VICTORIAN HUMANIST

HUMANIST NEWS

Changed Venue for HSV Public Meetings

Due to factors beyond our control our Public meetings will be held in different venues during 2002, starting in March with the Marwal Centre Marwal Ave, North Balwyn. Members are advised to read VH notices carefully for further changes.

Sunday Discussion 10 March 11am

Valerie Yule on 'Social Inventing', Late motions for CAHS Convention, and Submission to the Australian Multicultural Foundation, on the theme of Religion, Diversity and Social Cohesion. Aims of submission include:

• identify issues and challenges for a multi-faith society
• examine the role of religion in helping to construct a civil society
• analyse patterns and causes of religious discrimination and conflict
• produce resource material and suggest initiatives to facilitate inter-religious harmony

Members are encouraged to attend this informal gathering 11am - 1pm at 2 Houston Crt. Box Hill South. Bring finger food for shared lunch + this VH.

CAHS Convention 2002

The Council of Australian Humanist Societies (CAHS) Annual Convention will be held on the Gold Coast 22-24 March 2002. HSV Delegates will be Rosslyn Ives, Alan McPhate and Stephen Stuart.

Can You Help

Would you like to help the Humanist Society with a few hours of your time each month? We have existing tasks and additional ones that may interest you, such as:

• editing the VH
• writing letters and articles
• distributing Public Meeting notices
• organising a social activity
• collecting HSV mail from GPO
• photocopying VH
• helping with VH & AH mailout
• setting up the monthly meeting room

Further details ring Rosslyn Ives on 9857 9717.

Olive's Corner

The Mayor of Port Phillip, Councillor Julian Hill will dedicate a memorial to the late Senator Olive Zakharov, 1984 AHOTY in a new park near the Liardet Community Centre Bay Street Port Melbourne on Saturday 2 March. More on this in next VH.

Jazz Picnic Start to 2002

A group of ten Humanists enjoyed a pleasant picnic lunch under the trees in Canterbury Gardens on a beautiful warm sunny February afternoon. Apologies to any members who had difficulties finding us.

SUBMISSIONS REPORT

FEEDBACK

As a result of our submission to the Enquiry into Human Cloning we were called before the House of Representatives Standing Committee on Legal and Constitutional Affairs chaired by Kevin Andrews MP, to answer questions and make additional comments.

We were greatly outnumbered by representatives of religious organisations and our support for stem cell cloning (but not human cloning) was in stark contrast to the views of the majority of participants. The AMA and the Academy of Science were on 'our side'.

The recently issued report of this enquiry quotes HSV statements verbatim or in summary on several occasions, showing a secular, rational encroachment into the territory of the faiths.

SUBMISSION

In response to a call for submissions on 2002-2003-Migration and Humanitarian Programs and Associated Settlement Issues we made these points within the set terms of reference:

• It is regrettable that the Swedish system of handling asylum seekers was deemed unsuited here.
• Australia's reproduction rate falls below replacement levels. Adult migrants and those who overstayed their visits (some 60,000 illegals) make for our population growth.
• A large initially unskilled labour force could be utilised in regional areas to replace the drift of that population to the city, to carry out large scale repairs of our environmental degradation, and in large projects of transport and inland development.
• We believe that Australia can and should accept a proportion of refugees larger than the 12,000 we do now. Two decades ago the number was 20,000.
• Hungarian and Czech migrants escaping the Soviet invasion of their countries arrived here without identity papers and have integrated and contributed to our society.
• Volunteers from established ethnic communities could help with language and 'orientation' courses for the new arrivals.
• As a signatory and one of the original drafters of the Geneva Convention on the Status of Refugees Australia should be compassionate and generous to the asylum seekers. Its present harsh treatment will be seen in the future as another dark period in our history.

Halina Strnad & Howard Hodgens