23 April 2012
Hans Christian Cars represented EHF at the meeting of the EU Fundamental Rights Platform for NGOs (the FRP) on 19-20 April 2012. He reports: It was as usual thoroughly well organised with two panel discussions with invited experts and some forty workshops of which thirty were conducted by NGOs and the rest by FRA staff. In the election for Advisory Panel members, six were elected from a pool of 24 candidates. Regrettably one of these was… read more »
23 February 2012
David Pollock writes: The Vatican news agency proclaimed: “A decision by the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) to pass a resolution that calls for the prohibition of euthanasia, is being hailed as a major pro-life victory.” European Dignity Watch, under a headline “Council of Europe bans Euthanasia” hailed “a major victory for life and dignity of the weakest”. The European Centre for Law and Justice hailed a “Major Victory for Life in… read more »
29 January 2012
The EHF has adopted a policy on conscientious objection. It says that humanists set a high value on freedom of religion or belief. However, it draws attention to the c0nditions the European Convention on Human Rights imposes on the right to manifest such beliefs – for example, where that may interfere with the rights and freedoms of other people. Some claims to conscientious objection do have serious implications for the rights of others – rights… read more »
1 October 2011
The EHF was represented at the 2011 conference in Warsaw (left, general view from the NGO seats) by its President, David Pollock, by its OSCE representatives Hans Christian Cars and (from member organisations) by Vera Pegna of the Unione degli Atei e degli Agnostici Razionalisti (UAAR) and Pierre-Arnaud Perrouty of the Centre d’Action Laique in Brussels. We made three interventions in the session on 27 September on “Freedom of thought, conscience, religion or belief”. David… read more »
15 September 2011
The OSCE held a meeting on combating hate crimes against Christians in Rome on 12 September 2011. Vera Pegna represented the EHF and reports: There were a couple of hundred delegates, mostly Catholic bishops, archbishops, but also representatives of other Christian religions, and Jews and Moslems and a number of ambassadors to the Holy See and government representatives. Plus a number of NGOs, mostly Catholic. The first half of the morning went by with… read more »
11 July 2010
The general principle Application of the principle in the European Union EHF general policy on consultation and dialogue Current concerns Concordats The general principle Humanists and sfecularists vigorously defend the principle of freedom of religion or belief, including the freedom to change one’s religion or belief or to have no religion or belief. Such freedom includes the freedom to behave and conduct one’s life in accordance with one’s own beliefs. This freedom needs to be… read more »
20 December 2008
The EHF has written to the EU Commission about “alarming signs that the European Union is sliding without acknowledgement from neutral dialogue with religions and non-confessional organisations into clear support for religion combined with continuing refusal to give equal access to non-confessional organisations such as ourselves”. The most recent is heavy EU participation in a Christian rally in Brussels over the New Year.
9 October 2008
Speaking at a side-meeting at the OSCE human rights conference in Warsaw last night, EHF President David Pollock strongly criticised the views expressed by the Vatican Secretary of State, Cardinal Bertone, a few days ago about the role of religion in politics. Bertone said “Politics needs Christianity” and based his case for religious believers having a role in public affairs on this alleged need. In a closely argued speech, David Pollock stated that specifically religious… read more »
8 October 2008
At the OSCE meeting in Warsaw, the EHF has tabled a recommendation that lthe growing tendency to identify people on the basis of their religion gives religion too much prominence when it is not a key factor in many people’s identities. It gives too much power to religious leaders and results in non-religious people being overlooked. Read the full recommendation here.
4 April 2008
Many states in Europe have concluded international treaties with the Roman Catholic Church in its incarnation as the Holy See, which anomalously has the status of a nation state in international law. These treaties are generally known as concordats. The EHF opposes the status of the Holy See as a nation state and member of the United Nations and other international bodies. It is not a state in any normal sense; it is certainly not… read more »