Syrian crisis. It was thought by many that the Syrian refugee flow was
temporary
and such refugees would leave their countries of asylum in a matter of months.
Now, after four years of conflict, it appears likely that these refugees will
remain and the locals have to learn to live side by side with them. ? In the
camps, there areonly 40 teachers for more than 1,000 students, aged 6 to 17. ?
For different reasons, whether in their home countries or in the refugee camps,
children find an inadequate education system that jeopardizes their future.
Everywhere there is an urgent need for an education system that could absorb
these children and bring some normalcy to their lives.?
?Third, another disruptive consequence of the continuing violence that torments
the Middle East is the separation of family members, which forces many minors
to
fend for themselves. ? To prevent the further exploitation of children and to
protect them properly, an additional effort should be made to facilitate the
reunification of minors with their respective families.?
?The right to a legal identity, to an adequate education, and to a family,? the
archbishop concluded, ?are key elements and specific requirements in a
comprehensive system of protection for children. Such measuresrequire the close
collaboration of all stakeholders. Access to quality education and
psycho-social
care, together with other basic services, is extremely important. However,
children cannot benefit from such services unless they are registered at birth
and their families and communities are supported to protect them better. If the
violence does not stop and the normal pace of education and development is not
resumed, these children are at risk of becoming a lost generation.?

___________________________________________________________

 Freedoms of Religion and Expression: Adopting an Ethics of Responsibility
Vatican City, 27 March 2015 (VIS) ? On 10 March, Archbishop Silvano M. Tomasi,
Holy See Permanent Observer to the United Nations and other international
organizations in Geneva, spoke at the 28th meeting of the Council for Human
Rights. His speech, the majority of which is presented here below, emphasized
the fundamental importance of religious freedom as well as the freedom of
expression.
?The International Community is now confronted with a delicate, complex, and
urgent challenge with regard to respect for religious sensibilities and the
need
for peaceful coexistence in an ever more pluralistic world: namely, that of
establishing a fair relationship between freedom of expression and freedom of
religion. The relationship between these fundamental human rights has proven
difficult to manage and to address on either a normative or institutional
level.
On theother hand, it should be recognized ?that the open, constructive, and
respectful debate of ideas, as well as interfaith and intercultural dialogue at
the local, national, and international levels, can play a positive role in
combating religious hatred, incitement, and violence.? Failure in this effort
is
evident when an excessive and irresponsible use of freedom of expression
results
in intimidation, threats, and verbal abuse and these infringe upon freedom of
religion and can sadly lead to intolerance and violence. Likewise, the Special
Rapporteur on Freedom of Religion has focused on the violence committed ?in the
name of religion?, and on its root causes.?
?Unfortunately, violence abounds today. If genocide means any act committed
with
the intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial, or
religious group, as such, then the International Community as a whole is
certainly witnessing a sort of genocide in some regions of theworld, where the
enslavement and sale of women and children, the killing of young men, the
burning, beheading and the forcing into exile of people continue. In this
context, the Delegation of the Holy See would like to submit to the joint
reflection of the Human Rights Council that these and other unspeakable crimes
are being committed against people belonging to ancient communities simply
because their belief, social system, and culture are different from the
fundamentalist combatants of the so-called ?Islamic State? group. The appeal to
religion in order to murder people and destroy the evidence of human creativity
developed in the course of history makes the on-going atrocities even more
revulsive and damnable. An adequate response from the International Community,
which should finally put aside sectarian interests and save lives, is a moral
imperative.?
?Violence, however, does not stem from religion but from its false
interpretation or itstransformation into ideology. In addition, the same
violence can derive from the idolatry of State or of the economy, and it can be
an effect of secularization. All these phenomena tend to eliminate individual
freedom and responsibility towards others. But, violence is always an
individual?s act and a decision that implies personal responsibility. It is in
fact by adopting an ethics of responsibility that the way toward the future can
become fruitful, preventing violence and breaking the impasse between extreme
positions: one that upholds any form of freedom of expression and the other
that
rejects any criticism of a religion. ??
?Freedom of expression that is misused to wound the dignity of persons by
offending their deepest convictions sows the seeds of violence. Of course,
freedom of expression is a fundamental human right that is always to be upheld
and protected; in fact, it also implies the obligation to say in a responsible
way what a person thinksin view of the common good. ? It does not, however,
justify relegating religion to a subculture of insignificant weight or to an
acceptable easy target of ridicule and discrimination. Antireligious arguments
even in the form of irony can surely be accepted, as it is acceptable to use
irony about secularism or atheism. Criticism of religious thinking can even
help
dismantle various extremisms. But what can justify gratuitous insults and
spiteful derision of the religious feelings and convictions of others who are,
after all, equal in dignity? Can we make fun of the cultural identity of a
person, of the colour of his skin, of the belief of his heart? A ?right to
offend? does not exist. ??
?Several mutually interdependent issues like freedom of religion, freedom of
expression, religious intolerance, and violence in the name of religion come
together in the concrete situations the world faces today. The way forward
seems
to be the adoption of acomprehensive approach that would consider these issues
together in domestic legislation and deal with them in such a way that they may
facilitate a peaceful coexistence based on the respect of the inherent human
dignity and rights of every person. While opting to be on the side of freedom,
the consequences of its exercise cannot be ignored and they should respect this
dignity and, thus, build a more humane and more brotherly global society.?

___________________________________________________________

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