Pope to CoE Religious Officials v. Prisons Radicalisation:Uphold Human Dignity+Transform Hearts+Bars

*Strasbourg/Angelo Marcopolo/- European Christian Leaders and Experts from various confessions, joined by a Group of Muslim representatives, started with a message from Pope Francis, on "UpHolding Human Dignity" and "Transforming Hearts" and "Bars", a 3 Day Conference in Strasbourg, under the auspices of the CoE, on how to tackle the currently "Hot" issue of "Radicalisation in Prisons", which obviously involves both Human Rights and Security matters vis a vis Violent Terrorism, as well as Debates on the role of Religion in Society Today.

By "Directing their Thoughts and Prayer to the Father, each time they Cross the Threshold of their Cell", this could "Signify for them their Passage through the Holy Door, because the Mercy of God is Able to Transform Hearts, and .. to Transform Bars into an Experience of Freedom", reads this Message from the Pope,  as send to Strasbourg by Vatican's Secretary of State, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, who referred also to a Letter related to this "Jubilee Year of Mercy" (2016), regarding which, Pope Francis "Thanks Prison Chaplains for Assisting Prisoners to Celebrate (it) ..; Fruitfully", while a Special Event for them is prepared in Rome on November.

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The Head of the European Bishops' Conference, (which extends throughout all the European Continent), Mgr Duarte da Cuhna, observed  from the outset that some Conclusions on these Issues  "may have Political Consequences" as well.  It's a Fact that Radicalisation led lately to various Violent Acts of some Extremists, which provoked legitimate Concerns to all Citizens,  and, therefore, concern also the Christian Church.

This a "Complex Question", he warned.  Recently, a kind of "Religious Radicalisation" emerged, provoking also a "Radical Laicism" from another side. It's better to avoid both, mainly by Reflecting on anOther concept of Society, he advised.

At the Heart of the matter is "also" the "Human Person", "not only as an Individual, but with All its Human Relations". "For us", "Religion is Not about Violence, but about God's Regard to a Human Person", which Valorizes him and his Freedom. Therefore, instead of some's attempts to Exclude Religion from the Public Space, on the Contrary, it should be adequately Developed, he stressed.

In particular, f.ex. Prisons' Chaplains can Help "Create Human Relations and Bridges between Persons", Mgr da Cuhna pointed out, concluding by expressing his "Hope" that the Conclusions of this joint PanEuropean Conference together with the CoE would observe that an adequate Religious Experience is Indispensable also in order to help Avoid Violence and Radicalisation Today.

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More particularly, speaking on behalf of the Experienced International Commission of Catholic "Prison Pastoral Care", its President, Father Brian Gowans, from Scotland, observed that in a Recent meeting of COE Member Countries' Ministers of Justice in Bucarest (Romania), most of them Acknowledged the "Need to have More Prisons' Chaplains" in real practice. Indeed, instead of Seeing Chaplains as Part of the Problem, on the Contrary, they should become "Part of the Solution", he stressed.
One among the things that Chaplains can do, is to Focus "on Truth", and on the Various Aspects of Truth, which Help to Reach God, and, by the right "Consciousness", help bring some "Light" in the life of Prisoners, so that they can "Trust" us, he pointed out.

In the Past, f.ex. during the 1970ies, due to the previous Problems about Terrorism etc. either in relation with IRA or some other subsidiary groups (in Northern Ireland), Catholics often were seen with "Suspicion" then inside Great Britain, almost as Muslims might feel Today in Europe, he speculated. But, Today, "it's Only 1" among CoE's 47 Member Countries' Minsiters of Justice who claimed that the Church might be "Part of the Problem". Most felt that, Opposite to that, we should all together Look for a Solution, and become Parts of that Solution : Both Bishops, Chaplains, Jurists, Counter-Terrorism Officials, etc, he concluded.

Even in my comparatively Small Country, Scotland, there are, Today, many People in Prisons who need some kind of Care, which could also help avoid Radicalisation, President Gowans said afterwards to "Eurofora".

Christian Chaplains can Help create useful Personal Contacts and Trust with Inmates, even of Muslim Religion, both by adequately Cooperating with Imams, and by Speaking to Prisoners and contributing to provide them with various Practical kinds of Help to address several everyday matters that they need to settle, the Experienced ICCPPC Head told us.

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ECHR's EuroJudge Vincent de Gaetano, who has already had a Long and Multifacet Carreer, building useful relevant Experience not only as Judge, but even as former Attorney General, dealing also with various Criminal cases, pursued with a very Long and Interesting Analysis, as Keynote Speaker, mainly Focused on Prisoners' Human Rights :

Despite the Prison sentence that they are serving, Inmates, according to ECHR's Case-Law, "at least, they should Not be Deprived from their Human Dignity, also because, if they are deprived even from that, then they Risk to be Attracted by Extremists" who push "Radicalisation", the EuroJudge Warned in substance.
As for the part often attributed Today to "Religion" vis a vis some new kinds of Radicalisation, in fact, most of the times, "Religion is just a Symptom of Underlying Problems", he advanced. "One of these Problems could be related to the way that some People are sometimes Ill-Treated, but they don't have the means to tackle that in an adequate way, and there is where CoE's Principles could help.

In Fact, CoE's PanEuropean Convention on Human Rights, doesn't deal with Radicalisation, not even with Prisoners, as such. F.ex., the Term "Imprisonment" is used only 1 time, about the Prohibition of Prison sentences for Debt, (Article 1 of Protocol 4 to that Convention). And the term "Detention" is met Twice in the Prohibition of Slavery and Forced Work, (Article 4), as well as Many Times in the Article 5 about Personal Liberty, he observed.

Indeed, in the Past, we didn't have a real Experience of Radicalisation in Europe, Gaetano reminded, except around "Early 1980ies", Gaetano (who comes from Malta) reminded, at least as far as he was personaly concerned. F.ex., I had to deal with a case of an Airplane from Egypt, Hijacked to Cyprus, which ended up to Malta, whose Authorities refused to give assault, and left it to the hands of the Egyptian Authorities, resultin in a Mess, from which remained only 1 Hijacker, who was cought and prosecuted, pleaded Guilty and was sentenced to Prison. When I Visited him in that Jail, I was surprized to find out that he was "Fascinated by 1 Person : An Old Lady aged 60 or 70 years, a Nun, with whom he spend Hours Talking !"  However, he also Warned her : - "I Respect you, but if you were American, I would Kill you !"...
During our First Experience with Radicalisation, from Late 1960ies to 1970ies, f.ex. in Italy, those Problems of "Political Radicalisation, had Nothing to do with Religion", he reminded.

At the Same Time, approximatively "up to the Middle of 1980ies", ECHR's Case Law avout the Conditions of Detention, didn't yet have not even 1 known case where it would have found an "Inhuman or Degrading Treatment" of Prisoners;. It's only after "Late 1980ies", (i.e. after the Fall of Berlin Wall, when the ReUnification of Europe arrived to the LimeLights), when  the CoE set up the "Commitee to Prevent Torture" (CPT), and issues PanEuropean Guidelines against inhuman and/or Degrading Treatments, that ECHR really Started to deal with such kind of issues more actively.

Thus, even without explicite references to the "Human Dignity", ("unlike the -subsequent- EU's Charter of Rights, which speaks about Human Dignity from its very 1st Article"), ECHR started to Build a relevant Case Law mainly around Article 3 of the PanEurropean Convention on Human Rights, which Prohibits Torture and/or Inhuman/Degrading Treatments, extending that not only to Member States' Obligation to "Refrain" from Ill-Treatment, but also to their Positive Obligation to Take Steps to Protect f.ex. the Safety, and the Health, etc. of Prisoners. In parallel, CPT developed relevant Standards, f.ex. against OverCrowding (i.e. at least 4 Square Meters for each Prisoner), Lack of outdoor Exercice, Solitary Confinement, etc), Gaetano pointed out. Moreover,  in addition to those "Substantial" Violations of Article 3, ECHR recognized also certain "Procedural" Violations, particularly when it couldn't have yet enough Evidence of ill-treatment, while a Member State had "Not Investigated Adequatly" a serious affair. ECHR also condemned States' attempts to search Evidence of Terrorism by Torturing Witnesses, on the basis of Article 6 about the Human Right to "Fair Trial", he noted.

Already as early as at the beginning of the 2Oth Century, a British Politician as Winston Churchil, speaking of Prisoners, had adopted an Attitude Similar to that of the ECHR Today, stressing that this would be Better for Great Britain and for all Europe, EuroJudge Gaetano found, citting also Russian Writer "Dostoyevski"'s moto that "the Level of Civilisation in a Country could be measured by the Way it Treats its Prisoners".

Replying, afterwards, to various Questions, f.ex., on the "Definition of Radicalisation" according to ECHR's principles, he observed that the PanEuropean Court wasn't called to define Radicalisation as such, but this might be "Measured in terms of Dangerosity", f.ex. in order to give or deny Bail, etc. However, this had to be Assessed Not by a Judge, but by Other Competent Experts". Nevertheless, Gaetano didn't really Reply another relevant Question by another Participant, concerning the relation of Radicalisation with "Ideology", when, f.ex., some among Jihadist Prisoners may believe that Aggressing "Non Believers" would be "Halal" (i.e. Allowed), reminding, mutatis-mutandis, a similar kind of Dangerous Terrorist Ideology as that of NAZIsm in the Past, as criticaly denounced an Expert from Austria, claiming that he refered to realy existing cases.

However, speaking later to" Eurofora", EuroJudge Gaetano didn't think that ECHR might extend its above mentioned Case Law about Member States' "Positive" Obligations also regarding the current Need to Protect both Prisoners themselves and other Citizens as well as the Society at large from Risks for some Extremist Terrorist Networks to attempt to "Exploit" a Fragile and Frustrating situation in Jails, including eventual ill-treatments of detainees, in order to "Manipulate" them, and push them to Serve their Deadly purposes afterwards : Already, ECHR faces a lot of Criticism, (by some Governments, etc) for its Case Law on States' existing "Positive Obligations", so that I don't think that it might Now try to Advance Further in this regard, as he carefuly told us, (but, apparently, without excluding a priori similar developments at another stage in the Future).

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("DraftNews", as already send to "Eurofora"s Subscribers/Donors, earlier. A more accurate, full Final Version might be Published asap).

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