This congress supports freedom of speech and ideas in the service of human progress. We deplore all attempts to restrict the development of the Humanistrevolution and to impose orthodoxy of thought. We particularly regret the pressures and restriction put upon humanists in Yugoslavia. These have constituted a threat to the universal principle of academic freedom and have threatened to betray the basic Yugoslav principle of self-government.
This Congress is also devoted to the development of East-West co-operation, for which the interchange of personnel and ideas is essential. The inability of our fellow-humanists of the Humanist and Ethical Section of the Yugoslav Association of Philosophy in Belgrade to attend our sessions has reduced our understanding of the problems faced in Yugoslavia. The absence of contributions from leading Marxist theorists has deprived our discussions of an important dimension, and limited our exposition of the Humanist revolution.
We urge up the Government of Yugoslavia to preserve the integrity of the Department of Philosophy in the University of Belgrade and to return their passports to its members.
IHEU Congress 1974
'Yugoslav humanists (1974)', Humanists International, World Humanist Congress, Amsterdam, Netherlands, 1974