- Being of the opinion that all people should have the freedom to choose their own life style and that all people – regardless of their sexual preference – are fundamentally equal and have equal rights to a human existence;
- Being of the opinion that this right of individual self-determination and equality form the basis of democracy and should be defended against all forms of prejudice and discrimination;
- Being of the opinion that the freedom to make information freely available to all people to enable them to realise their right to self-determination and equality is of special importance;
- Being fully acquainted with the contents of Section 28 Local Government Act, henceforth referred to as Section 28, which came into force on May 24th, 1988 in the United Kingdom;
- Being of the opinion that Section 28 threatens the objective and unbiased availability of information about homosexuality in schools and to the public in general;
- Being of the opinion that Section 28 makes it possible to discriminate against the granting of public funds to organisations in which homosexuals or bisexuals are involved;
- Being of the opinion that Section 28 can be used as a justification for the continuation of discrimination against homosexual men and lesbian women;* Being of the opinion that Section 28 will lead to an increase in discrimination against homosexual men and lesbian women; * Considers Section 28 a violation of human rights as upheld by:
- The Universal Declaration of Human Rights,
- The United Nations Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, -The European Convention of Human Rights.
All of which have been co-signed by the United Kingdom, as well as a violation of numerous resolutions of the European Parliament and European Assembly; Asks its member organisations to be active in:
- Giving moral and – if possible – material support to individuals and/or organisations in the United Kingdom who directly or indirectly get into difficulties as a result of Section 28;
- Putting pressure on the national political parties for an expression of their disapproval of the British Government’s actions in relation to section 28;
- Asking organisations concerned with human rights and social matters to take notice of Section 28 and to adopt a similar attitude with respect to Section 28 as contained in this resolution.
Board of Directors 1988
NOTE: Section 28 was repealed on 21 June 2000 in Scotland and on 18 November 2003 in the rest of the UK.
Suggested academic reference
'Section 28 of the UK Local Government Act The International Humanist & Ethical Union (1988)', Humanists International, Board of Directors, 1988