And there is actually something you can do about it.
Take for example Solidaritatea pentru Constiinta (Solidarity for Conscience), a wonderful non-governmental organisation which is taking on the Church + the Government with limited manpower and very limited funding. They are basically doing it out of and based on exclusively their conviction. Their actions include initiating legal proceedings, organising public protests, engaging the bad guys in public debate etc. Their most important achievements so far are the successful litigation campaign aiming to eliminate religious icons from schools and stalling the megalomaniac People's Cathedral project for more years. They are a great example of public engagement (others would say 'exagerated activism:)that turns a previously discrete issue on its head into a major issue of public contention.
Second, you can follow the example of my friend Theo Alexandridis, a lawyer who is confronting an even more entrenched adversary in Greece. Recently he won a case against Greece at the European Court of Human Rights concerning the obligation in that country to take a religious oath upon admission into the Bar Association. The Court held that Greece was in breach of Article 9 of the Convention concerning freedom of religion on account of the fact that by taking the oath, Theo was obliged to reveal his religious conviction. As a result, Greece will most likely have to cancel the religious oath altogether.
The tenor of this message is that as long as you give a damn about the world you live in it is worth/possible to put up a fight.
... desi, din cunostintele mele, discutiile privind laicizarea din Grecia le preced pe cele din Romania, exemplul ar putea sa inspire....
ReplyDelete.... dar nu stiu daca doar atat. pentru ca in masura in care teoria evolutionista a fost eliminata din curricula, iar religia este obligatorie incepand cu clasa Ia, am impresia ca simtul critic al celor care urmeaza s-ar putea sa lase de dorit...
can't believe this is happening!, by the way
may be of interest: http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/hrrpt/2007/100580.htm [you might already know of this; it's the March 11th US Dept of State Country Report on Human Rights Practices 2007]
ReplyDeleteThe report is quite cool. Quite comprehensive on certain issues; sometimes it feels a bit disjointed, more like a series of examples which do not necessarily amounts to patterns/practices.Some of my cases/actions are there! I should flag them out in a different post. If only I had more time...
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