Slovakia’s parliament has approved an amendment framed as a shield against “progressive ideology”
Slovakia’s parliament has approved a constitutional amendment specifying that there are only two genders, male and female. Of the 99 lawmakers present, 90 voted in favor of the measure, TASR news agency reported on Friday.
The move sets Slovakia at odds with prevailing EU norms, which stress the recognition of gender identity and protections for LGBTQ rights.
The amendment raises the prospect of conflict between Bratislava and Brussels, since the EU insists that European legislation must take precedence over domestic rules.
The changes go beyond gender definitions: they limit adoption rights to married couples, ban surrogacy, and require equal pay for men and women. The new provisions are due to take effect on November 1.
Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico framed the reform as a shield against the “progressive ideology” being imposed by Brussels, casting it as an assertion of national sovereignty.
His Slovak National Party coalition said the vote showed that “reason, values and principles can prevail even within the European Union,” according to TASR.
Critics have denounced the amendment as a dangerous retreat from human rights and equality, warning that it would contradict international human rights law and leave transgender, intersex, and non-binary people legally unprotected.
Hungary took a similar step in April, defining gender strictly as “sex at birth” and giving priority to the right of children to physical, mental, and moral development over other rights.
The trend also echoes developments beyond the EU. In his inaugural address in January, US President Donald Trump declared that “there are only two genders, male and female,” before ordering federal agencies to stop recognizing nonbinary identities. Russia, meanwhile, has banned gender reassignment and “non-traditional gender ideology,” with its Supreme Court in 2023 designating the “international LGBT movement” as a terrorist organization.
Unlike Slovakia and Hungary, neither the US nor Russia has constitutional provisions explicitly specifying that there are only two genders.
