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International Humanist and Ethical Union 1952-2002 Copyright © 2002 by De Tijdstroom uitgeverij. Republished at www.iheu.org with permission. Humanistics Library Copyright © 2002 by De Tijdstroom uitgeverij. Republished at www.iheu.org with permission. Bert Gasenbeek and Babu Gogineni (eds.) International Humanist and Ethical Union 1952-2002 Past, present and future De Tijdstroom uitgeverij, Utrecht Copyright © 2002 by De Tijdstroom uitgeverij. Republished at www.iheu.org with permission. Copyright © 2002 by De Tijdstroom uitgeverij. Cover design: Cees Brake bNO, Enschede. Front cover photograph: ‘Voyage vers l’infini’, by Etoundi Essamba (1984). Cartoons: Mr. Mohan (India). All rights reserved, including those of translation into foreign languages. Printed in the Netherlands. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any form—by photo- print, microfilm, or any other means—or transmitted or translated into a machine language without prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews. For information, contact De Tijdstroom uitgeverij BV, Asschatterweg 44, 3831 JW Leusden, the Netherlands, [email protected]. isbn 90 5898 041 3 nur 730, 740 Copyright © 2002 by De Tijdstroom uitgeverij. Republished at www.iheu.org with permission. Contents Preface 7 Humanism for the world. The IHEU in a nutshell 9 Babu Gogineni Past From theory to practice—a history of IHEU 1952-2002 15 Hans van Deukeren 1850-1952: The road to the founding congress 16 1952-1962: Years of construction 28 1962-1975: High expectations, lean years 40 1975-1989: From imaginative consolidation to bright vistas 61 1989-2002: Clashes and resurrection 79 Conclusion 102 Sources and suggestions for further reading 104 Present Humanism and ketchup, or the future of Humanism 106 Babu Gogineni The future of international Humanism and the IHEU 112 Levi Fragell Future How to grow an elephant? 122 Andrzej Dominiczak Copyright © 2002 by De Tijdstroom uitgeverij. Republished at www.iheu.org with permission. Sticking points: a response to the future of Humanism 127 Shirley Dent Humanism in a humane world 130 Marc Campine Humanism: a social approach 135 Hugo Estrella Organizing Humanism 138 Stephanie Kirmer Reaching out to the world 141 Norm Allen Humanism in action 145 Vikas Gora Copyright © 2002 by De Tijdstroom uitgeverij. Republished at www.iheu.org with permission. Preface When an organization celebrates its fiftieth anniversary, there is good reason to look back and to look forward. This is what the staff of the Humanistisch Archief (the Humanist Archives) in Utrecht, the Netherlands, thought two years ago, when they were appointed the official keeper of the archives of the International Humanist and Ethical Union (iheu). The iheu, the world federation of human- ist, rationalist, secular, atheist and ethical culture organizations founded in 1952, enthusiastically welcomed their idea. Would it not be an idea to describe the iheu’s fifty years of history in a book? And would not such a publication also gain in value by complementing its his- torical account by a comment on iheu and world Humanism today? So we set about circulating statements by two iheu leaders and inviting some young hu- manists from around the world to react to their ideas, and to discuss their own views of the future of Humanism. As iheu would celebrate its anniversary with a jubilee congress in the Netherlands, where it had been founded, we saw this also as a nice occasion to publicly present the book. We hope that this publication captures the vision and enthusiasm of the found- ing fathers, the leaders, the volunteers and professionals of a unique organiza- tion, and that it also provides some stimulating perspectives for the future of In- ternational Humanism. We hope you will enjoy the result of this co-production. Bert Gasenbeek* Babu Gogineni+ * Bert Gasenbeek (1953, the Netherlands) obtained a ma at the University of Amsterdam. He is Managing Director of the Humanist Archives and the Library of the University for Humanistics. He has published on various topics from the history of humanism. E-mail: [email protected] + Babu Gogineni (1968, India) is a former French language teacher at the Alliance Française of Hyderabad. He was Joint Secretary of the Indian Radical Humanist Association and Trustee of the Indian Renaissance Institute. He co-edited the books Rationalist Essays and The Humanist Way. E-mail: [email protected] Copyright © 2002 by De Tijdstroom uitgeverij. Republished at www.iheu.org with permission. Copyright © 2002 by De Tijdstroom uitgeverij. Republished at www.iheu.org with permission. Humanism for the world The IHEU in a nutshell Babu Gogineni The humanist way As a life stance rooted in rational thinking, modern Humanism provides a way of understanding our universe in naturalistic rather than in supernatural terms. It offers men and women, both as individuals and as members of society, a secu- lar ethics grounded in human values. Drawing inspiration from their rationalist and freethinking heritage, Human- ists reject absolute authorities and revealed wisdom. Humanists consider hu- man experience to be the only source of knowledge and ethics. Humanists be- lieve in intellectual integrity, and do not allow custom to replace conscience. Humanists promote free inquiry, which is the basis of the scientific spirit. As a living philosophy, Humanism constantly enriches itself with the progress of knowledge. Guided by the spirit of human solidarity, Humanists are committed to tolerant pluralism and human rights. As Humanism is also a philosophy of human free- dom, Humanists aim for a social order in which individual freedom and dignity, social justice, fundamental rights and the rule of civilised law are protected. Hu- manists continuously explore ways of extending responsible freedom and happi- ness in our increasingly complex world. The social ideal of Humanism is the spread of democratic values resulting in comprehensive social, political and economic democracy. Humanists believe that this can be achieved only with the strength of humanity’s own moral and intellectual resources. Humanism seeks to be a modern, cosmopolitan and democratic alternative to traditional religion and to authoritarian and other oppressive social attitudes. The humanist world Historically, the Humanist tradition has its intellectual roots in ancient China, India, Greece, Rome and Renaissance and Enlightenment Europe. Humanist (humanist, ethical culture, rationalist, secularist or atheist) organizations, how- ever, are a relatively recent phenomenon. Humanist groups are cultural organi- zations working on an educational or non-party political basis to translate Hu- manist aspirations into practical actions. In modern society, these organizations Copyright © 2002 by De Tijdstroom uitgeverij. Republished at www.iheu.org with permission. 10 International Humanist and Ethical Union 1952-2002 International Humanist and Ethical Union The IHEU is the world federation of humanist organizations: the sole world umbrella orga- nization embracing humanist, atheist, rationalist, secularist, ethical cultural and free- thought organizations. Mission The mission of IHEU is: • to bring into active association groups and individuals throughout the world interested in promoting humanism and humanist ethics; • to promote humanism internationally; • to represent the world humanist movement in international fora; and • to assist in the development of humanist organizations world-wide. Aims The long term aims of IHEU are: • to promote Humanism as a non-theistic life stance throughout the world; • to promote the identity of Humanism, including the name and symbol of Humanism; • to promote the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Values as a moral charter for the world; • to promote the humanist perspective within international organizations and the inter- national community; • to strengthen organized Humanism in every part of the world; • to build a strong and effective global organization. Activities The IHEU is currently a small organization which needs to consolidate its current activities to make them effective before being able to expand its range of activities and increase its visibility. Currently the IHEU activities are: • international congresses; • support for Humanist groups in developing countries; • participation in international and regional bodies to further humanist goals; • policy formulation; • communications: organizing campaigns, publications, website and e-news; • fundraising. [Source: IHEU Strategic plan 2002-2006, November 28, 2001] also provide a community for those who find meaning and value in life without the aid of traditional religions or gods. There are nearly a hundred Humanist groups flourishing in nearly forty coun- tries, from Nepal to Peru, from Slovakia to Indonesia, from Ghana to New Zea- land. All these groups are engaged in fulfilling their primary task of keeping the human-centered scientific outlook alive. Humanist groups provide criticism of dogmatic religious claims, reject authoritarianism in all aspects of life, cultivate the use of critical intelligence, develop ethical values appropriate to the present human condition, encourage the ideals of tolerance and dissent, and the negotia- tion of differences by rational means. Copyright © 2002 by De Tijdstroom uitgeverij. Republished at www.iheu.org with permission. Humanism for the world 11 To achieve their goals, Humanist groups publish literature, contribute articles
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