Newsline 12 April 2013

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News, Blogs & Opinion

	LibDem MP wants to separate marriage registration from religion News \| Wed, 10th Apr 2013 A Liberal Democrat MP has tabled an amendment to the proposed same-sex marriage bill proposing a complete separation of state marriage and religious weddings. Greg Mulholland, Liberal Democrat MP for Leeds North wants to repeal the 1949 Marriage Act and the 2004 Civil Partnerships Act, remove clauses in the 1973 Matrimonial Causes Act for the ending of marriages on the grounds of adultery or non-consummation, and would ban religious ceremonies from state marriages carried out by civil registrars. The amendment will face intense opposition from MPs. However, Mr Mulholland argues that separating state and religious marriage is the only way to ensure equality and freedom of religion. "The Marriage Bill neither delivers equal marriage nor adequately protects freedom of conscience," he said. "The way to deliver both is a proper separation of civil and religious marriage, so it is clear that civil recognition of relationships is a matter for the state, defined in law, and this should be the same for all couples, but at the same time then allowing belief-based organisations to marry whoever they want according to what they believe marriage to mean. "This is the liberal and the fair approach, but also the commonsensical one that would deliver equality and tolerance and would avoid some of the pitfalls of the Bill as drafted." Already speculation is rife that in the unlikely event of this amendment being accepted, it would eventually lead to the disestablishment of the Church of England. Mr Mulholland was one of seven Liberal Democrat MPs to abstain from voting on the same-sex marriage bill in February. The bill will go to a third reading in the House of Commons in the near future, before proceeding to the House of Lords. Meanwhile, in Ireland, the bishops have warned that the Church should refuse to perform the civil elements of weddings if same-sex marriage is introduced. The Church in Ireland provides the majority of marriage solemnisers in the republic. Around 4,300 out of the 5,600 on the register are Catholic priests. The issue is being considered by a Constitutional Convention as recognition of same-sex marriage would require an amendment to the Irish constitution. The constitution requires the state to guard the institution of marriage with "special care" and "protect it against attack". Over 1,000 submissions have been made on the issue to the Constitutional Convention including a 10-page written submission from the Irish hierarchy. In this document, the Bishops' Council for Marriage and Family signalled a willingness to withdraw the Church's services to solemnisers in protest. Should this happen, up to 70% of marriages could be affected. In their submission, the bishops stated: "It is important to note that in Ireland, the Church and the State co-operate closely in the solemnisation of marriages. Any change to the definition of marriage would create great difficulties and in the light of this, if there were two totally different definitions of marriage, the Church could no longer carry out the civil element." This could mean the republic would have to adopt a similar model to other European countries where Catholics would have to get married in a register office as well as taking part in a religious ceremony in church. Legal recognition for civil partnerships in Ireland was granted in 2010 and gave same-sex couples most of the rights afforded to married couples.
	NSS makes history for the future News \| Wed, 10th Apr 2013 The British Library's announcement last week that it will archive much of today's online material for future researchers has been welcomed by the National Secular Society. As part of the announcement the British Library has created a quirky list of "The Curator's 100" sites that it thinks will be of particular interest to future generations. This includes things like The NHS, the Met Office, eBay, Amazon – and the National Secular Society. The British Library describes us as "The oldest secularist campaigning organisation in the UK, now continuing its campaign online after more than a century." Terry Sanderson, president of the National Secular Society, said: "This is wonderful news, and a big compliment that the British Library should choose the NSS's site from the millions that are on the web at present." Mr Sanderson added: "We often get emails from historians and researchers asking for details of events and people who were active in the nineteenth and early twentieth century but, apart from the big stars like Bradlaugh and Foote, little has been preserved about the day-to-day activities of the NSS in those times. So much of our history has been lost, but now every detail will be there at the British Library for future researchers to find."
	Why so little openness in the establishment of these Sikh schools? Opinion \| Tue, 9th Apr 2013 Guest post by John Hunt Last month the local press reported that a Sikh free school "remains on course to open in Hounslow in September": but there has been no reporting of the secrecy and subterfuge surrounding its establishment. Attendance at the only public meeting about it in December was completely unrepresentative. Wide-ranging questions put to the organisers by the few non-Sikhs were not answered. No offer was made to supply answers later. The local paper printed nothing. In February the Department for Education alleged "wide support" for the school, but provided no evidence to support the claim. I was advised to write to the "Nishkam Trust" (the organisation behind the school), which responded: "Full demand figures and collection methods are supplied through the formal application process to the Department for Education for their assessment". Another Sikh Trust also intends to open a school this September, in Stoke Poges (near Slough). The local council discovered this only in January, from a newspaper report. The school's recruitment drive had focused not in the local area, but on Sikh communities in neighbouring Slough, Southall and Harrow. Did Nishkam use similar techniques? Is that why they refuse to disclose what support they have? After the 2001 race riots, Home Secretary David Blunkett commissioned Professor Ted Cantle to produce a report into the causes. In 2009 an updated version expressed particular concern about schools being even "partly segregated on religious grounds", observing that segregation can perpetuate disadvantage, limiting choice and aspiration (becoming a dangerous vicious circle). Later in 2009 the think-tank Ekklesia summarised an opinion poll by the Equalities and Human Rights Commission where 60% of the population considered religion more socially divisive than race, and another by YouGov, where 75% wanted all schools to teach a balanced syllabus about a wide range of religious and non-religious beliefs. This year Professor Cantle affirms that school segregation still divides communities. Problems are becoming more acute. Imprisoning children in a limited world of their own like-minded communities is a recipe for disaster. He wrote: "All public services need to reconfigure services across communities and especially to avoid targeting and separating groups in the name of cultural sensitivity ...Separate provision also completely undermines opportunities to build shared purpose and to develop empathy and understanding of others. Perhaps the most difficult of service areas is education, where local authorities ... will need ... even to merge segregated schools together". If further evidence is required, an apparently honest and well-written book by two Sikhs, (Sikhs in Britain: the making of a community, 2006, Gurharpal Singh & Darshan Singh Tatla), paints an extremely damning picture of Sikh ethos. Local papers in Stoke Poges have printed much coverage: and the council, in keen opposition, has organised a public meeting with the local MP. Hounslow Civic Centre, on the other hand, is meekly acceding to Nishkam's demands, refusing even to consider a similar meeting here, to determine public feeling about an issue on which consultation to date has been an utter sham. Nishkam also propose to open a school in Leeds in 2014. But Leeds Council learnt about this only when I approached them. I am deeply concerned that Hounslow's proposed school is being rubber stamped with no meaningful public consultation; that the Trust is ignoring bona fide public concerns; that Hounslow is refusing even to inform residents what is happening and why; and that the Department for Education, whatever their highly dubious role in this may be, are failing to ensure that the process is being managed with even lip service to elementary ethics. Democracy? Localism? Not a whiff! Clearly there are related problems in Stoke Poges and Leeds. How widespread is this across the country? How many sectarian scandals are being deliberately concealed from public view? And how and when can we ensure that local and national government take heed of Professor Cantle's urgent recommendations to avert further segregation and violence? Following the publication of this post, we received an objection from the Network of Sikh Organisations. We asked John Hunt to respond to this complaint and you can read both the complaint and John's subsequent reply here (pdf).
	Free transport to “faith schools” axed in Leicester & Bath News \| Thu, 11th Apr 2013 Planned changes to school transport have been approved by councillors. Councillors on Leicester City Council have approved changes to 'home to school' transport that will see an end to subsidies for pupils attending "faith schools" in the City. The decision — taken despite a consultation showing that most people wanted to keep the subsidies — means free transport to faith schools which are further away than a pupil's nearest school will be axed in the city from September. Councillor Vi Dempster, assistant city mayor for schools, said the council had little choice as it looked to make budget savings. She said the city council was still committed to the provision of "excellent statutory services". Meanwhile, Bath City Council agreed this week to phase out free transport to "faith schools" in Bath and north Somerset. At a meeting on Wednesday, the Council said it had no option but to end the subsidies, which were costing taxpayers £258,000 a year. Despite strong pressure from the schools and from parents who will be affected, cabinet members voted unanimously in favour of a phased withdrawal of funding over seven years. This will kick in from September 2014, but in a concession to families, siblings of those already at faith schools will still get the financial support. Councillor Dine Romero, cabinet member for early years, children and youth, said the council could not afford to keep the funding. She said: "In an ideal world and in the interests of absolute fairness I would want all children going to school free of charge. But these are times of austerity and we need to think really carefully about which discretionary services we need to continue."
	Malta seeks to revise Vatican concordat on divorce News \| Thu, 11th Apr 2013 Malta is in negotiations with the Vatican about ending the Catholic Church's influence over divorce on the island. The Maltese Government legalised divorce in 2011, but under a concordat with the Vatican, Ecclesiastical Tribunals can veto the dissolution of Catholic marriages even if such dissolutions have been agreed with the civil authorities. Now the Maltese government has sent a note verbale to the Holy See's nuncio, initiating negotiations with Vatican on revising the 1992 Church-State agreement. Under the agreement, the civil courts had to stay any proceedings for the annulment of marriages contracted in the Catholic Church if one of the spouses initiated separate proceedings for an annulment from the Roman Curia. The ecclesiastical tribunal's decision would then have to be considered final by the civil courts. The concordat was sealed by prime minister Eddie Fenech Adami and foreign minister Guido de Marco back in 1993, a year after the treaty, but since his election, Prime Minister Joseph Muscat said he would revise the agreement. Muscat has already had talks with Archbishop Paul Cremona and Auxiliary Bishop Charles Scicluna. "The Maltese government believes the civil courts must be the supreme entity in marriages so that there can be a separation of church and state. There is a similar will to have a satisfactory agreement between the government and the church," the foreign ministry said in a statement.
	IHEU calls for action on Bangladesh News \| Wed, 10th Apr 2013 Following the recent Islamist demands to introduce the death penalty for insulting religion in Bangladesh, the International Humanist and Ethical Union (IHEU) has made a call to action for all its member organisations. Its call came in response to the recent demands made the Islamist group Hefazat-e-Islam, to hang those who insult Islam. The group also called for Bangladesh's constitution to be amended so as to prevent "the infiltration of alien cultures" and to separate men and women in public (amongst other changes). Its supporters have protested against what they said were blasphemous writings by atheist bloggers - several of whom have now been arrested on grounds that they have hurt the religious sentiments of the country's Muslim majority. Whilst the Bangladeshi Prime minister, Sheikh Hasina, has stated that her government has no intention of enacting a law against blasphemy (and the likelihood of it implementing Hefazat-e-Islam's agenda as very slim), she somewhat ominously, within the context of these recent arrests, observed that under existing laws: "If anybody tried to hurt any sentiments of any religion or any religious leader, there is a law. We can take any action." IHEU has highlighted the serious threat to freedom of thought, expression and political opinion in Bangladesh. It has called upon all its members to express solidarity with the Bangladeshi bloggers and to institute a "coordinated, global response to defend the right to express religious criticism and secularist principles, and also to defend political activism." Noting the American Humanist Association's call to its members and supporters to contact the US Ambassador to Bangladesh and express their concerns, IHEU has urged individuals to contact their ambassador, in order to object to the arrests, and the threat to freedom of speech those arrests represent. It points out that if a national ambassador were to receive even a small amount of correspondence on this issue, it might be sufficient to draw their attention to it as an issue to be raised as a priority with the Bangladeshi Government. There are also online petitions that have been established, and which can be signed here.
	Religious bodies in sustained attack on French secularism News \| Wed, 10th Apr 2013 The French Government is at increasing odds with aggressive religious lobbies – particularly the Catholic Church – which are determined to undermine the nation's constitutional secularism. The Hollande administration is moving ahead with a promise to loosen limits that control embryonic stem cell research, despite heavy pressure from the Catholic bishops. The Government is also fighting a rearguard action against the Church over same-sex marriage proposals. Muslim activists are also becoming restive over the laws governing veils after the constitutional court ruled that a woman was unfairly fired from a job at a private crèche for refusing to remove a headscarf. Cardinal Andre Vingt-Trois, head of the Catholic bishops conference is leading the protests against the loosening of restrictions on stem cell research. The French law, passed in 2011, only passed after restrictions demanded by the Church were introduced. These included allowing research only on imported embryos not used for in vitro fertilisation in other countries. The National Assembly and Senate have scheduled abbreviated debates on the changes in order to rush them through, the Archbishop said. In another dispute over same-sex marriage, the Church has been instrumental in organising large-scale marches in Paris to oppose the plans. Another is planned for May. Nevertheless, the Senate has this week approved the legislation. All that is required now is that the Senate approve the enabling legislation – which seems certain – and same-sex marriage will be legal in France. Some Muslims are alarmed by a new legislative proposal extending the ban on headscarves from the public to the private sector where state subsidies are made and where in some areas they replace public services. A survey showed that 84% of those polled supported the tighter rules. In a televised interview last week, President Francois Hollande appealed to the activists to respect the will of parliament as protesters stood outside the broadcasting centre demanding the withdrawal of the same-sex marriage law.
	Obama renews mandate of “faith-based council” and allows religious discrimination to continue News \| Thu, 11th Apr 2013 The Secular Coalition for America today expressed disappointment that on Friday President Barack Obama issued an executive order extending the Faith-Based Advisory Council without addressing employment discrimination among many of the faith-based organisations that receive federal funding through the programme. On the campaign trail in 2008, President Obama promised to abide by "a few basic principles" that would protect the constitutional separation of church and state in his plan for an expanded faith based initiative programme. He said, "First, if you get a federal grant, you can't use that grant money to proselytize to the people you help and you can't discriminate against them – or against the people you hire – on the basis of their religion. Second, federal dollars that go directly to churches, temples, and mosques can only be used on secular programs." "It's a huge disappointment that five years later nothing has been done to address this problem," said Edwina Rogers, executive director of the Secular Coalition for America. "It is unacceptable that religious institutions accepting taxpayer dollars are permitted to discriminate based on religious preferences with the federal funds." The Secular Coalition has called for reform and oversight of the Office of Faith Based and Neighborhood Partnerships and the agencies that it oversees for years. Government reports and hearings have documented the constitutional problems and gross abuses rampant in this programme, yet many of these organizations continue to receive federal funds used for religious discrimination in hiring, while reforms to prohibit proselytizing in these purportedly secular social service programs have been weak. In April of 2012, the Obama administration published new guidelines for organizations receiving federal funds to provide services through faith-based initiatives. In the 50-page report, the Administration detailed how organizations must separate their religious mission from their community service mission. However, the report contained little significant change to the church-government partnerships initiated by President George W. Bush that provide direct taxpayer funding to religious institutions. Rogerssaid it's time for the President to make good on his failed campaign promise. "It seems President Obama was all bark and no bite when it comes to reforming the faith based initiative,"Rogerssaid. "The Administration's decision to allow this discrimination prioritizes the concerns of religious organizations over the people these programs are intended to serve." A change in the rules governing faith-based initiatives would not require Congressional participation and could be done via executive order by the President.
	Appeal: Modernising Leicester Secular Hall News \| Thu, 11th Apr 2013 Leicester Secular Society has launched an appeal to raise funds for the modernisation of Leicester Secular Hall. Besides Conway Hall in London, the Secular Hall is the only remaining dedicated secular building in the country. The Secular Hall — a Grade II listed building — was built in 1881 and boasts a proud history of radicalism. It is still in use today, although it is urgently in need of repair and modernisation. The total needed for the first phase of the repair is £65,000. The Leicester Secular Society can contribute £25,000, which leaves £40,000 still to find. Harry Perry, president of the Leicester Secular Society, says: "As you would expect from such an unglamorous scheme, and for an organisation of our type, we are going to struggle to get support from statutory or grant-giving charities. So we are going to have to rely on donations from sympathetic individuals." You can send a cheque made payable to Leicester Secular Society, to Harry Perry at Leicester Secular Society, The Secular Hall, 75 Humberstone Gate, Leicester LE1 1WB. You can donate by credit/debit card here – where you will also find out more information about the planned upgrade. Donated funds will be held in trust until spent on the planned project (or other modernisation, repair, improvement and equipment.

Read this week's Newsline in full (PDF)

NSS Speaks Out

Keith Porteous Wood was quoted in the Sunday Times in a story about the Equality and Human Rights Commission's new guidelines for the workplace (subscription required).

The story (and quote) were subsequently taken up by the Daily Telegraph, Daily Mail, and International Business Times. Terry Sanderson was on BBC Radio Humberside talking about this. Keith was interviewed by Voice of Russia radio about it.

Terry was also on BBC Radio Sussex talking about the Girl Guide troop kicked out of a church hall because they wouldn't attend services.

Scottish spokesperson Alistair McBay was quoted in a story in Scotland on Sunday about a councillor who claims to be able to produce miracle cancer cures. The story was subsequently picked up elsewhere and Terry Sanderson was quoted on STV, in the Aberdeen Press & Journal (not online) and The Scottish Sun.

Quotes of the Week

"I find very dangerous this phenomenon, which is called feminism, because feminist organizations proclaim a pseudo-freedom of women that should in the first place be manifested outside marriage and outside the family. Man turns his sight outward, he should work, make money. While a woman is always focused inwards towards her children, her home. If this exceptionally important role of a woman is destroyed, everything will be destroyed as a consequence – family and, if you wish, the homeland."
(Patriarch Kirril of the Russian Orthodox Church, Globe & Mail)

"The strange, ungainly bellowings of Lord Carey, running around in his retirement like a bewildered elk at the Grand National, do a great deal to explain the Church of England's current problems."
(Andrew Brown, Church Times)

Essays of the Week

"You don't have to be religious or non-religious to be secular"
(Alexander Görlach, Huffington Post)

I used to be an Islamist
(Ahmad Mansoor, The Commentator)

Islam's global civil war matters to us all
(Clifford D. May, National Post)

	LibDem MP wants to separate marriage registration from religion News \| Wed, 10th Apr 2013 A Liberal Democrat MP has tabled an amendment to the proposed same-sex marriage bill proposing a complete separation of state marriage and religious weddings. Greg Mulholland, Liberal Democrat MP for Leeds North wants to repeal the 1949 Marriage Act and the 2004 Civil Partnerships Act, remove clauses in the 1973 Matrimonial Causes Act for the ending of marriages on the grounds of adultery or non-consummation, and would ban religious ceremonies from state marriages carried out by civil registrars. The amendment will face intense opposition from MPs. However, Mr Mulholland argues that separating state and religious marriage is the only way to ensure equality and freedom of religion. "The Marriage Bill neither delivers equal marriage nor adequately protects freedom of conscience," he said. "The way to deliver both is a proper separation of civil and religious marriage, so it is clear that civil recognition of relationships is a matter for the state, defined in law, and this should be the same for all couples, but at the same time then allowing belief-based organisations to marry whoever they want according to what they believe marriage to mean. "This is the liberal and the fair approach, but also the commonsensical one that would deliver equality and tolerance and would avoid some of the pitfalls of the Bill as drafted." Already speculation is rife that in the unlikely event of this amendment being accepted, it would eventually lead to the disestablishment of the Church of England. Mr Mulholland was one of seven Liberal Democrat MPs to abstain from voting on the same-sex marriage bill in February. The bill will go to a third reading in the House of Commons in the near future, before proceeding to the House of Lords. Meanwhile, in Ireland, the bishops have warned that the Church should refuse to perform the civil elements of weddings if same-sex marriage is introduced. The Church in Ireland provides the majority of marriage solemnisers in the republic. Around 4,300 out of the 5,600 on the register are Catholic priests. The issue is being considered by a Constitutional Convention as recognition of same-sex marriage would require an amendment to the Irish constitution. The constitution requires the state to guard the institution of marriage with "special care" and "protect it against attack". Over 1,000 submissions have been made on the issue to the Constitutional Convention including a 10-page written submission from the Irish hierarchy. In this document, the Bishops' Council for Marriage and Family signalled a willingness to withdraw the Church's services to solemnisers in protest. Should this happen, up to 70% of marriages could be affected. In their submission, the bishops stated: "It is important to note that in Ireland, the Church and the State co-operate closely in the solemnisation of marriages. Any change to the definition of marriage would create great difficulties and in the light of this, if there were two totally different definitions of marriage, the Church could no longer carry out the civil element." This could mean the republic would have to adopt a similar model to other European countries where Catholics would have to get married in a register office as well as taking part in a religious ceremony in church. Legal recognition for civil partnerships in Ireland was granted in 2010 and gave same-sex couples most of the rights afforded to married couples.
	NSS makes history for the future News \| Wed, 10th Apr 2013 The British Library's announcement last week that it will archive much of today's online material for future researchers has been welcomed by the National Secular Society. As part of the announcement the British Library has created a quirky list of "The Curator's 100" sites that it thinks will be of particular interest to future generations. This includes things like The NHS, the Met Office, eBay, Amazon – and the National Secular Society. The British Library describes us as "The oldest secularist campaigning organisation in the UK, now continuing its campaign online after more than a century." Terry Sanderson, president of the National Secular Society, said: "This is wonderful news, and a big compliment that the British Library should choose the NSS's site from the millions that are on the web at present." Mr Sanderson added: "We often get emails from historians and researchers asking for details of events and people who were active in the nineteenth and early twentieth century but, apart from the big stars like Bradlaugh and Foote, little has been preserved about the day-to-day activities of the NSS in those times. So much of our history has been lost, but now every detail will be there at the British Library for future researchers to find."
	Why so little openness in the establishment of these Sikh schools? Opinion \| Tue, 9th Apr 2013 Guest post by John Hunt Last month the local press reported that a Sikh free school "remains on course to open in Hounslow in September": but there has been no reporting of the secrecy and subterfuge surrounding its establishment. Attendance at the only public meeting about it in December was completely unrepresentative. Wide-ranging questions put to the organisers by the few non-Sikhs were not answered. No offer was made to supply answers later. The local paper printed nothing. In February the Department for Education alleged "wide support" for the school, but provided no evidence to support the claim. I was advised to write to the "Nishkam Trust" (the organisation behind the school), which responded: "Full demand figures and collection methods are supplied through the formal application process to the Department for Education for their assessment". Another Sikh Trust also intends to open a school this September, in Stoke Poges (near Slough). The local council discovered this only in January, from a newspaper report. The school's recruitment drive had focused not in the local area, but on Sikh communities in neighbouring Slough, Southall and Harrow. Did Nishkam use similar techniques? Is that why they refuse to disclose what support they have? After the 2001 race riots, Home Secretary David Blunkett commissioned Professor Ted Cantle to produce a report into the causes. In 2009 an updated version expressed particular concern about schools being even "partly segregated on religious grounds", observing that segregation can perpetuate disadvantage, limiting choice and aspiration (becoming a dangerous vicious circle). Later in 2009 the think-tank Ekklesia summarised an opinion poll by the Equalities and Human Rights Commission where 60% of the population considered religion more socially divisive than race, and another by YouGov, where 75% wanted all schools to teach a balanced syllabus about a wide range of religious and non-religious beliefs. This year Professor Cantle affirms that school segregation still divides communities. Problems are becoming more acute. Imprisoning children in a limited world of their own like-minded communities is a recipe for disaster. He wrote: "All public services need to reconfigure services across communities and especially to avoid targeting and separating groups in the name of cultural sensitivity ...Separate provision also completely undermines opportunities to build shared purpose and to develop empathy and understanding of others. Perhaps the most difficult of service areas is education, where local authorities ... will need ... even to merge segregated schools together". If further evidence is required, an apparently honest and well-written book by two Sikhs, (Sikhs in Britain: the making of a community, 2006, Gurharpal Singh & Darshan Singh Tatla), paints an extremely damning picture of Sikh ethos. Local papers in Stoke Poges have printed much coverage: and the council, in keen opposition, has organised a public meeting with the local MP. Hounslow Civic Centre, on the other hand, is meekly acceding to Nishkam's demands, refusing even to consider a similar meeting here, to determine public feeling about an issue on which consultation to date has been an utter sham. Nishkam also propose to open a school in Leeds in 2014. But Leeds Council learnt about this only when I approached them. I am deeply concerned that Hounslow's proposed school is being rubber stamped with no meaningful public consultation; that the Trust is ignoring bona fide public concerns; that Hounslow is refusing even to inform residents what is happening and why; and that the Department for Education, whatever their highly dubious role in this may be, are failing to ensure that the process is being managed with even lip service to elementary ethics. Democracy? Localism? Not a whiff! Clearly there are related problems in Stoke Poges and Leeds. How widespread is this across the country? How many sectarian scandals are being deliberately concealed from public view? And how and when can we ensure that local and national government take heed of Professor Cantle's urgent recommendations to avert further segregation and violence? Following the publication of this post, we received an objection from the Network of Sikh Organisations. We asked John Hunt to respond to this complaint and you can read both the complaint and John's subsequent reply here (pdf).
	Free transport to “faith schools” axed in Leicester & Bath News \| Thu, 11th Apr 2013 Planned changes to school transport have been approved by councillors. Councillors on Leicester City Council have approved changes to 'home to school' transport that will see an end to subsidies for pupils attending "faith schools" in the City. The decision — taken despite a consultation showing that most people wanted to keep the subsidies — means free transport to faith schools which are further away than a pupil's nearest school will be axed in the city from September. Councillor Vi Dempster, assistant city mayor for schools, said the council had little choice as it looked to make budget savings. She said the city council was still committed to the provision of "excellent statutory services". Meanwhile, Bath City Council agreed this week to phase out free transport to "faith schools" in Bath and north Somerset. At a meeting on Wednesday, the Council said it had no option but to end the subsidies, which were costing taxpayers £258,000 a year. Despite strong pressure from the schools and from parents who will be affected, cabinet members voted unanimously in favour of a phased withdrawal of funding over seven years. This will kick in from September 2014, but in a concession to families, siblings of those already at faith schools will still get the financial support. Councillor Dine Romero, cabinet member for early years, children and youth, said the council could not afford to keep the funding. She said: "In an ideal world and in the interests of absolute fairness I would want all children going to school free of charge. But these are times of austerity and we need to think really carefully about which discretionary services we need to continue."
	Malta seeks to revise Vatican concordat on divorce News \| Thu, 11th Apr 2013 Malta is in negotiations with the Vatican about ending the Catholic Church's influence over divorce on the island. The Maltese Government legalised divorce in 2011, but under a concordat with the Vatican, Ecclesiastical Tribunals can veto the dissolution of Catholic marriages even if such dissolutions have been agreed with the civil authorities. Now the Maltese government has sent a note verbale to the Holy See's nuncio, initiating negotiations with Vatican on revising the 1992 Church-State agreement. Under the agreement, the civil courts had to stay any proceedings for the annulment of marriages contracted in the Catholic Church if one of the spouses initiated separate proceedings for an annulment from the Roman Curia. The ecclesiastical tribunal's decision would then have to be considered final by the civil courts. The concordat was sealed by prime minister Eddie Fenech Adami and foreign minister Guido de Marco back in 1993, a year after the treaty, but since his election, Prime Minister Joseph Muscat said he would revise the agreement. Muscat has already had talks with Archbishop Paul Cremona and Auxiliary Bishop Charles Scicluna. "The Maltese government believes the civil courts must be the supreme entity in marriages so that there can be a separation of church and state. There is a similar will to have a satisfactory agreement between the government and the church," the foreign ministry said in a statement.
	IHEU calls for action on Bangladesh News \| Wed, 10th Apr 2013 Following the recent Islamist demands to introduce the death penalty for insulting religion in Bangladesh, the International Humanist and Ethical Union (IHEU) has made a call to action for all its member organisations. Its call came in response to the recent demands made the Islamist group Hefazat-e-Islam, to hang those who insult Islam. The group also called for Bangladesh's constitution to be amended so as to prevent "the infiltration of alien cultures" and to separate men and women in public (amongst other changes). Its supporters have protested against what they said were blasphemous writings by atheist bloggers - several of whom have now been arrested on grounds that they have hurt the religious sentiments of the country's Muslim majority. Whilst the Bangladeshi Prime minister, Sheikh Hasina, has stated that her government has no intention of enacting a law against blasphemy (and the likelihood of it implementing Hefazat-e-Islam's agenda as very slim), she somewhat ominously, within the context of these recent arrests, observed that under existing laws: "If anybody tried to hurt any sentiments of any religion or any religious leader, there is a law. We can take any action." IHEU has highlighted the serious threat to freedom of thought, expression and political opinion in Bangladesh. It has called upon all its members to express solidarity with the Bangladeshi bloggers and to institute a "coordinated, global response to defend the right to express religious criticism and secularist principles, and also to defend political activism." Noting the American Humanist Association's call to its members and supporters to contact the US Ambassador to Bangladesh and express their concerns, IHEU has urged individuals to contact their ambassador, in order to object to the arrests, and the threat to freedom of speech those arrests represent. It points out that if a national ambassador were to receive even a small amount of correspondence on this issue, it might be sufficient to draw their attention to it as an issue to be raised as a priority with the Bangladeshi Government. There are also online petitions that have been established, and which can be signed here.
	Religious bodies in sustained attack on French secularism News \| Wed, 10th Apr 2013 The French Government is at increasing odds with aggressive religious lobbies – particularly the Catholic Church – which are determined to undermine the nation's constitutional secularism. The Hollande administration is moving ahead with a promise to loosen limits that control embryonic stem cell research, despite heavy pressure from the Catholic bishops. The Government is also fighting a rearguard action against the Church over same-sex marriage proposals. Muslim activists are also becoming restive over the laws governing veils after the constitutional court ruled that a woman was unfairly fired from a job at a private crèche for refusing to remove a headscarf. Cardinal Andre Vingt-Trois, head of the Catholic bishops conference is leading the protests against the loosening of restrictions on stem cell research. The French law, passed in 2011, only passed after restrictions demanded by the Church were introduced. These included allowing research only on imported embryos not used for in vitro fertilisation in other countries. The National Assembly and Senate have scheduled abbreviated debates on the changes in order to rush them through, the Archbishop said. In another dispute over same-sex marriage, the Church has been instrumental in organising large-scale marches in Paris to oppose the plans. Another is planned for May. Nevertheless, the Senate has this week approved the legislation. All that is required now is that the Senate approve the enabling legislation – which seems certain – and same-sex marriage will be legal in France. Some Muslims are alarmed by a new legislative proposal extending the ban on headscarves from the public to the private sector where state subsidies are made and where in some areas they replace public services. A survey showed that 84% of those polled supported the tighter rules. In a televised interview last week, President Francois Hollande appealed to the activists to respect the will of parliament as protesters stood outside the broadcasting centre demanding the withdrawal of the same-sex marriage law.
	Obama renews mandate of “faith-based council” and allows religious discrimination to continue News \| Thu, 11th Apr 2013 The Secular Coalition for America today expressed disappointment that on Friday President Barack Obama issued an executive order extending the Faith-Based Advisory Council without addressing employment discrimination among many of the faith-based organisations that receive federal funding through the programme. On the campaign trail in 2008, President Obama promised to abide by "a few basic principles" that would protect the constitutional separation of church and state in his plan for an expanded faith based initiative programme. He said, "First, if you get a federal grant, you can't use that grant money to proselytize to the people you help and you can't discriminate against them – or against the people you hire – on the basis of their religion. Second, federal dollars that go directly to churches, temples, and mosques can only be used on secular programs." "It's a huge disappointment that five years later nothing has been done to address this problem," said Edwina Rogers, executive director of the Secular Coalition for America. "It is unacceptable that religious institutions accepting taxpayer dollars are permitted to discriminate based on religious preferences with the federal funds." The Secular Coalition has called for reform and oversight of the Office of Faith Based and Neighborhood Partnerships and the agencies that it oversees for years. Government reports and hearings have documented the constitutional problems and gross abuses rampant in this programme, yet many of these organizations continue to receive federal funds used for religious discrimination in hiring, while reforms to prohibit proselytizing in these purportedly secular social service programs have been weak. In April of 2012, the Obama administration published new guidelines for organizations receiving federal funds to provide services through faith-based initiatives. In the 50-page report, the Administration detailed how organizations must separate their religious mission from their community service mission. However, the report contained little significant change to the church-government partnerships initiated by President George W. Bush that provide direct taxpayer funding to religious institutions. Rogerssaid it's time for the President to make good on his failed campaign promise. "It seems President Obama was all bark and no bite when it comes to reforming the faith based initiative,"Rogerssaid. "The Administration's decision to allow this discrimination prioritizes the concerns of religious organizations over the people these programs are intended to serve." A change in the rules governing faith-based initiatives would not require Congressional participation and could be done via executive order by the President.
	Appeal: Modernising Leicester Secular Hall News \| Thu, 11th Apr 2013 Leicester Secular Society has launched an appeal to raise funds for the modernisation of Leicester Secular Hall. Besides Conway Hall in London, the Secular Hall is the only remaining dedicated secular building in the country. The Secular Hall — a Grade II listed building — was built in 1881 and boasts a proud history of radicalism. It is still in use today, although it is urgently in need of repair and modernisation. The total needed for the first phase of the repair is £65,000. The Leicester Secular Society can contribute £25,000, which leaves £40,000 still to find. Harry Perry, president of the Leicester Secular Society, says: "As you would expect from such an unglamorous scheme, and for an organisation of our type, we are going to struggle to get support from statutory or grant-giving charities. So we are going to have to rely on donations from sympathetic individuals." You can send a cheque made payable to Leicester Secular Society, to Harry Perry at Leicester Secular Society, The Secular Hall, 75 Humberstone Gate, Leicester LE1 1WB. You can donate by credit/debit card here – where you will also find out more information about the planned upgrade. Donated funds will be held in trust until spent on the planned project (or other modernisation, repair, improvement and equipment.

Newsline 12 April 2013

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