Lamenting discrimination that women face because of motherhood, a Vatican diplomat agreed with a UN official’s assessment that motherhood “remains largely undervalued and mischaracterized as a private choice rather than a public good requiring recognition and support from society and institutions.”
“Valuing motherhood means supporting families and particularly mothers,” Archbishop Ettore Balestrero, apostolic nuncio and Permanent Observer to the United Nations and other international organizations in Geneva, Switzerland, said during a June 22 meeting with the UN’s special rapporteur on violence against women and girls. “They are entitled to special care, assistance, and protection before and after childbirth, including paid leave and adequate social security.”
“The Holy See has consistently raised concern about institutional and cultural tendencies that disregard the family and penalize or stigmatize motherhood as an obstacle to women’s advancement, rather than as an irreplaceable contribution to the life and future of every society,” Archbishop Balestrero added. “The Holy See calls on States to stand with mothers and fathers through concrete actions that protect and support them and their children.”