Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Guadalajara (Fides Service) - From 27 to 29 January a World Ethics Forum was held in Mexico (see Fides 10/12/2005) to promote ethics as the basis for behaviour in national and international public life. The Forum was held in five different cities at the same time on various themes: “Family and Life” (Guadalajara); “Politics and Participation” (Cuernavaca); “Youth and Future Challenges” (Guanajuato); “Education, Culture and Ecology” (Puebla) and “Means of social communications” (Querétaro). Each forum produced conclusions indicating priorities. According to Eduardo Hertfelder, president of the Spanish Family Policy Institute who took part in the forum on “Family and Life”, the meeting marked a awakening of an unprecedented global social movement of people and organisations which have the human person and human dignity as the centre of their objectives .
The forum on “Politics and Participation” underlined that “all political activity must have an essential ethical dimension” and therefore “any law or public policy which threatens human right or is essentially contrary to universal ethic principles has no legitimacy even if approved with a democratic vote and legal formalities”. The participants called for a new culture of work based on the dignity of the person and of human work, cooperation, respect, honesty, austerity and saving.
The forum on “Family and Life” stressed the need for family policies to protect human life from the moment of conception, promote laws to support marriage between a man and a woman, oppose adoption on the part of same sex couples, reiterate the primary right of parents to decide about their children’s education, stop pornography with proper legislation and see the law is applied, encourage governments and international bodies to proclaim the Family “Patrimony of Humanity ”.
The Forum on “Education, culture and ecology” underlined that the family is the basic cell of society and a school of virtue, civil conduct and solidarity. "The way to guarantee social unity is to strengthen the family ". The Forum on “Youth” said participation of youth must be responsible; the human person unique has an irreplaceable intrinsic value which must be respected from conception to natural death; healthcare policies must respect the dignity of the person; development must be sustained by a culture based on ethics and human dignity and lead to policies and activity which promote integral development of every person.
The Forum on “Means of Social communications” said since “communication is an eminently human activity it must include ethical considerations”. The means of communications may not be used to “generate insecurity, promote violence, impose messages, violate human dignity or honour, manipulate or alter facts for political or economic gain, promote false understandings of the person, sexual abuse, praise vice”. (RG) (Agenzia Fides 9/2/2006 - righe 39, parole 516)
