Council of Europe backs the Secular State

Council of Europe backs the Secular State

Following discussions in which IHEU
representatives played an important role,

the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (wiki)
has strongly supported the separation of religion
and state

1. In a wide-ranging formal
Recommendation, the Assembly insisted that

religious leaders must acknowledge the precedence
of human rights over any religious principle and
called for Humanist leaders to be included in political
consultations with religious representatives.

In a second landmark Recommendation on Blasphemy,
religious insults and hate speech, the Council firmly concludes

that blasphemy, as an insult to a religion, should not be deemed
a criminal offence.

The full text of both recommendations can be found on the
IHEU website.2
State, religion, secularity and human rights
Highlights of recommendation 1804:
“The Assembly reaffirms that

one of Europe’s shared
values, transcending national differences, is the
separation of church and state.

In Recommendation
1720 (2005) on education and religion, the Assembly
noted that

“each person’s religion, including the option
of having no religion, is a strictly personal matter”.

“Over the last twenty years, religious worship has
declined markedly in Europe. Fewer than one European
in five attends a religious service at least once a week,
whereas twenty years ago the figure was more than twice
that.

At the same time, we are witnessing the growing
strength of the Muslim communities in virtually all the
Council of Europe member states.

“What is undeniable, is that religion has, in recent
years, again become a central issue of debate in our
societies. Roman Catholics, members of the Orthodox
Church, Evangeli[cals] and Muslims seem to be the most
active here.

“A knowledge of religions is an integral part of
knowledge of human history and civilisations. It is
different from belief in, and worship of, a particular
religion. Even countries where one religion prevails have
a duty to teach the origins of all religions.

“Various situations coexist in Europe. In some
countries, one religion still predominates. The legislation
of several Council of Europe member states still contains
anachronisms dating from times when religion played a
more important part in our societies.

“Freedom of religion is protected by Article 9 of the
European Convention on Human Rights and Article 18
of the Universal Declaration on Human
Rights.

Such freedom is not unlimited,
however: a religion whose doctrine or
practice ran counter to other fundamental
rights would be unacceptable. Nor may
states allow the dissemination of religious
principles which, if put into practice, would
violate human rights.

If doubts exist in this
respect, states must require religious
leaders to take an unambiguous stand in
favour of the precedence of human rights,
as set forth in the European Convention on
Human Rights, over any religious
principle.

“Freedom of expression is one of the most important
human rights. The recommendation reaffirms that
‘Freedom of expression … should not be further
restricted to meet increasing sensitivities of certain
religious groups’.

“While we have an acknowledged duty to respect
others and must discourage gratuitous insults, freedom
of expression cannot, needless to say, be restricted out of
deference to certain dogmas or the beliefs of a particular
religious community.

“The Assembly therefore recommends that the
Committee of Ministers (inter alia) reaffirm the principle
of the independence of politics and law from religion;
continue to give thought to the religious dimension of
intercultural dialogue, particularly by organising
meetings with religious leaders and representatives of
humanist and philosophical circles; and exclude from
the consultation any grouping that does not clearly
support the Council of Europe’s fundamental values,
namely human rights, democracy and the rule of law.
Blasphemy, religious insults and hate speech against
persons on grounds of their religion
Highlights of Recommendation 1805
“The Parliamentary Assembly reiterates its commitment
to the freedom of expression and the freedom of
thought, conscience and religion which are fundamental
cornerstones of democracy.

Freedom of expression is not
only applicable to expressions that are favourably
received or regarded as inoffensive, but also to those that
may shock, offend or disturb

[…]

Any democratic society
must permit open debate on matters relating to religion
and beliefs.

“The Assembly acknowledges the importance of
respect for, and understanding of, cultural and religious
diversity in Europe and throughout the world and
recognises the need for ongoing dialogue. Respect and
understanding can help avoid frictions within society and
between individuals.

Every human being should be
respected, independently of religious beliefs.

“In multicultural societies it is often necessary to
reconcile freedom of expression and
freedom of thought, conscience and
religion. In some instances, it may also be
necessary to place restrictions on these
freedoms.

Under the European Convention
on Human Rights, any such restrictions
must be prescribed by law, necessary in a
democratic society and proportionate to the
aims pursued. In so doing, States enjoy a
margin of appreciation as national
authorities may need to adopt different
solutions taking account of the specific
features of each society; the use of this margin is subject
to the supervision of the European Court of Human
Rights.

“With regard to blasphemy, religious insults and hate
speech against persons on the grounds of their
religion… the Assembly considers that blasphemy, as an
insult to a religion, should not be deemed a criminal
offence.

Even though today prosecutions in this respect
are rare in member states, they are legion in other
countries of the world.
“The Assembly agrees with the preliminary report
adopted on 16-17 March 2007 by the Venice
Commission that

in a democratic society, religious
groups must tolerate, as must other groups, critical
public statements and debate about their activities,
teachings and beliefs, provided that such criticism does
not amount to intentional and gratuitous insult or hate
speech and does not constitute incitement to disturb the
public peace or to violence and discrimination against
adherents of a particular religion.

“… the Assembly

emphasises the need for greater
understanding and tolerance among individuals of
different religions. Where people with different religions
know more about the religion and religious sensitivities
of each other, religious insults are less likely to occur out
of ignorance.

In this context, the Assembly welcomes the
initiative of the United Nations to set up a new body
under the theme “Alliance of Civilisations” to study and
support contacts between Muslim and so-called Western
societies, but feels that such an initiative should be
enlarged to other religions and non-religious groups.
“The Assembly stresses that …

any restrictions on the
freedom of expression must comply with the case-law of
the European Court of Human Rights. Freedom of
expression – guaranteed under Article 10 of the
European Convention on Human Rights – is of vital
importance for any democratic society.

“The Assembly is aware that,

in the past, national law
and practice concerning blasphemy and other religious
offences often reflected the dominant position of
particular religions in individual states. In view of the
greater diversity of religious beliefs in Europe and the
democratic principle of the separation of state and
religion, blasphemy laws should be reviewed by member
states and parliaments.

“The Assembly notes that under the International
Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial
Discrimination, signatory parties are

obliged to condemn discrimination and
take effective measures against it. All
member states … must ensure that
members of a particular religion are
neither privileged nor disadvantaged under
blasphemy laws and related offences.

“National law should penalise statements
that call for a person or a group of persons
to be subjected to hatred, discrimination or
violence on grounds of their religion.

13. The Assembly emphasises that
freedom of religion as protected by Article
9 of the European Convention on Human Rights also
protects religions in their establishing values for their
followers.

While religions are free to penalise in a
religious sense any religious offences, such penalties
must not threaten the life, physical integrity, liberty or
property of an individual or women’s civil and human
rights.

In this context, the Assembly

recalls its Resolution
1535 (2007) on threats to the lives and freedom of
expression of journalists and strongly condemns the
death threats issued by Muslim leaders against
journalists and writers. Member states have the
obligation to protect individuals against religious
penalties which threaten the right to life and the right to
liberty and security of a person…

No state has the right
to impose itself such penalties for religious offences,
either.
“The Assembly considers that ...

national law should
only penalise expressions about religious matters which
intentionally and severely disturb public order and call
for public violence.

It calls on national parliaments to
initiate legislative action and scrutiny regarding the
national implementation of this Recommendation.
“The Assembly recommends that the Committee of
Ministers to (inter alia) ensure that national law and
practice:

permit open debate on matters relating to
religion and beliefs and do not privilege a particular
religion in this respect; penalise statements that call for a
person or a group of persons to be subjected to hatred,
discrimination or violence on grounds of their religion as
on any other grounds; prohibit acts which intentionally
and severely disturb the public order and call for public
violence by references to religious matters, as far as it is
necessary in a democratic society

in accordance with
Article 10, paragraph 2 of the European Convention on
Human Rights; and are reviewed in order to
decriminalise blasphemy as an insult to a religion;
“The Assembly also recommends that the Committee
of Ministers initiate … work at the level of the United
Nations in order to ensure that:

• national law and practice … do not privilege persons
with a particular religion;
• the work of the Alliance of Civilizations avoids the
stereotype of a so-called “Western” culture, widens its
scope to other world religions and promotes more
open debates between different religious groups and
with non-religious groups;

The Assembly also

asks the Committee of Ministers to
condemn on behalf of their governments
any death threats and incitements to
violence by religious leaders and groups
issued against persons for having
exercised their right to freedom of
expression about religious matters”.

1 Texts adopted by the Parliamentary Assembly on 29 June 2007 (27th Sitting).
2 http://www.iheu.org/node/2750