Religious Symbols in Educational Institutions: Jurisprudence of the European Court of Human Rights
In: Religion & Human RightsAbstract
The issue of religious symbols in educational institutions has been a source of vigorous legal and political controversy. Two types of cases have been litigated before the European Court of Human Rights: those concerning the wearing of the Islamic headscarf in schools and universities, and those concerning the presence of the crucifix in school classrooms. In this article, I shall analyse these cases, assessing how the Court balances different rights and State interests, focusing in particular on the Court’s interpretation of the principles of neutrality/secularism and of gender equality. I shall criticise the Court’s deference to the State, arguing that it should more strictly supervise how States respect human rights. Respect for human rights requires that the States respect individual’s religious freedoms, be autonomous from the religion and safeguard the principle of plurality. While the Court has proclaimed these principles, it has failed to apply them in these cases.
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20
BVerfG, 2 BvR, 24 September 2003, No. 1436/02, <http://www.bverfg.de>, 1 March 2012.
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23
Rosenfeld, supra note 19.
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26
Natasha Walter, ‘When the Veil Means Freedom: Respect Women’s Choices that Are not Our Own, Even if they Include Wearing the Hijab’, The Guardian, 20 January 2004. See also, Jane Freedman, ‘Secularism as a Barrier to Integration? The French Dillema’ 43:3 International Migration (2004), p. 5. For reactions to the Leyla Sahin judgment, see the Turkish on-line journal: www.zaman.org.
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40
At para. 12 of her Dissenting Opinion, supra note 1.
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52
In its judgment of 18 March 2011.
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55
BVerfGE 93, I I BvR, 16 May 1995, No. 1097/91, para. C (II) (1).
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58
See Bader, supra note 24.
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Religious Symbols in Educational Institutions: Jurisprudence of the European Court of Human Rights
In: Religion & Human RightsAbstract
The issue of religious symbols in educational institutions has been a source of vigorous legal and political controversy. Two types of cases have been litigated before the European Court of Human Rights: those concerning the wearing of the Islamic headscarf in schools and universities, and those concerning the presence of the crucifix in school classrooms. In this article, I shall analyse these cases, assessing how the Court balances different rights and State interests, focusing in particular on the Court’s interpretation of the principles of neutrality/secularism and of gender equality. I shall criticise the Court’s deference to the State, arguing that it should more strictly supervise how States respect human rights. Respect for human rights requires that the States respect individual’s religious freedoms, be autonomous from the religion and safeguard the principle of plurality. While the Court has proclaimed these principles, it has failed to apply them in these cases.
| All Time | Past Year | Past 30 Days | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Abstract Views | 263 | 103 | 5 |
| Full Text Views | 141 | 4 | 1 |
| PDF Views & Downloads | 32 | 10 | 3 |