In Greece, Massive Support for Shared Parenting, Family Law Reform
December 7, 2020 by Robert Franklin, JD, Member, National Board of Directors
The Greek shared parenting organization, Active Dads for the Rights of the Child, commissioned a survey of popular opinion on family law back in October. To say the least, the results are fascinating.
The telephone survey was conducted by Focus Bari, S.A. It reached 1,000 people who seem to constitute a representative sample of adults, ages 18 – 74. Half of the respondents were women and half were men.
A whopping 88.8% of Greeks said they are either very positive or positive regarding the need for family law reform. Just 4% were negative. Those figures are very much in line with other similar surveys conducted in the U.S. and Canada, so it’s no great surprise that Greeks hold similar attitudes.
That’s where the results get interesting. Respondents were asked what they believe Greeks generally think about family law reform regarding shared custody and shared care of children. About 48% of respondents said the rest of the country viewed shared parenting positively. That’s just a little more than half of the actual number, assuming the Focus Bari survey is accurate. In short, Greeks tend to think “I support shared parenting, but I’m not sure my neighbor does.”
Then the survey asked whether respondents thought the positions taken by political parties on the issue of shared parenting could influence the attitudes of voters. Almost 83% said “yes.” A further 79% said that the legal inability of governments to protect the children of divorce imposed a political cost on government members.
So respondents were clear in their belief that shared parenting is an important issue that can have political ramifications for members of Parliament or individuals seeking office. The only thing Greeks seem to be confused about is how importantly they themselves view shared parenting. Across the board, Greeks want the law changed to promote shared parenting and think politicians will pay a price for not doing so. But the general run of Greeks doubt their own power to effect the change they want.
So it’s now up to organizations like Active Dads for the Rights of the Child to educate the populace.