TA NEA, “Athos for All”
ATHOS FOR ALL  article by Anna KARAMANOU, MEP of PASOK 30. 05. 2001 |
It is a fact that suddenly, with the initiative of the media and two months after the approval of a related opinion by the European Parliament, which states that women should not be excluded due to their gender from access “to certain areas of the planet,” a dialogue has opened within the country about a taboo subject, such as the “avaton” of Mount Athos for women. Of course, it is impossible to avoid the usual cries and shouts of fanatics and those who feel a persistent aversion to dialogue and anything that might overturn any “tradition,” even when it conflicts with modern reality and violates fundamental freedoms and human rights.
It is certain that the decision of 1045 regarding the prohibition of women’s entry into a geographical area of 330 square kilometers, as well as the criminalization of violations under Law 2623 of 1953, today cannot have any democratic, legal, moral, or religious legitimacy because:
1. The relevant biased decision was made in a specific place and time and clearly reflects the social reality, patriarchal values, and cultural norms of that era. It is well known that women were excluded for centuries not only from Athos but from all “male sanctuaries”—education, politics, paid work, sciences, arts, and literature. In medieval Europe, those women who showed interest in anything beyond their traditional reproductive role were burned alive.
2. Today, thank God, the fate of women in the world is changing, and for several decades they have emerged from the obscurity and marginalization of centuries to the forefront of history and public life. Women are now educated (57% of our university students are women), work, contribute to economic development, hold public offices, and participate in political life. The principle of gender equality is not disputed by anyone and is constitutionally guaranteed and upheld by international treaties. Therefore, treating women as impure and scandalous beings, beyond being extremely derogatory, offensive, and humiliating for half of humanity, constitutes a clear violation of fundamental freedoms and constitutional rights of women.
3. The arguments about not disturbing monastic life and preventing the secularization of Mount Athos are unfounded, as only half of humanity—the female half—is deemed unwelcome, while the other half enjoys special privileges. However, according to modern democratic views, no religious or other tradition can be used as a means to restrict rights and discriminate based on gender.
Nor can the regime of Mount Athos be compared to that of “female” and “male” monasteries.
4. The unequal treatment of women is certainly not based on the Christian faith and the teaching of love and non-discrimination due to gender or national origin. Approximately 2000 years ago, Christ sent a clear message to the Galileans, saying: “There is neither Jew nor Greek, neither slave nor free, neither male nor female…”
Finally, any decision regarding the lifting or maintaining of the ban on women’s entry to Mount Athos will not be made by the European Parliament, but primarily by the monastic community itself, which we hope will participate in the dialogue that has already begun.