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MADRID, Spain, June 5, 2012 (LifeSiteNews.com) – Delegates at the World Congress of Families signed a declaration May 27th decrying “ideologies of statism, atomistic individualism, and sexual revolution” and affirming the natural family.

The Madrid Declaration reaffirms Article 16 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which says “the family is the natural and fundamental group unit of society and is entitled to protection by society and the state.” The declaration was adopted by 3,100 delegates assembled on May 25-27 for the World Congress of Families at the Palacio de Congresos in Madrid.

The World Congress of Families is a network of pro-family organizations from all over the world. They promote the rebuilding of the family as the “seed of civil society.” It was founded in 1997 by Allan Carlson, and has had 5 congresses since 1997.

The Declaration says, “Recent legal and public policy changes have corrupted the meaning and dignity of marriage, devalued parenting, encouraged easy divorce and births outside of marriage, confused sexual identities, promoted promiscuity, created conditions that increased child abuse, isolated the elderly, and fostered depopulation.”

Responding to this crisis, World Congress of Families VI endorsed a set of principles “to create a cultural and political environment that is compatible with life, liberty, and hope for the future.”

The Declaration includes a list of 17 affirmations of the natural family, the sanctity of life, and the dignity and rights of parents and children.

The Declaration can be found here.