The World Congress of Families awarded the social services minister for his work promoting the ‘centrality of the natural family’

This article is more than 6 years old

This article is more than 6 years old

A conservative Christian group holding its annual conference in Melbourne this weekend has named the federal social services minister, Kevin Andrews, as its 2014 “Natural Family Man of the Year”.

The World Congress of Families (WCF) gave the equivalent for women to the Nigerian activist Theresa Okafor, a vocal supporter of that country’s tough anti-gay laws, which make same-sex relationships punishable by up to 14 years in prison.

The organisation says it aims to “affirm, defend and promote the natural family as the lifelong union of man and woman through marriage, bound by faith and tradition, for the purposes of sharing love and joy [and] having children”.

Its members have campaigned against childcare centres, euthanasia, divorce, gambling, gay rights and legalised abortion, among other “pro-family” issues.

The award, which the WCF says is given “to individuals who have made outstanding contributions to promoting a greater understanding of the centrality of the ‘natural family’ to a prosperous, stable, and free society and civilisation”, was announced in May in a press release and featured in the organisation’s monthly newsletter.

Its website defines the natural family as, among other things, “the fundamental social unit, inscribed in human nature, and centered around the voluntary union of a man and a woman in a lifelong covenant of marriage”.

A spokeswoman for Andrews initially denied the minister had won such a “prize”, but subsequently confirmed the minister had received the accolade. Organisers said it was likely it would be officially presented at an international conference on a date to be announced.

According to the WCF website, nominations for the prize are made by the organisation’s 43 “partners” each December, with the final selection made in April by a panel including congress officers and previous award recipients.

The 2013 Natural Family Man of the Year was Ignacio Arsuaga, a Spanish lawyer and anti-abortion activist. Dr Janice Shaw, a conservative activist who has warned that Christians could be one day fined or imprisoned for opposing same-sex marriage, was last year’s Natural Family Woman winner.

The independent NSW MP and gay rights campaigner, Alex Greenwich, said the awarding of the title to a federal cabinet minister “deeply embarrasses Australia in the eyes of the world”.

“The World Congress of Families has a very narrow and discriminatory view of families, and for our minister responsible for Australian families to in any way be endorsing that is a great concern to me and very many Australians,” Greenwich said.

“We’re not talking about [Christian Democratic Party leader] Fred Nile. We’re talking about a federal cabinet minister. For him to be endorsing the World Congress of Families, an organisation that exports hate around the world, is deeply concerning.”

The congress, which Andrews will open on Saturday, will hear from speakers such as Angela Lanfranchi, the New Jersey physician whose view that abortion increases a woman’s risk of developing breast cancer was controversially brought up by the Liberal senator Eric Abetz in recent comments. The Australian Medical Association has said the theory has “no scientific merit”.

The WCF managing director, Larry Jacobs, who last year applauded Russia’s ban on “gay propaganda” as a “great idea” that would “prevent [gays] from corrupting children”, will also address the conference.

The Victorian attorney-general, Robert Clark, and Liberal senator Cory Bernardi will also attend.