Thousands of Croatians protest against Istanbul Convention

ZAGREB, March 24 (Xinhua) -- Thousands of Croatians protested on Saturday against the ratification of the Istanbul Convention that Croatian government adopted on March 22, Croatian state TV reported.

The protesters claim that the Council of Europe Convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence (Istanbul Convention) is promoting the so-called "gender ideology" and that it affects basic traditional and cultural legal aspects of Croatian society.

Although the government has adopted the convention with an interpretive statement that it is in line with the Croatian constitution and does not contain or support "gender ideology", the protesters believe that it doesn't have any legal significance.

They argue that the convention would bring "gender ideology" (gender as a social construct is separate from sex) into education system, that the state would have the legal obligation to finance NGOs that in their view have nothing to do with protection of women and that GREVIO committee (the independent expert body responsible for monitoring the implementation of the convention) would be authorized to interfere in Croatia's policies.

The protest started in front of the ruling party headquarters and finished at the biggest square in the center of the capital Zagreb. The organizers claim that the protest drew 70,000 people while police estimated just a few thousands.

The protesters asked members of Croatian parliament not to ratify the convention.

It was one of the biggest rallies of Croatian conservative in years, despite the fact that the conservative party Croatian Democratic Union is in power.

The parliament is expected to vote on the ratification of Istanbul Convention in the following weeks. Enditem