A Secular State Protects A Pluralist Society – Contents

In July 2019 Atheist Ireland took part in a meeting of the Dialogue Process between the Government,  Churches, and Non-Confessional Organisations in Ireland.

This page links to the contents of Atheist Ireland’s policy document submitted to the Irish Government as part of this process.

Contents

1.1 Summary of our Contributions

1.2 Contribution on Effective Structured Dialogue

1.3 Contribution on Inclusive and Diverse Communities

1.4 Contribution on Education

1.5 Responses to Questions on Feedback Form

2.1 Why It is Important To Have Underlying Principles

2.1 The Six Principles That Atheist Ireland Proposed

2.3 The Dialogue Process Must Have a Neutral Name

2.4 Secularism Means State Neutrality Between Beliefs

2.5 We Need a Secular State to Protect a Pluralist Society

2.6 Secularism Brings Together Atheists and Religious People

2.7 People Have Rights, Beliefs Do Not

2.8 People Have a Human Right to Not Respect Beliefs

2.9 Individual People, Not Majorities, Have Human Rights

2.10 This Process Should Treat Everybody Equally

3.1 Atheist Ireland Promotes Ethical Secularism

3.2 The Word ‘Ethical’ in Ethical Secularism

3.3 We Promote Internationally Agreed Human Rights

3.4 We Promote Fair and Just Societies

3.5 Our Alliance with Evangelicals and Ahmadiyya Muslims

3.6 Secularism Correlates With Aspects of a Just Society

3.7 The People Have Moved On, The State Must Catch Up

4.1 The Underlying Problem Is Multiple Patronage and Ethos

4.2 The State Has a Duty to Respect the Rights of All Parents

4.3 The State Ignores Its Duty to Respect the Rights of All Parents

4.4 The Right to Respect Includes a Negative and a Positive Right

4.5 How the State Helps Religious But Not Minority Belief Parents

4.6 The State Must Rebalance Its Approach to These Rights

4.7 Constitutional Conditions for State Aid to Schools

4.8 What the Constitution Review Group Said in 1995

4.9 The Right to Not Attend the NCCA Religious Education Class

4.10 The Right to an Alternative Subject to the NCCA RE Class

4.11 The Effect of the 1998 Ruling on Denominational Schools

4.12 Ethos May Influence But Only ‘To Some Degree’

4.13 The State Cannot Absolve Itself of Legal Responsibility

4.14   European Court Case-Law Guide on the Right to Education

4.15 European Court Folgero v Norway 2007

4.16 The Right to Objective Sex Education

4.17 The Catholic Bishops and RSE

4.18 The Rights of Atheist and Minority Faith Teachers

5.1 Religious Oaths in the Constitution

5.2 Amending the Civil Registration Act

5.3 Strengthening the Standards in Public Office Law

5.4 The Census Figures on Religion are Unreliable