FACING THE CHALLENGES - THE NEXT 50 YEARS

Saturday, 6 July 2002
Chair of the day: Ms. Yvonne Breuk

Humanism in the future. What will we aim at the next 50 years? That is the leading question this last morning of the congress. Today the workshop recommendations are presented and discussed. The new Amsterdam Declaration on Humanism is accepted by the assembly, young humanists report from the IHEYO conference and Harry Kunneman faces the future by presenting his agenda for the International Humanist Movement for the next ten years

Commentators:
Mr. Marius Ernsting, Humanitas, the Netherlands and
Mr. Babu Gogineni, director of the IHEU, England.

Speaker:
Mr. Harry Kunneman, chairman of the Dutch Humanist Alliance and vice-chancellor of the University for Humanistics, Utrecht, the Netherlands.



Workshop recommendations

Yvonne Breuk, chair of the congress, welcomes the assembly on this last morning of the congress. She invites people to have a look at the workshop recommendation. The workshops that have been held over the past two days have resulted in big sheets of paper with recommendations, that are now covering the walls of the Rotonde hall. The members of the congress are asked to show their approval or disapproval by putting a green sticker if one agrees with the recommendation, a red sticker is on disagrees and a yellow sticker if one doesn't know. After half an hour the sheets are covered with stickers. The chair invites Marius Ernsting and Babu Gogineni to comment on the recommendations, as well as the congress.

The workshop recommendations are to be found in appendix 8, including the scale in which the congress approved or disapproved of the recommendation.
A number of workshop recommendations are discussed by the commentators and the congress. What follows is a small selection of a recommendations and comments.

Social inclusion
'It is important to know about the values and cultural aspects of social exclusion in the different countries in order to develop effective ways of approaching excluded groups and persons and to develop effective programs of intervention to obtain full participation in society'. That is what the workshop on social inclusion recommends. Sixty percent of the assembly agreed to that, forty percent had no opinion. "We know little about inclusion," Gogineni comments. "What is the standard? What are the objective figures? Does a person feel excluded when we think he is? It is very possible that authorities cannot reach a group of people, but that they are in fact socially included. We should be careful to intervene."

Reception of refugees
The workshop on refugees recommends to start practical relief projects like SAMAH and advises more co-operation and alliances between development organizations, refugees organizations and humanist organizations. Most of the members of the congress agreed.
"What struck me is that in a world we call global, when it comes to people there are so many boundaries," says Ernsting. "Secular countries like Holland consider refugees as a separate group," Gogineni comments. "In the past when the economy needed them, people were allowed in. That is hypocritical. If our economy needs people, we should make different arrangements."

Human rights, human values, humanism
All recommendations of this workshop have been rewarded by green stickers and a few yellow ones. The workshop pleads for e.g. promotion of humanist values, which strengthens both human rights and humanist organizations. It also recommends education of human rights and human values. Rob Buitenweg, as a member of the congress, fully agrees. "Last evening I watched a programme of the Humanist Broadcasting Corporation. The reporter interviewed people on the street. She asked them to name five human rights. I was astonished to watch that most young people couldn't name five. So education is very important."

Humanism and Islam
The workshop on Humanism and Islam is clear about what it wants. The Sharia law is to be abandoned. And all communities of religion and faith are to develop a notion of sharing the world. The notion of commanding the world by any faith is to be abandoned. A majority of the congress agrees. But that does not satisfy Gogineni. "I am shocked and disturbed that anyone could not agree to abolish Sharia law," Gogineni comments, after which he jokingly threatens everyone that has put down a red sticker. "The difference between the letter of the law and practice of the law is a double-edged issue," a member of the congress opposes. "We might disapprove, but for other people the Sharia law can be a deep source of inspiration." Gogineni: "There should be a clear distinction between religion and state. There should not be any religion in legislation."

 

 

  A Workshop in session
@ copyright photo's by Ilya van Marle

Gender
The workshop on poverty, population, gender equality and human development came with recommendations that raised the eyebrows of quite a few members of the congress. Red stickers appeared on the recommendations regarding gender, recommendations such as equal representation of men and women in the IHEU and on the shortlist of humanist prizes, and a gender sensitive jury.

Ernsting starts by saying that he doesn't understand how anyone can put down a red sticker. A member of the congress rises. "I do not want a job simply because I am a woman." She is applauded. Gogineni: "We need to be cautious to symbolically trying to equate the numbers in terms of gender. Because in this symbolism the real struggle of women is lost." "But If you do not pay specific attention to gender quality all the time, we'll get easily in a situation in which women are being discriminated." A member of the congress reacts. "I do not want a job because I'm a woman, someone said. I agree. But I can give other figures, about numbers of educated women and men. In some countries that is fifty-fifty percent. In my country 75% of the women are illiterate. As a literate woman I feel I deserve the chance to be selected as a woman to the job. Because I got through much trouble to get educated. This way I can show other women, all the 75%, that it is worth the trouble getting educated."

Closure comments
Marius Ernsting and Babu Gogineni have their final say in the matter. Ernsting can be very brief. "Humanism in practice means you try to find relevant areas in which humanism is relevant in day-to-day life, which means trying to develop practices for ordinary people in day-to-day life. Humanism then gains influence. Humanism is not only about rights for the individual, it is about the capacity for every individual to build meaningful relationships with others. You don't have to be a professional worker to establish that." Gogineni is in complete agreement. "Whenever humanists are thinking, they are thinking about what is right, what is wrong, they are keeping the light alive, so that they will implement the vision for a new future. This congress is a nice snapshot of what the movement is all about. Discussing, disagreeing, arguing, agreeing. Humanism has a prospective to offer on humanity, on the globalizing world. Our challenge is to work internationally. What is humanism when it is not international? A gathering of humanists from all over the world, this dialogue, I believe that is what humanism is about. We stand for the universality of our values."

Audience in debate
@ copyright photo's by Ilya van Marle

The Amsterdam Declaration 2002
Mr. Roy Brown presents the Amsterdam Declaration 2002 on Humanism. It is an update of the Amsterdam Declaration 1952. "In the period leading up to this 50th IHEU conference we thought it would be a good idea to update it," says Brown. The executive committee has worked on it for five months. A discussion follows on the content, but Mr. Brown makes it very clear that this is the outcome of a long process of participation and discussion and that it is a final draft, although he does take at heart the criticism that the term sustainability has not found a place in this draft. In a formal count the members of the congress unanimously voted in favour of the declaration.



Speaker Mr. Kunneman
Humanism cuts trough our private and professional lives.
In his speech Mr. Harry Kunneman presents his very own agenda for the International Humanist Movement for the next ten years. The full text is to be found in appendix 7.

Summary Speech
"Looking back I feel gratitude for a beautiful and inspiring conference," Kunneman commences. "It makes me proud to be part of the Humanist Movement. Looking forward however I ask myself: how come that all these important ideas and far-reaching visions which have been presented to us during the last three days have only a comparatively small influence on a world-wide scale?"

Kunneman firmly believes that there is a real potential embedded within contemporary humanism. "But this potential seems to find only a limited recognition and does not seem to have come to full fruition. So I would like to present you an agenda for the International Humanist Movement for the next ten years, as a sort of supplement to the Amsterdam Declaration."

Kunneman's agenda consists of four points.
1. Internationalization, feminization and political radicalization of international humanism. Based on intensified co-operation between humanist organizations all over the world. Kunneman: "One of the great merits of this conference has been the strong input by thinkers, artists and activists from India, Pakistan, Africa, South America and many other places. It is of course well known to us all that humanism has been very much a matter of Western, white, Euro-American middle-class, middle-aged men. So I would like to ask: does not the future of humanism lie in the Southern hemisphere? Doesn't the International Humanist Movement need inspiring women in positions of influence and power? And doesn't the issue of sustainability and sustainable development merit the highest priority the next ten years?"

2. Humanism and religion. "Here I would strongly plead for a double-edged instead of a one-track strategy with regard to religion and spirituality. I am aware that this is a very touchy subject among humanists, surrounded by strong and deep emotions, which deserve respect and understanding. But this subject also crucially involves the future course and the identity of the International Humanist Movement."

Kunneman wholeheartedly agrees with the struggle advocated by Mr. Babu Gogineni and many others against all forms of dogmatic, fundamentalist and violent religiousness. "On the other hand however we should acknowledge the fact that for many people religion and spirituality serve as sources of inspiration and orientation on the level of daily life with regard to values which are also very dear to us humanists, such as care, compassion and solidarity. These religious inspired forms of moral engagement and human commitment should be considered as scarce and precious resources. Every cultural source contributing to forms of practical morality, whether religious, spiritual or secular, can and should in my eyes be welcomed and even cherished by humanists."

3. From theory to practice. "Humanism is and should be not only a set of ideas and principles, but also and even primarily a set of practices. But as we all know, humanism is still very much a matter of theory, philosophy, books, declarations and intellectual debates. The great advance to be made during the next ten years is in my eyes further development of the practical activities of humanist organizations in areas such as education, welfare, care for the elderly, but also on the level of moral and ethical deliberation within professional and commercial organizations. I my view the greatest challenge for the humanist movement is to find new forms of practical humanism, fed by critical reflexivity, normative professionalism and open moral deliberation."

4. Intellectual transformations on the level of humanistic theory and humanist philosophy. "That should be put on our agenda if we want to take the first three points seriously. I do not have the space here to delve seriously into these fascinating questions, but I will point out a few issues. We should rethink the concept of autonomy and freedom. They should be reworked to include the fragility of our identities and our existence, our dependence on care and last but not least the crucial contribution of shared cultural resources to the quality of our lives. The idea of free enquiry and the related notions of scientific research and rational debate should be broadened to include other forms of learning and deepening of critical insight and understanding."

"But the most difficult and important issue relates to the mismatch between what we hope for as humanists and what we actually do most of the times," Kunneman says. "It concerns the recognition that we live in a world full of strife, violence and misunderstanding of which we are very much a part. As humanists we long for more peace, solidarity and care between people, but we do not avail of ready-made solutions to bring these closer. Our commitment to human rights, to tolerance and to solidarity is clear. But we should also acknowledge there exists a gap between what we believe in and what we do most of the times."

"Our commitment to human rights sends humanist out on a quest which very much involves our whole person and which cuts trough our private lives, our professional activities and our world citizenship," Kunneman concludes. "Against this background I would be very glad if during the next ten years humanism could develop into a name for an open quest of people who are very different with regard to their personal histories, their cultural backgrounds and their social positions and aspirations, but at the same time are all equal in their hope and their trust that the way in which they give shape to their own lives will contribute, be it only a little bit, to the realization of this hope. So I conclude by saying that I hope and expect that when we will meet again in ten years and look back upon this conference, we will be able to say to each other that at least some of this hope has indeed been realized during our lifetimes. I thank you for your attention."

Report from the IHEYO-conference

A delegation of four young humanists is welcomed on the stage.
Mr. Vincent Lloyd from the USA,
Ms. Gea Meijers from the Netherlands,
Ms. Gosia Minta from Poland and
Mr. Andreas Palmqvist from Sweden.
They represent their countries in the IHEYO, the International Humanist and Ethical Youth Organization. This morning they report on the IHEYO-conference that has been held in Utrecht last week.

Vincent Lloyd reports on current developments in the IHEYO. "While you were attending this congress, we were trying to do similar things for young humanists. Over the past fifty years of IHEYO history we have developed programmes for young humanists. As happens so often when people grow older, their interest shift, and organizations grow and they fade away. In the 1960's and 1970's there was a strong youth branch of IHEU. There have been revivals in the 1980's an 1990's. What we are doing now to revive the IHEYO, is to establish a network of national co-ordinators, so that in each country there will be a IHEYO representative. The co-ordinator is a link between humanists in their countries, individuals as well as organizations, and the international youth humanist movement."

The IHEYO launched a number of projects over the past two years, including the youth conference in Utrecht. "We are planning another conference in the summer of 2003 in Germany," Lloyd continues. "An internship programme has been launched that gives young people the opportunity to work for a humanist organization in another country. And finally we launched the website www.iheyo.org. Young humanists from all over the world can share their ideas on this site and learn from others."

Gea Meijers introduces herself and reports on the IHEYO-conference. "In Utrecht fifty young people from 16 different countries and 24 different organizations gathered. We started on Monday evening and finished last evening. It was the first youth conference in ten years. I was a good start. We had great support from IHEU, HIVOS, the Institute for Humanist Studies and the youth programme of the European Union. It was very inspiring. I hope we all take our experiences back to our countries and organizations."

"Reality has surpassed my expectations," Gosia Minta says. "For all participants the IHEYO-conference was very important. I met interesting people. With time we became a surely integrated group. Although we come from different countries, we easily managed to find a common language. In spite of the fact that we were talking and brainstorming most of the week, it was not exhausting We had a lot of fun and the week led to visible results. The co-operation network was established and we are looking forward to working together."

Andreas Palmqvist has the last few words. He pleads for more interaction between the IHEU and the IHEYO. "The theme of your conference is empowerment. That cannot happen successfully without us. Young people should be represented when the subject is about them or concerns them. This is already happening, but it needs to be increased. Thank you."

Closing of the Congress
On behalf of the French Federation of Freethinkers (Libre Pensee) Mr. Roger Le Peix invites the general assembly to the IHEU-congress in 2005 in Paris, France. When we proposed to organize the conference we had in mind that it would be exactly a hundred years after the very important year of 1905. That was the year when the lawful separation between church and state was voted on in the French parliament. The French Federation of Freethinkers took a large part in that important event. We are proud of this date and we would like to have you all come to commemorate with us. See you in Paris in 2005."

Yvonne Breuk, chair of congress, announces the closing of the conference. "Before I send you away to your next meeting, your home or your plane, Harry Kunneman has asked me to be able to say a few words." Kunneman uses this opportunity to thank the people that made great effort to make this conference a success. Ed Huijg, Sandra Wüst and Ingrid Ernsting are applauded and presented with flowers. There are special thanks to Jaap Dijkstra, representative of HIVOS that has funded the trips of many participants of the congress. Kunneman thanks the organising committee, the incomparable Roy Brown and, last but not least, Yvonne Breuk.

Yvonne Breuk receives an applause and flowers and takes the opportunity to thank the Human (Humanist Broadcasting Corporation) and Human Media Support. "We didn't see them, but they worked with a big crew and made 3 programmes and HMS made that
there was also an congress on the internet (www.humanworldcongress.nl) . The president of the IHEU, Mr.Levi Fragell, has a final word. He pays a big compliment to the programme of the congress. "The content has been marvellous. It was so interesting. I have enjoyed it, I think everyone has. Thank you very much."

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Report by Claudia Dekkers