Rome, Italy, Nov 4, 2009 / 08:21 am
Italy’s Minister of Education, Mariastella Gelmini, has rejected the ruling by the European Court of Human Rights in favor of removing crucifixes from public schools. She stated, “Nobody, much less a European court that is steeped in ideology, will be allowed to strip our identity away.”
The court ruled the presence of crucifixes in classrooms could be a “bother” to students who practice other faiths or who are atheists and that the State should abstain from imposing beliefs in public places. “Religious neutrality should be observed in the context of public education,” the court ruled.
The case was filed before the court by an Italian mother of two boys ages 11 and 13 who attended public school from 2001-2002 in the town of Abano Terme in northeastern Italy. Crucifixes were hung in each classroom.
After losing in the Italian courts, the woman filed her suit before the European Court, which ruled in her favor and ordered that she be paid 5,000 euros in damages. Italian officials said the ruling would be appealed.