Council of Australian Humanist Societies

The Council of Australian Humanist Societies (CAHS) is the national umbrella organisation for all Australian Humanist organisations. It is affiliated with the International Humanist and Ethical Union (IHEU). The official symbol of CAHS (and all member organisations) is the Happy Human.

Activities

CAHS publishes a quarterly journal, the Australian Humanist and awards the Australian Humanist of the Year (AHOY) annually and the Outstanding Humanist Achiever when warranted.

Recent winners of the Australian Humanist of the Year include Gareth Evans (1990), Robyn Williams (1993), William Hayden (1996), Philip Nitschke (1998), Peter Singer (2004), Tim Flannery (2005) and Peter Cundall (2006).

CAHS holds an annual CAHS convention, usually hosted by one of the member organisations.

CAHS hosts the Humanist Internet Discussion Group where Humanists can share their thoughts on issues of interest.

IHEU's Minimum statement on Humanism

All member organisations of the IHEU are required by IHEU bylaw 5.1 to accept [1] the IHEU Minimum statement on Humanism:

Humanism is a democratic and ethical life stance, which affirms that human beings have the right and responsibility to give meaning and shape to their own lives. It stands for the building of a more humane society through an ethic based on human and other natural values in the spirit of reason and free inquiry through human capabilities. It is not theistic, and it does not accept supernatural views of reality.

Legal status

The Australian national census categorises Humanism as "No Religion". The 16% of Australians that fall within this category include other non-theistic life stances such as atheism, agnosticism and rationalism.

In 1983, the High Court defined religion as a complex of beliefs and practices which point to a set of values and an understanding of the meaning of existence.

Related topics

• Atheist Foundation of Australia
• Human rights in Australia
• Rationalist Society of Australia
• Religion in Australia - includes Australian Bureau of Statistics census information relating to religion and belief.
• States and territories of Australia
• The Secular Party of Australia

See also

• Major world religions - Humanists, rationalists, atheists and agnostics rank third in world (combined)
• Amsterdam Declaration 2002 - the defining statement of Humanism worldwide.
• Humanism and Its Aspirations

References

• Australian Bureau of Statistics 1996 Census Dictionary - Religion category
• Australian Bureau of Statistics 2001 Census Dictionary - religion category
• Year Book Australia, 2006. Religious Affiliation section from Australian Bureau of Statistics. Much of the text of Religion in Australia is taken from here (or previous versions).

External links

• CAHS Website
• Human Rights Brief No. 3 Assessment of international law pertaining to freedom of religion and belief from Australian Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission.