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Summary List of IARF
International Religious Freedom Projects
I
Defining Rights & Responsibilities
1 - Towards an "Affirmation of Responsibility
for all Religious & Belief Communities"
Intellectually & spiritually this is a major challenge.
When religious & belief communities demand freedom,
they should also commit themselves to creating & following
a code of responsible conduct. Among other points, such
a code should protect young people, set guidelines to prevent
financial exploitation, and allow people to leave or join
a religion if they so wish.
With the receipt of a grant from the Rockefeller Foundation
in 2002, a committee of experts came together to consult
on standards for responsible practice. In 2003-04 it proved
a time-consuming but important task to circulate a second
draft, and then amend it substantially, particularly its
style, in light of the opinions of IARF's member organisations,
chapters & staff, and following research on the web.
The International Council approved a revised approach at
its meeting in March 2004. From a 'Declaration', the document
changed its title to 'Affirmation (of Religious Freedom
& Responsibility)'. This first public consultative draft
has been attractively illustrated, and is now ready for
printing. It will be drawn to the attention of the mainstream
faith or belief traditions. An e-copy will be available
on this site's homepage shortly, and readers & members
are encouraged to download (or write/ e-mail for) a copy,
and study & comment on it.
A report will be made to the Council in March 2005, then
a further revision. The proposed text will finally be brought
to the 2006 Congress for the IARF delegates' discernment.
II
Training & Education
2 - RFYN: The Religious Freedom Young Adult Network
Updates:
Interfaith Projects in Planning:
- Austria (Graz), May 2005: Working with
WCRP
- Hungary - follow-up to Budapest 2004
- Burundi - interfaith activities in four
schools (Muslim, Christian, indigenous)
Description of the RFYN: Following the adoption
of IARF's Strategic Plan for 2001-07, a variety of initiatives
involving young adults have taken place and are continuing
to be planned. The overall approach is under the leadership
and planning of the Young Adult Programme Co-ordinator in
Oxford, together with the IARF regional staff. Its shape
is that of an integrated programme with a longer-term goal
of developing the necessary knowledge & experience in
200 young people. The intention is that they can both be
active on religious freedom issues, particularly in their
own area, and derive support from each other to do so.
3 - Human Rights Education & Religious Freedom
The IARF has received a grant from the Dutch Government
for producing a package of educational materials related
specifically to the human right of freedom of religion or
belief. The project will take place from 2004-2006, and
IARF is working closely with the New York-based People's
Movement for Human Rights Education (PDHRE) to develop
the materials (which will comprise: at least three video
dramatisations utilising 59 stories collected by IARF from
around the world, illustrating poignantly the experience
of individuals whose right to this fundamental freedom has
been abused or denied; and, a comprehensive human rights
training manual).
Once these materials are developed, they will be used in
training programmes in Bangladesh, India,
Philippines & South Africa, in order to be given to
a variety of community groups as a basis for action.
The materials will also be a vital resource for IARF chapters
& member groups in these countries, designed to help
participants relate to religious freedom struggles in a
personal way, and to better understand their rights under
the UN's 'Declaration on the Elimination of All Forms
of Intolerance & Discrimination Based on Religion or
Belief'.
4 - Learning Materials
An introduction, in some detail, to the subject of religious
freedom, that may be useful to the serious enquirer.
- Online exhibition
(Under development) A graphical interface for the global
situation of the right to freedom of religion or belief,
which illustrates the broad types of its denial and
where they are occurring. It is illustrative rather
than comprehensive, with a view to creating awareness
5 - Religious Education & Schools
Update: IARF is working closely with the Oslo Coalition
to develop publications that follow up on the UN's November
2001 Madrid conference (see under 6. below). This work contributes
to a global survey of methods for teaching about religion
in schools. IARF young adults joined a competition
for collecting stories about tolerance, and a story
by Hiten Bhagtani, from Gujarat in India, was published
in the Oslo Coalition's publication "Stories on Tolerance"
(ed. Ingvill Thorson Plesner, The Oslo Coalition, September
2004).
Description of the project: At the top of IARF's
agenda is finding ways that NGOs - both religiously-based
& secular - can co-operate in promoting the initiatives
of the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Religion
or Belief, on school education for freedom of religion &
belief, tolerance & non-discrimination.
III
United Nations Activities
6 - Inter-Religious Dialogues
Our UN representative in Geneva, Dr. John Taylor, has initiated
a project entitled 'Inter-Religious Consultations for
Creating Educational Strategies to Maintain & Promote
Conditions for Supporting Freedom of Religion or Belief'.
Part of this project is support for the preventive strategy
of the U.N. in promoting education for tolerance. IARF has
thus initiated a series of four workshops /consultations
to carry forward the recommendations of the important UN
International Consultative Conference held in Madrid in
2001 on "School Education in Relation with Freedom
of Religion & Belief, Tolerance & Non-Discrimination".
The last of these four events is planned to be held in
Costa Rica, 19-23 November 2004, titled "Affirmation
& Appreciation of Indigenous Values & Spirituality
and their Transmission in Schools".
This consultation will explore ways to dispel intolerance
towards religious & cultural minorities in Central &
South America, and to examine innovative ways in which secular
& private school teaching can help re-discover the contributions
of these peoples.
The previous
three workshops were:
- A Muslim-Christian dialogue, June 2002
in Geneva. Participants from several countries
made recommendations to promote education about each other's
religious traditions.
- A meeting of educators from five religious
traditions in October, 2002 in India focused
on the theme of rebuilding common cultural heritage in
multi-religious societies in Asia.
- A meeting of educators concerned with
African Traditional Religions, South Africa,
13-15 January 2004.
7 - Geneva Committee on Freedom of Religion or Belief
IARF's Dr. John Taylor is Secretary of this Geneva-based
Committee, which has been instrumental in bringing together
interested non-governmental organisations to work on common
aims vis-à-vis religious freedom.
Currently the committee is establishing links with the newly-appointed
Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief, Ms Asma
Jahangir from Pakistan. Matters of mutual concern include
the prohibition of religious insignia in state schools (for
example in France) and the wave of desecrations (for example
in Iran).
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