Freedom of Thought 2013 (original) (raw)
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REPORT ON DISCRIMINATION AGAINST ATHEISTS, HUMANISTS, AND THE NON-RELIGIOUS
“1. The right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion (which includes the freedom to hold beliefs) in article 18.1 is far-reaching and profound; it encompasses freedom of thought on all matters, personal conviction and the commitment to religion or belief, whether manifested indi - vidually or in community with others.... “2. Article 18 protects theistic, non-theistic and atheistic beliefs, as well as the right not to profess any religion or belief. The terms ‘belief ’ and ‘religion’ are to be broadly construed. Article 18 is not limited in its application to traditional religions or to religions and beliefs with institutional characteristics or practices analogous to those of traditional religions.” – United Nations Human Rights Committee, General Comment 22, on Article 18 of the Univer - sal Declaration of Human Rights The universal human right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion, as laid out in Article 18 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and subsequent treaties, protects the freedom of conscience of every human being. Just as freedom of religion or belief protects the right of the individual to follow a religion, it also protects the right to reject any religion or belief, to identify as humanist or non-religious, and to manifest non-religious convictions through expression, teaching and practice. This report will show that atheists, humanists and other freethinkers are discriminated against by governments across the world. Some governments outlaw the very existence of atheists, while others prosecute people who express their religious doubts or dissent regardless of whether those dissenters identify as atheist. More commonly, secular people experience discrimination when they manifest their conscience by acting against the dictates of the religion of their family, com - munity or country. This report is submitted on behalf of five secular organizations: American Humanist Association, Center for Inquiry, International Humanist and Ethical Union, Richard Dawkins Foundation for Reason and Science, and Secular Coalition for America
Report of the Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief, 2021
This study examines the theoretical scope and potential violations of the first right in article 18 (1) of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights: freedom of thought. Drawing on international jurisprudence, scholarship and the perspectives of diverse stakeholders, it first examines four proposed attributes of this right: (a) freedom not to disclose one’s thoughts; (b) freedom from punishment for one’s thoughts; (c) freedom from impermissible alteration of one’s thoughts; and (d) an enabling environment for freedom of thought. Second, the report highlights potential violations of the right across seven diverse fields: torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment; surveillance; coercive proselytism, anti-conversion and anti-blasphemy efforts; intellectual freedom and education; existing and emerging technologies; mental health; and conversion practices. Finally, the study makes key recommendations to multilateral, State and various non-State actors on how to respect, protect and fulfil the right to freedom of thought. It encourages the United Nations human rights system to further clarify the freedom’s scope and content, including through a general comment.
Religion and Intellectual Freedom
Handbook of Intellectual Freedom, 2014
The relationship between religion and intellectual freedom is difficult to articulate. At first glance, they seem to be opposing domains. If the original conceptualizations of religion and intellectual freedom given above are used, adhering to a particular religion means, by definition, that one does not support access to any and all information. This article argued for a broad understanding of religion to mitigate the oppositional stance between religion and intellectual freedom.
International Journal for Religious Freedom, 2019, volume 12, issue 1/2, pp. 46-55
Since 2012, the non-governmental organization Humanists International (HI) has published annually the Freedom of Thought Report, which looks at how non-religious individuals-not to be confused with the non-affiliated-are treated within any given state. It focuses on legal discrimination and restrictions on freedom of thought, belief and expression. This report, which has been presented at the United Nations General Assembly and at the European Parliament, ranks almost 200 countries by assessing them in four categories, which encompass the realms of government, education, society and freedom of expression. In the present paper, we evaluate the report's usefulness in impacting policy initiatives promoting the freedom of religion or belief (FoRB). Examples of its use in policy-making initiatives are provided. As this dataset examines the criminalization of apostasy and blasphemy, subsequent human rights activism by HI and other organizations benefits not just the non-religious but also minority religious groups. The report's impact on other human rights organizations and their campaigns suggests that research on FoRB can increase the resilience of religious or non-religious groups facing persecution.
Introduction to a Comparative Study of the Right to Freedom of Thought
2021
This is the introduction for the special issue on a comparative study of the right to freedom of thought across several jurisdictions including the UK, Ireland, Canada and the USA as well as the regional jurisdictions of the European Court of Human Rights and the Inter-American Court of Human Rights.
Freedom of religion has been in the limelight all over the world in the past few years. It grabbed our attention due to controversies regarding the content of different legal documents of various governments (democratic and non-democratic) around the world or due to the manner in which religious values and practices have been empirically treated by both State and non-State actors. Several issues are at the centre of global attention, including women's rights, heresy laws, transgender issues, ethnic cleansing, ill-treatment of religious minorities, ban on display of religious symbols, xenophobia, and so on. Freedom of Religion or Belief: An International Law Commentary is the first academic commentary which treats the issue of freedom of religion or belief as a human right (v). Freedom of religion or belief was included in article 18 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) in 1948 and in article 18 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) in 1966. Published in 2016, the Freedom of Religion or Belief marks fifty years after the adoption of ICCPR and sixty-eight years after the inclusion of religious freedom as a human right in UDHR. The authors, Heiner Bielefeldt, Nazila Ghanea, and Michael Wiener, rely on their academic expertise and practical experience to make a brilliant contribution to the scholarly discourse on freedom of religion or belief from an international legal perspective. The authors worked with the United Nations and conducted research on in human rights, international law, and freedom of religion. Their in-depth knowledge of the subject is reflected in this thoroughly researched book. Fifth Congress of Leaders of World and Traditional Religions, Kazakhstan. photo credit: UN Photo/Rick Bajornas The commentary offers a detailed analysis of interpretation and implementation of relative international standards, including ICCPR. It is structured according to the thematic categories of the Special Rapporteur's framework for communications. Freedom of Religion or Belief also discusses relevant jurisprudence from Treaty Bodies, which is evident from the table of cases and legislation given at the beginning of the commentary. The book is comprehensive because it includes relevant national cases and legislations and is not confined to the cases and legislation of these bodies. It is divided into five parts with further subdivisions. These parts comprise of discussion on freedom of religion or belief, discrimination, vulnerable groups, intersection of freedom of religion or belief with other human rights, and cross-cutting issues. Acknowledging the selective use of commentaries, the https://acuns.org/review-of-freedom-of-religion-or-belief-an-international-law-commentary/