The second dissemination event took place on February 2, 2024. It was attended by representatives of 6 academic centers in the country. There were both young scientists and experienced researchers. The aim of the dissemination event was to present the project: Demographic issues and solutions in Europe. The event was organized as a part of the Central European Professors’ Network, coordinated by the Central European Academy. The dissemination event was organized in the form of a webinar. The theme of the event was: The concern of the state and other entities for the well-being of the family. The webinar started at 4 p.m. Professor Paweł Sobczyk, Deputy Director of the Institute of Justice and the Dean of the Faculty of Law and Administration of the University of Opole, officially opened the event. Professor Sobczyk welcomed all participants and wished them productive deliberations. The webinar was run by the coordinator of the dissemination event, prof. Marek Bielecki. Natalia Chrzczonowska from Lomza University was the first speaker. She presented the paper entitled: „The concept and legal protection of the family in the Constitution of the Republic of Poland”. According to the author of the speech, The Constitution of the Republic of Poland, in its provisions and regulations, expresses the issue of legal protection of the family. The family has always played an extremely important role in the society; therefore, there is no doubt that the most important current legal act in Poland includes provisions concerning the supremacy of the family in the country. However, we cannot find a specific definition of the term „family” in the country’s constitutional act; nevertheless, its meaning can be comprehended and reconstructed due to appropriate interpretations based on the analysis of the norms of the Constitution and other current legal acts of the Republic of Poland. The Constitution introduces equal rights of spouses in their family life and grants the right to protection of the family life. The protection of parental rights is guaranteed; parents are provided with the opportunity to raise their children in accordance with their own beliefs and are enabled to participate in their moral and religious teaching. The state ensures the protection of the family’s well-being by taking into account their interests. Mothers have a special right to receive assistance from public authorities. Moreover, the Constitution guarantees the protection of children’s rights, the right of succession and emphasizes the position of the family unit in the economy.
The next speaker was prof. Jerzy Nikołajew from the University of Rzeszów, who gave a lecture entitled: „Conflicts on the grounds of exercising of the right to religious freedom by a child„. According to Prof. Nikolaev, both a child and his parents are subjects of religious freedom, guaranteed in Polish Constitution. In the context of exercising religious freedom, conflicts may arise between a child and his or her parents when their mutual views differ. A child can exercise religious freedom after reaching a certain level of maturity that allows him or her to make autonomous decisions.
The third speaker was Klaudia Kijańska from Jan Dlugosz University in Czestochowa. The title of her paper was: „The role of the state for the good of the family based on the constitution in the Republic of Poland„. According to her views, the Polish Constitutional Legislator refers in a series of normative acts to the significance of the family as a key element in functioning of the state and law in Poland. In this regard, references to the importance of the family in the context of both constitutional principles and the values on which the legal system in Poland is based, are emphasized in the preamble to the Constitution, the constitutional principles, as well as in the rights and freedoms of individuals. The subject of the analysis is to establish the normative constitutional foundations related to the family good, focusing on the essence of Article 71 of the Constitution in particular.
The next speaker was Anita Klimas from the University of Opole. Her paper was entitled: „Effectiveness of mediation in relationships with domestic violence”. According to the author, Polish courts, recognized to be the leaders in implementing the mediation in criminal cases, willingly direct cases involving domestic violence to the mediation. The basic reason for such decisions is the economical factor. In particular, it is proceeded that way in order to make the work easier and avoid collecting the evidence, which is extremely difficult and tedious in cases involving domestic violence. It sometimes occurs that the courts use the mediation to demonstrate marginal social harmfulness of the forbidden act; as a result, they decide to discontinue the proceedings. It is justified by the fact that the victim often forgives the perpetrator, which proves that the act itself is not particularly destructive for her. The courts ignore the fact that the objectionable perpetrator’s behavior is independent of the parties and thus, their decisions cannot be formed in any way on the basis of the parties’ agreements or negotiations. In practice, courts only exceptionally impose penalties of imprisonment in cases involving domestic violence. The fact that the mediation in cases of violence does not concern the needs of the victims is largely due to the inadequacies of the current law. The Penal Code focuses only on the benefits of mediation for the accused. Therefore, mediation should be employed with particular cautiousness – in accordance with the medical principle „first, do no harm”.
The next speaker was Aleksandra Drozd from War Studies University. Her speech was entitled „State support in cases of a complicated pregnancy, a child‘s defect or other genetic diseases„. According to her views, the system of care and support in Poland for women being in complicated high-risk pregnancies, as well as in the case of lethal fetal defects or other genetic diseases, is basically illusory and purely declaratory in nature. Therefore, we need to introduce specific solutions in order to help and improve the quality of life of sick children and support their parents. An effective, simple and quick support system for parents, which will allow them to involve public assistance remotely, should be introduced.
The next speaker was Michał Służalec from Jan Dlugosz University in Czestochowa, who titled his speech: „The mission of the Catholic Church as a basis for implementing activities for the good of the family on the basis of selected legal regulations„. According to the author, the involvement of the Catholic Church in social life is highly significant. The value carried by the activities of legal entities of the Catholic Church is emphasized and noticeable not only in legal sciences. Through the activities undertaken by ecclesiastical legal entities, they have the opportunity to impact various areas of societal life. In this way, they fulfill both their own mission and provide assistance to the state in achieving statutory goals. This is the principle of subsidiarity as the social activity of the Catholic Church in Poland. The catalog of actions is extensive and may include forms of social, economic, educational, and cultural influence. Significant role will also be played by activities aimed at ensuring the proper development of minors. The discussed matter is related to constitutional conditions as well as the foundations of the Church’s mission for the good of the family.
The next speech by Łukasz Sitkowski from Cardinal Stefan Wyszyński University in Warsaw was entitled: „The European Court of Human Rights on the right to respect for the family life of detainees„. According to the presented contents, the right to respect for the family life of persons deprived of their freedom is a minor part of the Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights. This provision is very briefly articulated; thus, the case law of the European Court of Human Rights seems to be significant for its interpretation. It is impossible to determine its content without knowing the case law. In order for an extramarital relationship to be qualified as „family life”, the ECtHR has decided that certain specific conditions must be fulfilled in this particular case, for instance: kinship, cohabitation, mutual interests, affection, dependence.
In its case law, the ECtHR pays particular attention to mutual dependence as a necessary condition for the existence of the „family life”. This will also have a personal dimension for people deprived of their liberty.
The last speaker was Szymon Wiśniewski from the War Studies University. The author titled his paper: „Equitable access to water resources as the basis of a family’s livelihood – an international law perspective„. According to his views, water is a limited resource and due to several factors, such as growing world population, climate change and increased demand for water, it is becoming an increasing problem for the international community. More and more countries are facing situations when water supplies are insufficient to fulfill even the basic needs of people. Water shortage has a serious impact on human health and deepens poverty. Over 800 million people live without an easy access to clean and safe water, and every 20 seconds a child dies as a result of illness caused by limited access to water. One in three children already live in areas exposed to high or very high water shortage, and climate change seems to worsen this problem. The consequences of climate change are devastating for children. Their bodies and minds are uniquely sensitive to polluted air, poor nutrition and extreme heat. Water issues have been widely discussed with the regard to the international environmental law and international water law. Recent developments in water rights have occurred in a number of soft law instruments, such as the UN General Assembly resolution. The aim of this speech was to present the right to water for particularly vulnerable communities such as families. The speaker focused on both international treaties as well as on resolutions of the UN General Assembly.
Professor Marek Bielecki officially closed the session. He thanked all participants for their participation and invited them to further cooperation.
