Calling all of our European Members

[scotty]

I got this in an email today. Thought you might be interested!

European Commission Green Paper

There is now an increasing interest in mental health of the EU-population, and a strong political commitment for action in this field. This is why the European Commission decided to present a Green Paper “Promoting the Mental Health of the Population. Towards a Strategy on Mental Health for the European Union”. This document outlines the relevance of mental health for some of the EU’s strategic policy objectives (prosperity, solidarity and social justice, quality of life of citizens), proposes the development of a strategy on mental health at Community-level and identifies priorities.

The European Commission invites European institutions, Governments, health professionals, stakeholders in other sectors, civil society including patient organisations, and the research community to communicate their views on this document and the questions raised in it’s section 8.

Contributions in the context of this consultation process should be sent to the Commission by 31 May 2006 in the following ways:

a) by email to mental health@cec.eu.int

b) by post to

European Commission

Directorate-general for Health and Consumer Protection

Unit C/2 Health Information

L-2920 Luxembourg

Contributions received will be published on the website unless requests not to do so have explicitly been made.

In late 2006, the Commission intends to present its analysis of the responses received together with its proposal and/or initiatives for a strategy on mental health for the EU.

A conference to launch the Green Paper was held in Luxembourg 24th October 2005 . on

Following this there will also be three thematic meetings:

1) Meeting 1: “Promotion and prevention in mental health” (fourth quarter of 2005);

2) Meeting 2: “Social inclusion and fundamental rights in mental health” (first quarter of 2006);

3) Meeting 3: “Information, data and knowledge in mental health” (second quarter of 2006).

Information about these meetings will be posted on the following website in due time http://europa.eu.int/comm/index_en.htm

11/07/2005, 16:43:57

[Delynbetter]

Blog link not working - (and make fun of me if this has already been posted. )


M2 Presswire; 11/23/2005

M2 PRESSWIRE-23 November 2005-CHURCH OF SCIENTOLOGY: Stop abuses on children in Europe and beyond(C)1994-2005 M2 COMMUNICATIONS LTD

RDATE:23112005

Appeal from UN Human Rights members, MEPs and diplomats in Brussels to celebrate the UN Universal Children's Day

Participants to an international conference titled "The abuse of Children in Europe and beyond", held in Brussels today, have unanimously launched a strong, clear-cut appeal to democratic institutions, governments and civil society - to stop any and all abuses committed against children. The conference has also signed a declaration demanding that forced drugging of children on so-called behavioural disorders be ceased immediately due to the growing evidence of harmful effects, such as suicidal tendencies and aggression - a key theme of the expert discussion panel at the end of the Universal Children's Day conference. The Conference's Declaration is being forwarded to European national governments and otherwise spread and circulated through the human rights NGO network.

Amongst the participants to the conference held at the European Human Rights Office of the Church of Scientology International were London-based Dr Iftikhar Ayaz, Member of Minority Rights Group of the United Nations Human Rights Commission (UNHRC); Dr. Roberto Cestari, Consultant of the Tuscany and Piedmont Region of Italy for Human Rights and Mental Health and president of the Citizen's Commission on Human Rights in Italy; Italian MEP Luciana Sbarbati, and UK author and psychiatrist, Sami Timimi.

Dr. Norberto Liwiski, Vice President of the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child, Dr. Liwski, also addressed the conference in Brussels via a video conference link from Buenos Aires. Dr. Liwiski gave full support to the conference and called for legislation and other measures to be brought about on the subject of child drugging in the European Union and in any countries where this is a situation.

The General Assembly of the United Nations recommended in 1954 that all countries institute a Universal Children's Day. The date of 20 November marks the day on which the Assembly adopted the Declaration of the Rights of the Child in 1959, and the Convention on the Rights of the Child in 1989.

With 192 ratifying countries, the Convention on the Rights of the Child is the most widely endorsed international human rights treaty. The UN Committee on the Rights of the Child is the body responsible for monitoring implementation of the Convention by its member countries.

In September, the Committee on the Rights of the Child expressed concerns over a recently uncovered form of abuse that is increasingly widespread in developed countries. An estimated 17 million children are being prescribed mind-altering drugs for so-called behavioural disorders despite the growing evidence of their harmful effects, such as suicidal tendencies and aggression. Last August, the European Commission issued the strongest government warning to date against child antidepressant use, based on findings by the European Medicines Agency.

"We are flagging up this new form of abuse on children because it is a serious human rights issue," said Martin Weightman, Human Rights Director of the European Office of the Church of Scientology International. "Children are being forced to take mind altering drugs stronger than some street drugs - all to "cure" a disease for which there is absolutely no scientific evidence. The extensive damage such drugging can bring about is, in many ways, comparable to forcing a child to prostitution or to go to war or exploitative labour. Today's conference fiercely opposed this abuse just as any other abuse on children."

According to UNICEF reports there are:

* 246 million children engaged in exploitative child labour

* 140 million children who have never been to school

* 300,000 child soldiers, some as young as 8

"The global community at times is morally outraged at the exploitation children endure," said Dr Iftikhar Ayaz, Member of Minority Rights Group of the United Nations Human Rights Commission in his speech. "Yet child protection remedies regularly meet with resistance at all levels of society - from governments to community leaders to parents - because child abuse occurs mostly in private and is associated with criminality and corruption. In many cases, it is privately tolerated and publicly denied."

"The medicalising of children's behaviour problems and the attempt to control their behaviour with dangerous, psychiatric medication means that the new eugenics is already with us," said Dr. Sami Timimi.

"As a scientist, a doctor, a father and a citizen," continued Dr. Timimi, "I believe we have a moral obligation to do all we can to protect our children from suffering any further damage and I urge policy makers to carry out an urgent review of practice in the area of ADHD and the use of medication for control of children's behaviour and to put in place a moratorium on further prescribing of psychiatric medication to children until such an investigation is completed. To remain silent on this issue is to betray our children."

COPY OF THE DECLARATION WILL BE SENT TO MEDIA WHO WILL REQUEST IT TO THE ABOVE MENTIONED EMAIL ADDRESS.

CONTACT: Tel: +32 2 231 1596e-mail: csiofficedir@scientology-europe.orgorTel: +44 (0)1342 318 229e-mail: g.wilson@scientology-uk.org

((M2 Communications Ltd disclaims all liability for information provided within M2 PressWIRE. Data prepared by named party/parties. Further information on M2 PressWIRE can be obtained at http://www.presswire.net on the world wide web. Inquiries to info@m2.com)).

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