Leo van Doesburg

  In the end of last year, a far-reaching resolution was adopted in the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) on the “Gender Aspects and Human Rights Implications of Pornography”. The resolution was accompanied by a report . The conclusion is clear: pornography and its industry are harmful. In the resolution, the Parliamentary Assembly condemns pornography and calls upon its members to protect human rights and gender equality, to ban public porn advertisement and block porn websites in the workplace and public institutions among others. The accompanying report extensively highlights the connection between pornography and violence against women and human trafficking; and stresses the negative effects on men, women, and particularly young people. Although some critique and concern remain, this resolution and report should put the issue of pornography back on the agenda and start a debate among politicians and policymakers to rethink and reconsider the vision on porn...

  Today is the European Day on the Protectionof Children   against Sexual Exploitation and Sexual Abuse, an initiative by the Council of Europe. This year’s European Day focuses on preventing risky behaviour by children through child self-generated sexual images and/or videos. The COVID crisis has unfortunately exacerbated the problem of child sexual abuse, as the "EU Strategy for a Most Effective Fight Against Child Sex Abuse" highlighted.   Children are spending more time than before online, possibly unsupervised. While this has allowed them to continue their studies and not fall behind in the education process, there are signs that they are at an increased risk of encountering predators.   Actions to address these problems are therefore needed. To that end, on the 9th of December, ECPM Member of the European Parliament Helmut Geuking , as co-chair of the European Parliament Intergroup on Demographic Challenges, Family-Work Balance and Youth Transitions, will ...

ECPM MEPs  expressed their concerns about the new law on religious communities that was adopted in Montenegro in the beginning of this year. In a statement , they call on the government of Montenegro to abide by and implement the recommendations of the Venice Commission     and to refrain from using violence against its citizens. It also asked the European Commission to closely monitor the performance of the government of Montenegro regarding freedom of religion, as it constitutes an essential element of the EU accession.  But what has happened in Montenegro? Why does this new law raise concerns on the Freedom of Religion in Montenegro? Read  here an analysis of my colleague Lefteris Kaloterakis. 

The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) has reaffirmed that Member States has an obligation to ensure non-discrimination in the workplace based on the grounds or religion or belief in an adopted resolution , based on the report    of Davo Stier (EPP/CD). PACE called on Member States to “promote a culture of tolerance and ‘living together' in a religiously pluralist society” , while ensuring that “the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion is respected”. The fact that freedom of religion and conscience on the workplace has been reaffirmed is a very positive development. This is in line with previous resolutions and international documents that are calling the Member States to promote reasonable accommodation. It is an "adjustment made in a system to accommodate or make an individual exception based on a proven need" . The United Nations use this term in the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities "   supporting the vi...

At the end of 2018, ECPM Member and Senator Rónán Mullen 's report in the Council of Europe on Providing Palliative Care has been adopted the end of last year. This report affirms that Palliative Care is fundamental to human dignity and a component of the human right to health. Palliative care aims at the quality of life of both patients and their families. The Council of Europe asks the Member States to recognize palliative care as a human right and fully integrate it into their health-care system and to dedicate the necessary resources to it.  The Assembly deeply regrets that on the organisation of palliative care, hundreds of thousands of people in Europe still do not have access to appropriate palliative care services and is concerned about the lack of access to appropriate pain relief leading to situations in which patients suffer for months and even years and experience avoidable painful deaths.  Furthermore, the Governments should remove all obstacles that restr...

On the 28 th of June, the report of ECPM MP and Board Member Valeriu Ghilețchi on "Striking a balance between the best interest of the child and the need to keep families together” has been adopted. As I mentioned in an earlier post , this initiative was triggered by the Bodnariu case in Norway. The report has been adopted with an enormous majority of 43 against 2 with 14 abstentions. It was very encouraging to see that during the debate , many MPs expressed their concerns about the Norwegian Child Care system agreeing that the separation of children must be only a last resort and a temporary solution. It was also impressive to note that this was also recognized by an important Norwegian MP. Although a few amendments were adopted, it did not cause very much harm to the report. ECPM also published a detailed  article on the adoption of this report.

Next week, an important  new report is expected to be voted at the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE)  with the title "Striking a balance between the best interest of the child and the need to keep families together" . Rapporteur for this report is MP Valeriu Ghiletchi from Moldova , Board Member of ECPM. The confiscation of the children of Marius and Ruth Bodnariu in Norway, a move that caused outrage in Romania and provoked a reaction in many countries, showed the need of an initiative on this issue in the Council of Europe.  This report asks Member States to uphold the right of children to be protected from all types of violence. At the same time, it asks from Members to protect the right of families to stay together and to refrain from removing children from parents against their will except in cases in which this is absolutely necessary. It was una nimously approved in the meeting of the Committee on Social Affairs, Health and Sustainable De...

On Tuesday the 11 th of October, the last debates and votes  on a controversial recommendation on surrogacy took place in the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE). This recommendation was based on a rejected resolution that asked for a legal framework for the so-called “not-for profit surrogacy”. Interestingly, the first report was rejected in its entirety  by the Committee on Social Affairs, Health and Sustainable Development (SOC) of PACE last March, forcing the rapporteur to draft another report. However, the resolution of the new report was also rejected in a Committee meeting last September.  Strangely enough, a  recommendation that was  based on the r ejected resolution was adopted. This was a mistaken decision. This became evident by  the fact that before the plenary debate, the SOC voted with a large majority two amendments (24 against 16 for the first amendment and 27 against 16 for the second) to  this controversial...

On the 15th of March, a large demonstration took place in Paris against surrogacy. The protests took place at the entrance of the building where the Health and Social Affairs Committee (SOC) of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) convened to discuss a controversial report on surrogacy. A crowd of a few hundreds of people had gathered outside the building where the meeting was taking place in Paris. Later, a few meters away, feminists from the feminist group Collectif pour le Respect de la Personne (CORP) also organized a demonstration that called the Council of Europe to say NO to all forms of surrogacy and to respect the rights of women and children. Lesbians carried a banner with the slogan “no surrogacy for heterosexuals, nor for homosexuals”.

The Council of Europe's Health Committee postpones discussion of a Report on Surrogacy Last Monday, PACE’s Committee on Social Affairs, Health and Sustainable Development decided to postpone a discussion of a draft report on Surrogacy Motherhood, “Human Rights and ethical issues related to surrogacy” . Th is is good news, b ecause there are many questions bout the pos ition of the rapporteur .  The rapporteur, Belgian senator Petra de Sutter [1] openly confirms that she is involved in surrogacy practices in the Belgian hospital where she works [2] . The motion of the resolution asked the rapporteur to actually investigate dangers that surrogacy pose to human dignity, e.g. of the woman carrier as her body and its reproductive function is commercialized. Additionally, the same resolution states that “the practice of surrogacy also disregards the rights and human dignity of the child by effectively turning the baby in question into a product” and that therefore “the Parl...

Reasonable accommodation for Christians in the work place is needed in Europe. On the 29 th of January, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) accepted with a large majority (67 against 2) the Valeriu Ghiletchi’s resolution  on “Tackling intolerance and discrimination in Europe with a special focus on Christians.”   The resolution (and it's explanatory report) stresses the intolerance and discrimination on grounds of religion or belief towards minority religious groups in Europe and people belonging to a major religious group. The report states that “ Numerous acts of hostility, violence and vandalism have been recorded in recent years against Christians and their places of worship, but these acts are often overlooked by the national authorities .” 

In a previous post I wrote about the vote that is expected to extend Euthanasia to children in Belgium. In December I participated to a debate about this issue and I was shocked but also impressed about the studies Alex Schadenberg (International Chair of the Euthanasia Prevention Coalition) showed there.  The current euthanasia legislation showed so much shortcomings (for example the number of unreported cases on euthanasia is still quite high and more analysis you find in the link below).  Moreover, legalizing a legislation also changes a mentality. Despite of the big number of unreported cases in Belgium, there are not a lot of cases that are legally persecuted. In the Netherlands, the ChristenUnie plans to organize a hearing on euthanasia because a person was euthanized because he was afraid not be able to live without his work after his pension.  In a letter signed by 160 pediatricians signed a letter calling the Belgian Members of Parliaments not to vote for...

Next week, Belgian House of Representatives (lower house) will vote on the euthanasia of young children. The bill which has already been supported in the Senate, allows to extend mercy-killing to children found to be terminally-ill. “This ‘symbolic dossier’ which has not been negotiated by the ruling coalition seems to be pushed through at a tremendous pace.  A great responsibility rests on the shoulders of the governmental Christian Democrat parties, which were surpassed by their governing partners in this issue of life and death”, Kris Vleugels, the chair of C'axent, the Belgian movement for more Christian values in politics and former vice-President of the ECPM, was quoted as saying. According to him, long term social commitment is rooted in deep moral convictions, while the contemporary culture is self-centred and indifferent to the principles of human dignity.' Kris Vleugels is also worried that the Belgian case might create a precedent that will be pu...

How can a country, that refused abortion three times by referendums, be pressured to legalize it in the name of a Convention which does not enshrine a right to abortion? In Europe, Ireland is a symbol of resistance against abortion.  Nevertheless, Ireland is on the point of giving in to the concerted pressure of the Council of Europe and the pro-abortion lobbies. Irish people have always been firmly opposed to abortion.   Since the 1980s, they have rejected the legalization of abortion three times, while affording equal constitutional protection to the life of the unborn child and that of the mother.  Abortion is therefore always prohibited, except when doctors consider it necessary to save the life of the mother .   However, the Council of Europe is at the heart of a campaign aiming to impose abortion ‘from the top’ onto people who refused it ‘from the bottom’ three times, by referendums in 1983, 1992 and 2002. (Article by: G régor Puppinck. P...

“One thing I do: forgetting what is behind and straining towards what is ahead, press on towards what is ahead, press on towards what is ahead, press on towards the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenwards in Jesus Christ” (Philippians 3:13-14) Today it is the 31 st of December. The year 2012 has almost come to a close. Usually it is a time to reflect on what happened this year, our achievements, but also our challenges ; our happy, but also our sad times. The apostle Paul teaches us, however, how we have to evaluate our times and how to look forward to the next year. He asks us not to stick to what is behind. Sometimes bad experiences or issues that hurt us can block us and stick us to the past. We remain in the past and we do not want to look forward anymore. On the other hand, previous achievements can also make us so satisfied that we do not look forward anymore. The apostle Paul asked us to strain forwards, and even to press on towards wha...

The Venice Commission is currently reviewing the Hungarian cardinal law on the Protection of Families. This law has been strongly criticised, especially for defining family as “based on the marriage of a man and a woman,” and for protecting human life since conception  and concludes that this law respects the letter and the spirit of international treaties on family and follows the legitimate aim to set foundations for the recovery of the country through the protection of life and family. The  European Centre for Law and Justice (ECLJ) submitted a Memorandum [1] to the Venice Commission demonstrating that this law respects the letter and the spirit of international treaties on family and follows the legitimate aim to set foundations for the recovery of the country through the protection of life and family. By: Grégor Puppinck, PhD, Director of the ECLJ ( http://www.eclj.org )

We welcome the adoption, by the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), of a  Resolution setting the principle that “ Euthanasia, in the sense of the intentional killing by act or omission of a dependent human being for his or her alleged benefit, must always be prohibited .” This is the first time, in the past decades, that euthanasia is so clearly rejected by a European political institution. This Resolution is a major victory for the protection of life and dignity; it comes a year after the European Court asserted that there is no right to euthanasia or assisted suicide under the European Convention. It is a new major victory for life and dignity, states Grégor Puppinck, Director of the ECLJ. It should have a direct impact on the upcoming judgement of the European Court in the case Koch v. Germany concerning the ban of assisted suicide in Germany.  More information, read more here (Source: the European Center for Law and ...

In the Council of Europe, during its next session on 23rd January 2012, the PACE (Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe) will elect the Commissioner for Human Rights . It is important that this position will be occupied by someone who shares our values. Therefore I support and recommend Pierre Yves Monette. He shares our values and we would like to motivate you to contact your Members of Parliament who are also member of the PACE to ask them to vote in favour of Pierre Yves Monette. Here is the list of your National representatives in the PACE Pierre Yves Monette   i s also supported by  the EPP  group in the  EU: The EPP President, Wilfried Martens , made public at the Marseille meeting last December that Pierre Yves Monette should be supported. Also Joseph Daul   (EPP Chair in the European parliament) supports Mr Monette and recommended him to his colleague s in the PACE . Please find here the link to the website of M...

The next day, after we picked up Roel Kuiper from the hotel, we went to the place where the conference will start: the Orthodox center for Slavic languages. After the openings prayer of Father Nicholas, advisor for external affairs and the opening of Ekaterina, I was asked to give the opening lecture. The subject I chose was human dignity as base for the Christian Social thinking. I told about different views on dignity in history and talked about the catholic and Protestant view on Human Dignity and the universal declaration on human dignity recognizing that we are created in the image and likeness of God from the conception till the natural death as base for legal charters and legislation (even as base for the universal declaration for human rights) and motivate the participants to promote the principles also in Russia. Although I thought that the lecture I gave might be long and somehow heavy in the morning, the reactions were enormous encouraging. Father Nicholai said that he was v...