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Serbian Patriarch’s ‘Motherhood is Obligatory’ Declaration Condemned

October 25, 201711:37
Serbian Orthodox Patriarch Irinej’s statement that Serbian women are obliged to give birth for the good of the nation has sparked a backlash on social media.

The front page of Serbian tabloid Alo! on Wednesday.

Serbian tabloid Alo! dedicated its front page on Wednesday to Irinej’s comment that “Serbian women are obliged to give birth”, sparking anger and mockery on social networks. 

Irinej also told Alo! that “we are obliged to renew our nation and to recommend that mothers give birth to children through God’s blessing”.

The Patriarch’s comment immediately sparked anger from some people on social networks who condemned head of Serbian Orthodox Church for meddling into human rights. 

“When it comes to birth, we do not owe anything to anyone,” one Twitter user wrote.

Many others mentioned the tax benefits that the Serbian Orthodox Church gets from the state. 

“It’s always nice when the Patriarch says something is an obligation something. For example, a property tax is an obligation,” said one of many similar tweets.

The Serbian Orthodox Church is widely known in the country for its wealth and the expensive cars which are driven by its priests, a topic that sparked further comments on Twitter. 

“The patriarch and the church should sell their fleet of vehicles and real estate and invest money in maternity wards if they are so much concerned,” suggested one.

Earlier this month, the leading Serbian Orthodox Church bishop in Montenegro, Metropolitan Amfilohije, also sparked reactions by accusing Serbian women of being responsible for “child murders”.

“In their guts they kill more than Mussolini and Hitler and [Josip] Broz [Tito] and those who are in Kosovo killed in a year,” he said, Blic newspaper reported on October 15.

Maja Zivanovic