The resolution recognizes the importance of evolutionary theory in the modern world -- "Denying it could have serious consequences for the development of our societies. Advances in medical research with the aim of effectively combating infectious diseases such as AIDS are impossible if every principle of evolution is denied. One cannot be fully aware of the risks involved in the significant decline in biodiversity and climate change if the mechanisms of evolution are not understood" -- and accordingly concludes, "The teaching of all phenomena concerning evolution as a fundamental scientific theory is therefore crucial to the future of our societies and our democracies. For that reason it must occupy a central position in the curriculum, and especially in the science syllabus, as long as, like any other theory, it is able to stand up to thorough scientific scrutiny."

Acknowledging the religious roots of creationism, the resolution begins by emphasizing, "The aim of this report is not to question or to fight a belief ... The aim is to warn against certain tendencies to pass off a belief as science," and notes that religious leaders (including Pope Benedict XVI and his predecessor Pope John Paul II) have not endorsed creationism. But, the resolution continues, "The war on the theory of evolution and on its proponents most often originates in forms of religious extremism which are closely allied to extreme right-wing political movements ... The fact of the matter, and this has been exposed on several occasions, is that some advocates of strict creationism are out to replace democracy by theocracy."

The resolution ends by calling on the member states of the Council of Europe "to defend and promote scientific knowledge; strengthen the teaching of the foundations of science, its history, its epistemology and its methods alongside the teaching of objective scientific knowledge; to make science more comprehensible, more attractive and closer to the realities of the contemporary world; to firmly oppose the teaching of creationism as a scientific discipline on an equal footing with the theory of evolution and in general resist presentation of creationist ideas in any discipline other than religion; to promote the teaching of evolution as a fundamental scientific theory in the school curriculum" (internal numbering omitted).

The Council of Europe, as a Reuters story (October 4, 2007) on the adoption of the resolution explains, "oversees human rights standards in member states and enforces decisions of the European Court of Human Rights." The story adds, "The resolution, which passed 48 votes to 25 with 3 abstentions, is not binding on the Council's 47 member states but reflects widespread opposition among politicians to teaching creationism in science class." A press release about the resolution, a report containing both the draft resolution and a memorandum providing a lengthy background discussion and explanation of its provisions, a list of the votes on the resolution, and a video (in French) of a press conference about it, are available on the Council of Europe's website.

By GARDINER HARRIS and ROBERT PEAR

Published: July 12, 2007

WASHINGTON, July 11 — A day after former Surgeon General Richard H. Carmona told Congress that top Bush administration officials had interfered with his public health mission for political reasons, the hunt for those suspected of undermining Dr. Carmona was in full swing on Capitol Hill.

Dr. Carmona refused on Tuesday to name those who he said had instructed him to put political considerations over scientific ones. He was traveling Wednesday and did not respond to phone messages seeking comment.

But more than a half-dozen former top health officials said in interviews that the official most likely to have interfered was Dr. Cristina V. Beato, a former deputy assistant secretary and acting assistant secretary for health who was Dr. Carmona’s boss from 2003 to 2005 and is now deputy director of the Pan American Health Organization.

In an interview Wednesday, Dr. Beato rejected the suggestion that politics had ever trumped science in the Bush administration.

“That wasn’t my experience,” she said, adding that she was “really sad to hear that he talked that way.”

All the former officials interviewed said Dr. Carmona and Dr. Beato had a difficult relationship.

“They clashed tremendously, both personally and professionally,” said William A. Pierce, a spokesman for the Department of Health and Human Services from 2001 to 2005.

Some tension between the two offices is not uncommon, Mr. Pierce said, because “the surgeon general reports to the assistant secretary for health, but the surgeon general is much better known to the public.” With Dr. Carmona and Dr. Beato, he added, the institutional conflict was compounded by a “personality clash.” Dr. Beato was widely seen within the department as trying to advance conservative agendas, the former officials said.

“Dr. Beato was more ideological and more right-wing, less objective and more political” than Dr. Carmona, said Dr. Philip R. Lee, a former government health official and a founder of the Institute for Health Policy Studies at the University of California, San Francisco.

Dr. Lee said Dr. Carmona frequently consulted him “when he was particularly frustrated” as surgeon general, adding: “Rich is a straight shooter, but he was naïve about the ways of Washington.”

On Wednesday, Senator Edward M. Kennedy, Democrat of Massachusetts and chairman of the Senate health committee, sent a letter to the Bush administration asking for records on the interactions of Dr. Carmona with several health officials, including Dr. Beato.

Dr. Beato was nominated as assistant secretary for health, but her nomination was derailed in 2004 after accusations surfaced that she had padded her résumé. In an interview, Dr. Beato said those accusations arose from several misunderstandings and what she described as mostly clerical errors.

She disputed Dr. Carmona’s claim that the government had delayed by years a major report on secondhand smoke and tried to weaken it.

Dr. Beato also rejected Dr. Carmona’s assertion that the department had suppressed his report on global health because he refused to sprinkle it with accolades to President Bush.

Tony Snow, the White House press secretary, said Wednesday of Dr. Carmona’s testimony: “Nobody, as far as I could tell, was muzzling him. But on the other hand, there is certainly nothing scandalous about saying to somebody who was a presidential appointee, ‘You should advocate the president’s policies.’ ”