Norwegian TV anchorwoman discharged for wearing a Cross
Oslo, November 13, 2013
Can
a chain with a cross be a reason for dismissal from
one's office? Apparently so, if you live in Norway
and are a staff member of
NRK, a state
TV-and-radio broadcasting company, reports
La
Republica. Siv Kristin Saellmann—a popular TV
news anchorwoman in Norway—was suspended from her
job for appearing on the air with a Cross (1.4
centimetres long) on her necklace.
Some viewers - mainly members of a local Muslim community
- protested against this, claiming that "a necklace
with a Cross insults Islam" and "this symbol
does not guarantee impartiality of the TV channel".
The journalist, one of the best known and the most popular
on the Norwegian public television, was suspended and
prohibited from hosting her programs, "lest she
should be a source of discord and crimes".
This case, as the newspaper notes, is similar to the
story of Nadia Eweida, a Christian
employee of British Airways, who after seven years won
her legal battle. The European Court of Human Rights
(ECHR) recognized that the lady had been discriminated
against.
In January 2013, the ECHR passed a judgment on the cases
of four Christians from Great Britain. These dealt with
violation of the article 9 of the European Convention for
Protection of Human Rights, according to which, every
person has a right to the free expression of his/her own
opinion, to freedom of conscience and religion.
The court satisfied the claim of the former employee of
the British Airways Nadia Eweida, who had been ousted for
wearing a cross, and compelled British Airways to pay her
32,000 euros as compensation. But three other claims were
rejected.
The court ruled that the Devon and Exeter NHS Trust
Hospital was right when it demanded the nurse Shirley
Chaplin to take off her cross as it "posed a risk to
safety and hygiene". The plaintiff herself asserted
that she had lost her job following the refusal to remove
her cross.
The ECHR did not satisfy the claims of Gary McFarlane and
Lillian Ladele either. Gary McFarlane, a Christian, and a
therapist from Bristol, refused to give counsel to
homosexual couples regarding sexual relations. He was
fired for that. Lillian Ladele, a registrar for the London
borough of Islington, was subjected to a disciplinary
punishment for refusing to register same-sex civil unions.
Pravoslavie.ru