The divorce issue should not be determined through a referendum, according to former Prime Minister and President Eddie Fenech Adami.

"I don't believe matters of principle should be decided through a referendum," Dr Fenech Adami said yesterday, adding that the President should also think twice before giving his assent to a divorce law unless there was a popular mandate.

The former President and his two predecessors, Guido de Marco and Ugo Mifsud Bonnici, were asked by The Sunday Times if they would have signed a divorce law while they were still in office.

Prof. de Marco made it clear he was against divorce, but said his personal view should not be a determining factor in the matter, while Dr Mifsud Bonnici said the introduction of divorce would harm the State and that he preferred not to answer a hypothetical question.

The President who could be faced with the possibility of signing a divorce law is George Abela, but he declined to comment when asked what his position would be.

The divorce debate reignited last week after Nationalist MP Jeffrey Pullicino Orlando surprised his party and the Prime Minister by presenting a Private Member's Bill aimed at "dissolving marriages which are irrevocably broken..."

For a Bill to become law it first has to go through the parliamentary process, and if approved has to be signed by the President. This is considered a formality, but a President is constitutionally bound to give his assent.

However, during his term of office as President between 2004 and 2009 Dr Fenech Adami is on record saying that if Parliament passed a law legalising abortion, he would not be in a position to sign it because it went against his fundamental principles. He reiterated this stand yesterday, but said he put divorce on a different level.

To date there has never been a case where a President refused to sign a law.

Contacted yesterday, all three former Presidents declared themselves to be personally against divorce, but all stopped short of saying whether would have signed the law.

Dr Fenech Adami said: "My signing would have depended on what the antecedents would have been. For example, at the moment no party has the people's mandate to introduce divorce, so I don't believe it is prudent that whoever passes a Bill to introduce divorce does so without a popular mandate."

So if there was a mandate, what then?

"I'm against having a law on divorce, but if I'm in an institutional position, such as that of the President, you naturally have to respect the people's mandate, except if it's serious matter of values," he said.

"In the current circumstances I don't believe we need divorce, but I don't exclude that the situation can become so serious that socially there's need for a remedy, which I don't believe is the case at this point in time.

"I don't believe divorce can solve any of these problems, but rather it aggravates them," he said, when referred to the high number of marriage separations and the consequences couples faced.

Prof. de Marco said: "One has to deal with it after having heard public opinion and what the political parties have to say - that is also the responsibility of the President. I don't think my own personal opinion has to be a definitive issue.

"I'd rather it (the divorce law) did not come before me because I'm not in favour of divorce myself, but whether I'd sign it or not is something I would have to reserve judgment upon until the moment occurs," he said.

Dr Mifsud Bonnici too declared himself against divorce because he believes its introduction "will do great damage to the State".

"I want to be precise - without entering into religious matters - divorce harms the State. I feel it harms Maltese society, a lay society," he said, adding that he felt it was not prudent to answer a hypothetical question.

"It is not appropriate for me to comment on what others should do."

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