January 15, 2003

EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT JOINS COUNCIL OF EUROPE TO CRITICIZE FRENCH RELIGION LAW

The European Parliament has joined the Council of Europe in opposing special laws, such as France’s About-Picard legislation, that target religious and spiritual minorities.

A December 2002 European Parliament report, published January 2003 and titled “Basic Rights in the European Union”, describes the About-Picard law as “damaging and discriminating.” On January 15, 2003, the Parliament voted by a large majority that any actions in this field need to be conducted within the framework of usual civil and criminal laws.

The European Parliament’s report also notes that “Fifty members of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe expressed their concern about the potentially discriminatory nature of the new legislation and the possible violation of international human rights standards in a written declaration of 26 April 2001.”

On November 18, 2002, the Council of Europe asked France to reconsider the June 2001 About-Picard law, which sets minimal conditions for dissolving entire religious organizations. International human rights organizations and foreign government have condemned the legislation as dangerous and totalitarian. It has been adopted as a model by a number of Eastern European governments to advance religion laws blatantly in violation of international human rights standards.

The Council of Europe and European Parliament findings can be accessed via the websites of the European Parliament (http://www.europarl.eu.int) and the Council of Europe’s Parliamentary Assembly (http://assembly.coe.int).