Tuesday, March 15, 2011

European court to rule this month on school crucifix ban

The European Court of Human Rights said Thursday it would make a definitive ruling on March 18 on the display of crucifixes in Italian schools, in a case that could affect all of Europe.

The court ruled in November 2009 that the display of crucifixes in Italian schools breached the rights of non-Catholic families, drawing howls of anger from Church and political leaders in the staunchly Roman Catholic country.

Rome appealed the ruling in January 2010 and a new hearing was held in June.

The court's final ruling could mean that religious symbols would be banned in all schools in the Council of Europe's 47 member states.

The case was brought by Italian mother Soile Lautsi, whose two children attended a state school near Venice.

She was unhappy crucifixes were present in every classroom and complained to the school.

After education chiefs refused to remove the crosses, she spent several years fighting the decision through the Italian courts before taking the case to the Strasbourg court.

Catholicism was the state religion in Italy until 1984, and a 1920s ruling ordering the presence of crucifixes in schools was never abolished.

Pope Benedict XVI said in December he "appreciated" the Italian government's support in defending the right to display crucifixes in public schools, saying the crucifix "speaks to all men of goodwill and as such is not a discriminatory item."

Italy was backed in the appeal by a dozen other countries that included Armenia, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Greece, Lithuania, Malta and Russia.