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Following elections at the IHEU General Assembly in Paris in July, IHEU's First Vice President Sonja Eggerickx and IHEU Vice President Larry Jones have been reelected unanimously to the IHEU Executive Committee.

Sonja Eggerickx is based in Ghent, Belgium, and is also a Vice President of IHEU Member Organisation the UVV, the federation of Flemish Humanist organisations in Belgium. Sonja who is professionally a Senior Schools Inspector in Moral Education, is coordinator of the IHEU's Women's Network and takes a keen interest in educational matters.

Larry Jones is based in Albany, New York, USA and is also founder-President of IHEU Member Organisation the Institute for Humanist Studies. Larry, who retired as a Chemist at General Electric, takes a keen interest in building capacity of Humanist organisations the world over and has established the IHS Grants programme which gives nearly USD 150,000 every year in support of Humanist projects.

With the acceptance of the International Humanist and Ethical Youth Organisation as a Full Member Organisation, IHEU's membership has crossed the magic 100 mark! The German umbrella organisation Dachverband Freier Weltanschauungsgemeinschaften (DFW), was welcomed as a Specialist Member at the IHEU General Assembly in Paris.

At the meeting of the General Assembly of the International Humanist & Ethical Union, held at Paris on 8th July 2005, to coincide with the 16th World Humanist Congress, the Indian Humanist Union tabled a resolution on "Comprehensive Secularism". After detailed discussions and taking into account the varying social and terminological backgrounds in different countries, the resolution was passed unanimously.

With deep regret, IHEU records the death of Prof. Hermann Bondi, one of the most distinguished Humanists of our time.

A mathematical physicist and astronomer, Prof. Bondi had been President of the British Humanist Association, and an active presence on the Humanist scene till Parkinson's struck a few years ago. Acclaimed as a genius, Prof. Bondi has held several positions of distinction in the UK and in Europe, including that of Head of the European Space Agency. Master of Churchill College, Cambridge, UK for nearly 8 years, he was best known as a propounder of the Steady State Theory of the Universe, as a science populariser and for his book Cosmology.

The General Assembly, consisting of non-voting and voting members, is the highest decision making body in IHEYO. Held on the 15th of July in Paris, the General Assembly adopted the action plan with additional comments, the budget and the accounts.

From Rationalism to Humanism - 7 and 8 January 2006
Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, India

Join a galaxy of Indian and Western Humanist Leaders to celebrate the history of Rationalism in the region, to discuss and analyse contemporary issues, and to learn about Humanism worldwide.

To be in elegant Paris, to meet with friends and colleagues from nearly thirty countries, to strike new friendships and to renew old ones was in itself a treat to most of us at the 16th World Humanist Congress. But to be in the magnificent Salle Richelieu of the Sorbonne University, to listen to wonderful presentations and speeches, and to hear the halls and corridors of UNESCO echo with talk about Humanism and the Separation of Religion and State was even more - it was indeed an exhilarating experience. It was but natural that the Congress broke into spontaneous applause to thank IHEU Treasurer Roger Lepeix, and other colleagues from the Libre Pensee: Catherine Le Fur, Christian Eyschen, Sam Ayache, Claude Singer and Philippe Besson for their vision and help in making it happen. The Congress was also an opportunity to recognise the signal services of Humanist stalwarts.

Over the last two years we have improved content of the International Humanist News, and increased the number of pages. Plans are now in place to produce a French language version once a year. We are investigating similar arrangements in other languages. We would now like to have your feedback so we may improve it further.

I was delighted to have the opportunity at the hugely successful 16th World Humanist Congress in Paris to honour three great Humanists, each of whom has made an outstanding contribution over many years to the promotion of humanist ideas and values.

Wonderful Setting, Promising Activities

The magnificent Salle Richelieu of the Sorbonne University and the historical Bourse du Travail of Paris were the venues for the IHEU's two day General Assembly in Paris, attended by representatives of over 40 organisations from 24 countries. A large number of observers from around the world were present during the deliberations - an indication of the growing interest in IHEU amongst Humanists, Rationalists and Secularists around the world.