“Irresponsible” Vatican Must Lose UN Status

KENILWORTH, 1 APRIL 2003 — The Vatican’s latest attack on the use of condoms in the fight against AIDS is dangerous and irresponsible and will lead to the unnecessary deaths of innocent people, says the Gay and Lesbian Humanist Association (GALHA).

In a letter to United Nations General Secretary Kofi Annan, GALHA calls for the Holy See to be stripped of its privileged status at the UN before it can do any further damage in the struggle to reduce deaths from AIDS.

The Vatican’s latest onslaught comes in a 1,000-page document dealing with sexuality in which it repeats its opposition to the use of condoms in combating HIV infection.

At present the Holy See – which is, in effect, the Vatican’s government – has Non-Member State Permanent Observer status, which permits it to speak at and vote at UN conferences. No other religion has such a privileged position at the UN. It uses this position to try to enforce Catholic doctrine in UN policy, and is pushing to elevate this status even further and become a full voting member of the UN.

George Broadhead, secretary of GALHA, said: “We are shocked at this latest pronouncement from the Vatican. Not only does it condemn the use of condoms – the only known protection against HIV infection – it renews the attack on gay people in ignorant and insulting language. With HIV killing millions of young people throughout the world, we can only describe the Vatican’s attitude to condoms as grotesque. The so-called Holy See must not be allowed to promote this anti-condom dogma by the use of its totally unjustified privileged position at the United Nations. We are calling on Kofi Annan to strip the Vatican of its status and renew the fight against AIDS using a combination of straightforward sex education and condoms.”

Notes:

• The Lexicon On Ambiguous and Colloquial Terms About Family Life and Ethical Questions has been published in Italian and went on sale in Italy yesterday, Monday, 31 March 2003. Spanish, French and English editions are expected later.

• Plans for the Lexicon were originally announced by the Colombian Cardinal Alfonso López Trujillo, president of the Vatican’s Pontifical Council for the Family, on Tuesday, 22 May 2001, during a three-day extraordinary consistory (a meeting of cardinals) held at the Vatican. The council, whose remit includes sexual ethics and related matters, was created by Pope John Paul II in 1981. Trujillo has headed it since 1990.

• Read how the Vatican came to be so powerful at the United Nations here:
  http://www.seechange.org/faq.htm
  http://www.secularism.org.uk/vatican.htm