National responses to terrorism, and what those responses should be, dominated the debate at the latest experts meeting of the International Religious Liberty Association.
National responses to terrorism, and what those responses should be, dominated the debate at the latest experts meeting of the International Religious Liberty Association.
Held in Leuven, Belgium, close to the European center of Brussels, the IRLA Group of Experts tackled the conflicting responses to terrorism that can often be counterproductive.
“We chose this issue because it is so relevant today,” comments Dr. Jonathan Gallagher, deputy secretary general of the IRLA. “Many countries are responding to the terror threat, and we want to make sure that religious freedom is not a casualty in all this. We believe that freedom of conscience is a vital asset to security—and that to crack down on religious expression will only destabilize society, the opposite effect to what is planned.”
The introduction to the final document, “Guiding Principles and Recommendations on Security and Religious Freedom,” states that “Religious freedom requires security, just as true security requires religious freedom.” It goes on to point out that “the two are interdependent, mutually reinforcing, not exclusive, and do not collide or conflict. Too frequently, responses to religion-based terrorism have involved efforts to enhance security at the expense of religious freedom. These responses have often proved counterproductive, and result in violations of international standards of human rights.”
Consequently, “Such violations, which diminish both security and religious freedom, must be opposed by governments, religious groups, people of faith, and all those who truly value human rights,” the document concludes. The full text will be made available online at http://www.irla.org
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The meetings, which concluded June 12, were the culmination of a year’s intensive study and dialogue that brought together experts for previous consultations in Washington, D.C., and Paris. The IRLA Group of Experts includes church leaders, experts in canon law, and academics from a wide variety of faith communities. The Seventh-day Adventist Church organized the IRLA in 1893, but its membership and leadership now reaches beyond the Adventist community. Today, the IRLA is widely recognized as one of the foremost agencies in promoting and defending international religious freedom, having recently gained “special consultative status” at the United Nations. (See ANN, May 6, 2003.)
