First humanist conference in Malawi

September 17, 2016

Our Charity

The Association of Secular Humanism in Malawi (ASH) is holding it’s first conference this year, thanks to a grant from Humanist Society members and supporters in Scotland.

The Conference will look at the growth of Humanism, Separation of Church and State, Witchcraft based violence and Blasphemy Laws in Malawi.

Delegates at the ASH Conference in Malawi

This Conference will be the first annual meeting of Humanists in Malawi in four years. It is being part-funded by Humanist Society Scotland by a grant of £3,000 raised by its members and supporters. The grant is being used to pay for the facilitates and also to fund small travel and accommodation grants for delegates who are travelling from more rural parts of Malawi.

HSS Registered Celebrant Dr. Bob Scott will be attending and speaking at the conference. He will be joined by other speakers including George Thindwa, Executive Director of ASH; Chisomo Ngosi and Dr Wilson Jere.

Commenting from Malawi ahead of the conference, HSS Registered Celebrant Dr. Bob Scott said:

It’s a fantastic honour to be here in Lilongwe representing the Humanist Society at this important time for our colleagues in Malawi.

Humanism in Scotland has reached a tipping point this year, with over half of the population identifying as non-religious and Humanist marriage becoming the most popular belief group of marriage.

I look forward to sharing these exciting developments with our colleagues in Malawi.

As we prepare to meet, I am also mindful of the significant work that ASH has done in recent years to help combat the scourge of Witchcraft-based-violence. Much remains to be done in this area.
Dr. Bob Scott

Notes:
For further information or comment please contact Gary McLelland on gary@humanism.scot or 07813060713.

Dr Bob Scott is self-funding his travel to Malawi.

The conference will take place on Saturday 17th September at NCIC Hall in Lilongwe.

About HSS: Humanist Society Scotland seeks to represent the views of people in Scotland who wish to lead ethical and fulfilling lives guided by reason, empathy and compassion. We provide a range of non-religious ceremonies and campaign for a secular state. HSS has over 14,000 members across Scotland.