http://www.evolutionnews.org/2007/08/european_darwinists_attempt_to.html#more
European Darwinists Attempt to Criminalize Intelligent Design as a
"Threat to Human Rights"
A hallmark of tyranny is when leaders believe they are so correct that
they have the right to criminalize dissent. The Council of Europe
claims to be a leading "human rights" body in Europe, but last June
its "Committee on Culture, Science and Education" issued a report
("Committee Report") proposing a ban on intelligent design (ID) in
science classrooms, suggesting ID may pose a "threat to human rights."
Uncommon Descent has covered this issue in detail, and ARN recently
reported that the European Center for Law and Justice (ECLJ), an ID-
friendly legal group affiliated with the American Center for Law and
Justice (ACLJ), has written a Memo ("ECLJ Memo") exposing the
Committee Report's hypocrisy.
The ECLJ Memo observes that the Council of Europe's own Parliamentary
Assembly has stated, "History has proven that violations of academic
freedom . . . have always resulted in intellectual relapse, and
consequently in social and economic stagnation," and that the European
Court of Human Rights has held that "pluralism, tolerance and
broadmindedness" are requirements for democratic society. The Council
of Europe's "Committee on Culture, Science and Education" apparently
eschews these values when it comes to ID. Indeed, the Committee Report
treats Darwinian evolution like a religious dogma, where "doubt" must
be prevented through thought-control: The Committee Report asserts
"there is absolutely no doubt that evolution is a central theory for
our understanding of the Universe and of life on Earth" and thus ID
must be "combated" because "[i]t is necessary to avoid doubt entering
individuals minds" regarding evolution. The Council of Europe claims
to "to protect human rights [and] pluralist democracy," yet the ECLJ
Memo makes a powerful argument that it is the Committee Report that
threatens the values of free society:
The Committee on Culture, Science and Education presented the working
document, "Report on the Dangers of Creationism in
Education" ("Report"), on 8 June 2007, including 19 articles of a
Draft Resolution ("Resolution"). The aim of the Report is to forego
scientific discussion between the theories of evolution and
creationism, or intelligent design, to impede the educational
formation of children by restricting classroom exploration of ideas,
and effectively infringe on the rights of free exercise of expression,
religion, and education. ... Respect for pluralism and diversity are
hallmarks of a democratic society. ... The Report does not respect the
freedom of expression of teachers, researchers, and students, as
manifest in academic freedom, because it seeks to eradicate an
alternative to the Darwinian model of the origin of life, thereby
elevating the theory of evolution to scientific dogma.
(ECLJ, "Memorandum on Council of Europe Legislation, Draft Resolution
Regarding Report on "The Dangers of Creationism in Education")
The ECLJ's memo is worth reading because it exposes the hypocrisy of
the authors of the Committee Report and rightly concludes that "the
[Council of Europe's] Parliamentary Assembly should reject the
Resolution as incompatible with the goals and ideals of the Council of
Europe." Thankfully, Reuters reported that the Council of Europe
tabled a scheduled vote on the Committee Report. Perhaps there are
still true guardians of human rights and opponents of tyranny within
the Council of Europe.