Intercultural dialogue
13 April 2011
The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe has recommended the 47 governments in the Council to “promote a genuine partnership for democracy and human rights between the Council of Europe, the religious institutions and humanist and non-religious organisations”. To this end they should “establish . . . a place for dialogue, a workspace between the Council of Europe and high-level representatives of religions and of non-denominational organisations, in order to place existing relations on… read more »
20 February 2011
The Committee on Culture, Science and Education of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe is undertaking a study on “The Religious Dimension of Intercultural Dialogue”. The EHF submitted a memorandum to the Committee and as a result was invited to attend a hearing on 18 February 2011 held in the building of the Assemblée Nationale in Paris. Keynote speakers representing the Orthodox, Catholic and Protestant churches, Judaism and Islam had already been invited… read more »
10 March 2009
The EHF has protested at a European Parliament resolution that refers to the need for dialogue “between the Union and churches and religious communities, as provided for by the Treaty of Lisbon” without referring to the equal requirement for dialogue with the non-religious – “philosophical and non-confessional organisations”, as the Treaty puts it. We have sought an assurance from the Hans Gert Pottering, President of the European Parliament, that he will “seek to ensure that… read more »
11 November 2008
David Pollock, EHF President, was a “key contributor” to an invitation-only EU conference on “Intercultural Dialogue – A Challenge for Faiths and Convictions?”, held in Brussels on 11 November 2008. He insisted that “interfaith” dialogue that excluded the non-religious was illegitimate and set out the conditions on which religious voices could legitimately be heard in the public square. Read his speech here.
Remarks by David Pollock, EHF President, at EU conference on “Intercultural Dialogue – A Challenge for Faiths and Convictions?” organised within the framework of the European Year of Intercultural Dialogue 2008 by EU Directorate General for Education and Culture and held in the Berlaymont Building, Brussels, 11 November 2008 In the limited time available, I want to make just three points. Dialogue between groups defined by religion or belief must include the non-religious. Separation of… read more »
17 April 2008
Address by José Manuel Durao Barroso, European Commission President at the EHF Colloquium on Human Rights, April 2008 * Ladies and Gentlemen, I warmly thank the European Humanist Federation for inviting me to bring to a conclusion this European conference on the occasion of the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, organized in partnership with the Centre d’Action Laique and with the support of the European Commission. I am pleased to address… read more »
14 April 2008
On April 11, we emailed Jorge César das Neves, our contact in President Barroso’s Bureau, as follows: Speaking at a meeting of COMECE on 21 November 2007 (see [link now unavailable] http://www.comece.org/comece.taf?_function=news&_sub=&id=9&language=en), Mgr Adrianus van Luyn, Bishop of Rotterdam and COMECE President, referred to “the . . . key talks of the last three years, to which leading religious representatives were invited by the presidents of the European institutions”, the latest of which took place… read more »
4 October 2007
This conference – known as the ‘3Is’ Conference: International, Intercultural and ‘Interconvictional’ – was held in Strasbourg, France, on Wednesday October 3 (at the Marc Bloch University) and Thursday October 4 2007 (at the Council of Europe). It was organised jointly by EHF with the Cercle Gaston Crémieux (a Jewish cultural association), the Ligue Internationale de l’Enseignement de l’Éducation et de la Culture, the Manifeste des Libertés (a Muslim cultural association) and the Réseau Européen… read more »
International Intercultural Interconvictional colloquium “Social cohesion in a multicultural Europe: role and impact of currents of thought and religions” Strasbourg, Council of Europe 3 and 4 October 2007 If the diversity of cultures and religious or philosophical convictions might prove to be a cause of social disruption, as unfortunately current events remind us of this periodically, it is not less true that this diversity might also contribute to the social cohesion should certain conditions –… read more »
30 September 2007
Report by David Pollock – EHF President The EHF was again at the OSCE Office of Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) annual Human Dimension Implementation Meeting (HDIM) in Warsaw for the relevant days (September 24-26). Our delegates were Vera Pegna (our hardworking OSCE representative) and me. We were accompanied by Hanne Stinson, representing the British Humanist Association. This meeting brings together governments, the Council of Europe and NGOs, with the latter generally complaining about… read more »