Billboard campaign calling on individual MPs to approve marriage for all to be withdrawn

The organisation Jsme Fér, which advocates for marriage equality in Czechia, is withdrawing part of its billboard campaign to get MPs to approve same-sex marriage following criticism from both opponents and supporters of marriage for all. The campaign, called Children Waiting, was launched a few days ago and features billboards, some located near MPs' offices, that directly address specific legislators by name and call on them to approve the law with the message: "Thousands of children and families are waiting, please act. Give them marriage for all couples." This part of the campaign was criticised in the lower house during the second reading of the equal marriage bill on Wednesday.

Filip Milde from the organisation Jsme Fér said that the aim of the campaign had been to attract the attention of MPs and encourage them to go to the organisation's website, which, through families' personal stories and expert opinions, would inform them about the unequal position of two-mother or two-father families with children. He apologised on behalf of Jsme Fér for being unsuccessful in this aim and said the organisation was working on removing this part of the campaign as quickly as possible.

Voting on the bill will take place in the third and final reading, which will take place at the end of February at the earliest.