alliance or the SDKÚ of Prime Minister Mikuláš Dzurinda.
At the beginning of this year, the SDKÚ's Eduard Kukan, who is also Slovak Foreign Minister, refused to support a proposed treaty between Slovakia and the Vatican, which led to the withdrawal of the Christian Democratic Movement (KDH) from the government.
Analysts agree the bishops' support for parties that believe in "healthy" marriage and protecting life from conception to natural death fits mainly the KDH, the Hospodárske noviny wrote.
