Atheist Ireland | August 2014

31/08/2014 Secular Sunday

Secular Sunday #140 – Terms and Conditions

This week’s Secular Sunday can be found here. To avoid missing out, sign up here to receive Secular Sunday by email.

28/08/2014 Andrew D

Another school year and another 9 million of state funding to pay for Chaplains in schools.

Ireland funds School Chaplains and it costs the taxpayer 9 million a year. This funding is meant to help parents with the religious education of their children in the general school environment of some publicly funded second level schools. The 9 million is allocated to Chaplains in Community schools and ...

24/08/2014 Secular Sunday

Secular Sunday #139 – The Return

This week’s Secular Sunday can be found here. To avoid missing out, sign up here to receive Secular Sunday by email.

17/08/2014 Secular Sunday

Secular Sunday 138 – Don't panic.

This week’s Secular Sunday can be found here. To avoid missing out, sign up here to receive Secular Sunday by email.

10/08/2014 Secular Sunday

Secular Sunday #137 – Be gentle with me.

This week’s Secular Sunday can be found here. To avoid missing out, sign up here to receive Secular Sunday by email.

09/08/2014 Andrew D

How Irish law effectively prohibits non-denominational secular schools based on human rights

Irish law effectively prohibits non-denominational secular schools based on human rights, despite the Irish Government telling the UN Human Rights Committee last month that there are no obstacles to establishing such schools in Ireland. The Government did outline two requirements to the UN, that the Government seemingly doesn't consider to ...

05/08/2014 Michael Nugent

Pictures of Atheist Ireland briefing the UN Human Rights Committee in Geneva

Here are some pictures of Atheist Ireland and Alison Mawhinny, along with other Irish NGOs, briefing the UN Human Rights Committee at the formal and informal sessions in Geneva. Alison is an independent academic who worked with Atheist Ireland on Freedom of Religion issues. The pictures are from the Centre ...

03/08/2014 Andrew D

Children have a human right to a neutral studying environment, even in denominational schools

Last month Ireland appeared before the UN Human Rights Committee in Geneva under the International Covenant on Civil & Political Rights (ICCPR). Every five years the UN questions Ireland in relation to their human rights obligations under the Covenant. In relation to the right to freedom of conscience and the ...

03/08/2014 Andrew D

Educate Together is undermining the duty of the Irish State to provide non-denominational schools

Educate Together has made two statements recently that undermine the duty of the Irish Government to provide secular education though new non-denominational schools, as required by the UN Human Rights Committee. Educate Together is doing this by blurring the distinction between multi-denominational schools (which Educate Together schools are) and non-denominational ...

03/08/2014 Michael Nugent

The new Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission should be mandated to monitor ICCPR rights

This is Yuval Shany of the UN Human Rights Committee, during the Committee's questioning of Ireland in Geneva in July. He is challenging the Irish State's reasons for not mandating the new Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission to monitor human rights under the International Covenant on Civil and Political ...