International Humanist and Ethical Union

With the adoption by the UN General Assembly ealier this month of the resolution creating the new Human Rights Council, the current final session of the now discredited Human Rights Commission has been curtailed. Instead of the normal six-week session the Commission will meet for just a few days this week to deal with transitional matters before the gavel falls for the last time.

The Danish Free Press Society has awarded its newly-instituted Free Press Prize to the Norwegian-Pakistani comedienne and satirist Shabana Rehman and IHEU President Roy Brown.

The Norwegian newspaper Aftenposten, probably the most respected daily in Norway, has published an article by Norwegian Humanist leaders. It is a stark critique of American foreign policy, treatment of prisoners, violation of human rights etc - all on an ethical and Humanist basis. The article has been signed by all secretary generals throughout the history of IHEU member organization Norwegian Humanist Association.

The latest issue of International Humanist News has been published.

We have:

• the full text,
• a PDF version with pictures and
• over 10 years' back numbers

available on this web site.

Several new articles about IHEU history have been added to the web site. They include:

• IHEU Congresses
• IHEU awards
• IHEU presidents
• IHEU officials
• IHEU biographies

Plans for a high-profile three-day event for the Nordic and Baltic countries are developing. It is now confirmed that it will be held on 10-12 November 2006, at Campus Konradsbergin in central Stockholm, Sweden. The event will be organised by IHEU member organisation Humanisterna (Swedish Humanist Association), in cooperation with the Norwegian Humanist Association, IHEU and EHF. Humanists and Humanist Organisations from the region are invited.

IHEU publishes a quarterly magazine in English: "International Humanist News" (IHN). The first issue of the annual French version, called Informations Humanistes Internationales, will be available at the end of March 2006. The objective is to provide francophone readers with a selection of articles that have been published in IHN.

The second Conference of the Humanist and Ethical Union of Kenya drew larger numbers than expected. Eight papers were presented before an audience of 104 (35 from Nairobi and Mombasa, 23 from Kisumu, 21 from Somali - Kenya and Ethiopia, 11 from Tanzania, 7 from Uganda and 7 from Rwanda and Sudan). This increase in interest was an unanticipated but pleasant surprise.

The Atheist Alliance International and SAMT (the Atheist Society of Iceland) will host the first international Freethought, Rationalist, Humanist, Skeptic meeting to be held at the top of the world, in Reykjavik, Iceland on June 24 & 25, 2006.

SAMT is coordinating the event along with three other Freethought organizations in Iceland: IHEU member organization Sidmennt (the Icelandic Ethical Humanist Association), Skeptikus, and Vantràº.