The International Humanist and Ethical Union (IHEU) is an umbrella organisation embracing humanist, atheist, rationalist, secular, skeptic, freethought and Ethical Culture organisations worldwide.[1] Founded in Amsterdam in 1952, the IHEU is a democratic union of more than 100 member organizations in 40 countries.[2] Julian Huxley (the first director of UNESCO) presided over the founding Congress of the IHEU.
The IHEU's vision is one of a Humanist world; a world in which the human rights of minorities are respected and everyone is able to live a life of dignity. The mission of IHEU is to build and represent the global Humanist movement that defends human rights and promotes Humanist values worldwide. IHEU sponsors the triennial World Humanist Congress and publishes International Humanist News. The next international congress is to be held in Oxford, UK, in 2014.
In 2002, the IHEU General Assembly unanimously adopted the Amsterdam Declaration 2002[3] which represents the official defining statement of World Humanism. The Happy Human is the official symbol of the IHEU.
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All member organisations of the International Humanist and Ethical Union are required by IHEU bylaw 5.1[4] to accept the IHEU Minimum Statement on Humanism:
Humanism is a democratic and ethical life stance, which affirms that human beings have the right and responsibility to give meaning and shape to their own lives. It stands for the building of a more humane society through an ethic based on human and other natural values in the spirit of reason and free inquiry through human capabilities. It is not theistic, and it does not accept supernatural views of reality.
The long term strategic aims of the IHEU are:
The IHEU will:
Based in London, England, the IHEU is an international NGO with Special Consultative Status with the United Nations, General Consultative Status at the Council of Europe, Observer Status with the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights, and maintains operational relations with UNESCO.
Core IHEU activities are:
The IHEU and Amnesty International led the campaign to try to obtain the release of Younus Shaikh.[5]
| Years | Position | Holder(s) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1952-1975 | Chairman | Jaap van Praag | |||
| 1975-1979 | Chairman troika | Piet Thones | Mihailo Marković | Howard B. Radest | |
| 1979-1985 | Bert Schwarz | ||||
| 1985-1986 | Svetozar Stojanović | ||||
| 1986-1987 | Rob Tielman | Paul Kurtz | |||
| 1987-1990 | Levi Fragell | ||||
| 1990-1993 | Kari Vigeland | ||||
| 1993-1994 | Jane Wynne Willson | ||||
| 1994-1995 | |||||
| 1995-1996 | Vern Bullough | ||||
| 1996-1998 | President | ||||
| 1998-2003 | Levi Fragell | ||||
| 2003-2006 | Roy W Brown | ||||
| 2006- | Sonja Eggerickx | ||||
The International Humanist Award recognises outstanding achievements and contributions to the progress and defence of Humanism.
The Distinguished Service to Humanism Award recognises the contributions of Humanist activists to International Humanism and to organised Humanism.
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights endorses international human rights for Freedom of Religion and Belief.
In international law the freedom of religion and belief is also protected by Article 18 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR). This protection extends to those professing belief in no religion which includes agnostic, atheist, Humanist, and rationalist.
Also relevant are the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CROC), the Declaration on the Elimination of All Forms of Intolerance and of Discrimination Based on Religion or Belief (Religion Declaration) and the International Labour Organisation Discrimination (Employment and Occupation) Convention 1958.
To date almost five million people are members of the Union.