By Bruno Waterfield - 18th November 2004
MEPs sought “conscience control” over Rocco Buttiglione and then rejected him as EU justice chief when he refused to submit, the Italian Europe minister has told EUpolitix.com.
Buttiglione outraged MEPs on the European Parliament’s justice and civil liberties committee with his orthodox Catholic views on homosexuality.
The row over his comments that gay sex may be a sin but should not be a crime sparked a major EU row, triggered a European Commission reshuffle and has recast parliament’s powers.
The Italian minister argues that his resignation and the “scandal” over his opinions represent a ‘politically correct’ policy which rules religious belief a thought crime.
“The vote of the European Parliament’s liberties committee implies that there is a kind of policy of conscience. What they want is not the society of the reciprocal recognition of freedom, what they want is a society where there is a policy of conscience,” he told this website.
“If you do not have the moral views that they think fit then you are unfit and there is a scandal. They wanted to control my conscience and I think that is infamous.”
Buttiglione believes that unlike other religious commissioners, such as Romano Prodi, he fell victim to an unholy coalition of powerful Brussels lobbies.
“I think they had to deal with a different parliament in which some powerful lobbies were less powerful than they are today,” he said.
“There is an anti-Italian lobby, there is an anti-Christian lobby and there is a lesbian and homosexual lobby. They have all organised together.”
The Italian, with intellectual links to religious campaigners in the US, suggests that MEPs may be going against the tide of an EU ‘moral majority’.
“It is very moving to consider how many people called me and the extent of the popular support I received. And I think that now public opinion starts to understand, there is a change of mood in Great Britain, in Germany, in Spain in Poland,” he said.
“There was an act of discrimination against a European citizen because of his religious beliefs.”
“I shall not underline now the fact that this European citizen is a Christian, and this offends Christians. It is not only Christians but also Jews and Muslims – I received the solidarity of so many Jews and Muslims.”
Mainstream American politicians – including the EU-friendly Kerry – hold similar views to Buttiglione – a reality, he claims, MEPs do not understand.
“If George W Bush had appeared in front of the parliament committee, he would have been rejected. And let me add if John Kerry had appeared in front of the same committee, with the same questions and the same atmosphere, he would have been rejected too,” he said.
“John Kerry believes abortion is a moral evil but should not be forbidden. And he is against gay marriage.”
But the Italian, who has launched an ecumenical free speech campaign for religious citizens, predicts that one day will be judgement day.
“The justice that is due to Buttiglione remains undone, some day we will see justice – perhaps only on doomsday,” he told this website.
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