Freedom of Religion or Belief in International Human Rights Law and the Provenance of a Distinct Right to Establish and Maintain Places of Worship
Law and Religion Scholars Network (LARSN) Doctoral Students Conference, 23 September 2011, Oxford Brookes University, United Kingdom
Posted: 26 Sep 2013
Date Written: September 23, 2011
Abstract
The aim of this paper is to establish the existence and normative strength of a distinct right to establish and maintain places of worship. This aim can be accomplished by an understanding of the 'symbiotic relationship' between the right to establish and maintain places of worship and the other constituent elements of the right to freedom of religion or belief. This paper is in three parts. First, it analyses the legal foundation of the right to freedom of religion or belief under international human rights law. In chronological order, it examines the key international human rights instruments that provide legal protection to the right to freedom of religion or belief. Second, this paper discusses the ‘permissible limitations’ to the right to freedom of religion or belief which are the narrow set of circumstances under which the right may be validly restricted. Finally, this paper shows that there exists a 'symbiotic relationship' between the right to establish and maintain places of worship and other constituent elements of the broader right to freedom of religion or belief. This beneficial relationship reinforces the right to establish and maintain places of worship. Analysing this relationship is crucial in understanding the protective scope and limits of the right to establish and maintain places of worship.
Keywords: places of worship, freedom of religion or belief, forum internum, forum externum, permissible limitations
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