Article 9 of the European Convention on Human Rights explained

Article 9 of the European Convention on Human Rights provides a right to freedom of thought, conscience, and religion. This includes the freedom to change a religion or belief, and to manifest a religion or belief in worship, teaching, practice and observance, subject to certain restrictions that are "in accordance with law" and "necessary in a democratic society".

History

• was a principle of European international law, beginning in the 16th century in the wake of the Protestant reformation, that established freedom of religion for states, but not individuals.
• The First Amendment to the United States Constitution was one of the first legal protections for freedom of religion without reference to any specific religion.
• Article X of the French Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen, which influenced the European Convention, declares freedom of religious opinion as a universal right.

Case law

• European Court of Human Rights:
  • Buscarini and Others v. San Marino (requirement of religious oaths for public office not permitted)
  • Kokkinakis v. Greece (criminalization of proselytism, as defined in Greek law, permitted)
  • Leyla Şahin v. Turkey (university ban on Islamic headscarf permitted)
  • Pichon and Sajous v. France (no right to refuse supply of contraceptives on religious grounds)
  • Leela Förderkreis E.V. and Others v. Germany (regarding state information campaigns about a religious movement)
  • Universelles Leben e.V. v. Germany (regarding state information campaigns about a religious movement)
  • Lautsi v. Italy (legal requirement to display a crucifix in school classrooms permitted)
  • S.A.S. v. France (French ban on face coverings permitted)
  • Osmanoğlu and Kocabaş v. Switzerland (permitted to require children to participate in mixed swimming lessons and enforce this through fines)
• High Court of England and Wales:
  • Connolly v DPP (no ground for appeal under Article 9 against conviction for sending indecent or grossly offensive material, namely images of aborted foetuses)

See also

• European Convention on Human Rights

Literature

• Murdoch J. Freedom of thought, conscience and religion. A guide to the implementation of Article 9 of the European Convention on Human Rights Strasbourg, Council of Europe, 2007
• Freedom of religion, a factsheet of ECtHR case law
• The Protections for Religious Rights: Law and Practice, a textbook on Article 9 and international law on the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion