Malta, one of the most Catholic countries in the world has approved the introduction of divorce.
In the referendum the people voted by a majority of 54%, to allow couples to divorce after at least four years of separation; when ‘there is no reasonable hope’ of reconciliation.
Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi, who campaigned for a ‘No’ vote, said: “The referendum outcome is not the one I wished for, but the will of the majority will be respected and parliament will enact legislation for the introduction of divorce.”
The Catholic Church did not campaign over the issue before the referendum, but the Archbishop of Malta, Mgr Paul Cremona warned in a letter that voters faced a choice between “building and destroying family values”.
The vote was seen as a test of the influence of the Catholic Church in a country where Roman Catholicism is the state religion, 98% of the population are Catholic, and 72 percent of people say they go to Mass on Sundays. Nearly all marriages are held in a church.
The Mediterranean island of 400,000 people was the only country in Europe not to allow divorce. Apart from a brief period when the island fell under Napoleon’s rule for about two years, divorce has never existed legally there.
Divorce became leal in the Republic of Ireland in 1995, but still not permitted in Vatican State and the Philippines.
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