Legal Code of Religious Minority Rights, Sources in International and European Law

297 Pages·2021·2.173 MB·English

by  Daniele Ferrari

Legal Code of Religious Minority
Rights
This volume presents a systematic collection of the various international legal
sources that define the rights of religious minorities.
In a time of increasing tensions around religious minorities, this volume
presents a systematic collection of international and European documents on
the protection and promotion of religious minorities’ rights. The code includes
documents from the United Nations, the Council of Europe, the Organization
for Security and Co-operation in Europe, and the European Union. An index
system connects the various sources and norms and emphasises the strengths
and the weaknesses in the legal frameworks of international and European
institutions. While allowing for further research on the historical and conceptual
development in the area, the code provides the reader with a new, easily accessible
tool facilitating experts and actors who wish to improve the knowledge and
protection of religious minorities.
This book will be an invaluable resource for students, academics, and researchers
interested in law and religion, international law, public law, and human rights law.
The code is also a powerful tool for minorities themselves and for advocates of
their rights.
Daniele Ferrari is a researcher in Law and Religion at the University of Siena,
Italy.
ICLARS Series on Law and Religion
Series Editors:
Silvio Ferrari,
University of Milan, Italy, Russell Sandberg, Cardiff University, UK
Pieter Coertzen,
University of Stellenbosch, South Africa
W. Cole Durham, Jr.,
Brigham Young University, USA
Tahir Mahmood,
Amity International University, India
The ICLARS Series on Law and Religion is a new series designed to provide a forum
for the rapidly expanding field of research in law and religion. The series is published
in association with the International Consortium for Law and Religion Studies, an
international network of scholars and experts of law and religion founded in 2007
with the aim of providing a place where information, data and opinions can easily be
exchanged among members and made available to the broader scientific community.
The series aims to become a primary source for students and scholars while presenting
authors with a valuable means to reach a wide and growing readership.
Other titles in this series:
The Transition of Religion to Culture in Law and Public Discourse
Lori Beaman
Religious Minorities, Islam and the Law
International Human Rights and Islamic Law in Indonesia
Al Khanif
The Internal Law of Religions
Introduction to a Comparative Discipline
Burkhard Josef Berkmann
Translated by David E. Orton
Legal Code of Religious Minority Rights
Sources in International and European Law
Daniele Ferrari
Law, Religion, and Freedom
Conceptualizing a Common Right
Edited by W. Cole Durham, Jr., Javier Martínez-Torrón, and Donlu Thayer
For more information about this series, please visit: www.routledge.com/
ICLARS-Series-on-Law-and-Religion/book-series/ICLARS
Legal Code of Religious
Minority Rights
Sources in International
and European Law
Daniele Ferrari
First published 2022
by Routledge
2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN
and by Routledge
605 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10158
Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business
© 2022 Daniele Ferrari
The right of Daniele Ferrari to be identified as author of this work has
been asserted by them in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the
Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or
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or registered trademarks, and are used only for identification and
explanation without intent to infringe.
British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Ferrari, Daniele, author.
Title: Legal code of religious minority rights : sources in international
and European law / Daniele Ferrari.
Description: New York : Routledge, 2021. | Series: Iclars series on law
and religion | Includes bibliographical references and index.
Identifiers: LCCN 2021007135 (print) | LCCN 2021007136 (ebook) |
ISBN 9780367858445 (hardback) | ISBN 9780367655099
(paperback) | ISBN 9781003015369 (ebook)
Subjects: LCSH: Religious minorities—Legal status, laws, etc. |
Religious minorities—Civil rights. | Religious minorities—Legal
status, laws, etc.—European Union countries.
Classification: LCC K3242 .F47 2021 (print) | LCC K3242 (ebook) |
DDC 342.08/52—dc23
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2021007135
LC ebook record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2021007136
ISBN: 978-0-367-85844-5 (hbk)
ISBN: 978-0-367-65509-9 (pbk)
ISBN: 978-1-003-01536-9 (ebk)
Typeset in Galliard
by Apex CoVantage, LLC
This book has been produced in the context of the research project of
the University of Siena on religious diversity in Europe funded by the
Italian Ministry of Research (PRIN 2017).
Contents
Introduction 1
Law reading guides 25
I United Nations 27
Section 1 27
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights 27
Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and
Political Rights 29
A. Legal definition 32
A.1. Francesco Capotorti (Special Rapporteur of the
Sub-Commission on Prevention of Discrimination and
Protection of Minorities), Study on the Rights of Persons
Belonging to Ethnic, Religious and Linguistic Minorities
(ST/HR(05)/H852/no.5), 1979. 32
Chapter I. The concept of a minority 32
A.2. Jules Deschênes (Special Rapporteur of the Sub-
Commission on Prevention of Discrimination and Protection
of Minorities), Proposal concerning a definition of the
term “minority” (E/CN.4/Sub.2/1985/31), 1985. 41
Introduction 41
A.3. UN Human Rights Committee (HRC), CCPR General
Comment No. 23: Article 27 (Rights of Minorities)
(CCPR/C/21/Rev.1/Add.5), 8 April 1994. 52
A.4. Office of the High Commissioner for human rights
(OHCHR), Minority Rights: International Standards
and Guidance for Implementation (HR/PUB/10/3),
2010. 53
I. Definitions 53
vi Contents
A.5. Forum on Minority Issues, Recommendations of
the Forum on Minority Issues at its Sixth Session:
Guaranteeing the Rights of Religious Minorities
(A/HRC/25/66), 26 and 27 November 2013. 57
A.6. UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights
(OHCHR), The inclusion of religious minorities in
consultative and decision-making bodies, 2014. 57
Who are religious minorities? 57
A.7. Fernand de Varennes (Special Rapporteur on Minority
Issues), Report of the Special Rapporteur on Minority
Issues (A/74/160), 15 July 2019. 57
IV. Conclusions and recommendations 57
A.8. Fernand de Varennes (Special rapporteur on minority
issues), Report of the Special Rapporteur on Minority
Issues, Effective Promotion of the Declaration on the
Rights of Persons Belonging to National or Ethnic,
Religious and Linguistic Minorities (A/75/211),
21 July 2020. 58
3. Religious or belief minorities 58
B. Right to profess and practise religion or belief 59
B.1. Francesco Capotorti (Special Rapporteur of the
Sub-Commission on Prevention of Discrimination and
Protection of Minorities), Study on the Rights of Persons
Belonging to Ethnic, Religious and Linguistic Minorities
(ST/HR(05)/H852/no.5), 1979. 59
IV. Application of the principles set forth in Article 27 of the
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights 59
B.2. UN Human Rights Committee (HRC), CCPR General
Comment No. 22: Article 18 (Freedom of Thought,
Conscience or Religion) (CCPR/C/21/Rev.1/Add.4),
30 July 1993. 69
B.3. UN Human Rights Committee (HRC), CCPR General
Comment No. 23: Article 27 (Rights of Minorities)
(CCPR/C/21/Rev.1/Add.5), 8 April 1994. 70
B.4. UN Human Rights Committee (HRC), Sister
Immaculate Joseph and 80 Teaching Sisters of the Holy
Cross of the Third Order of Saint Francis in Menzingen
of Sri Lanka v. Sri Lanka (CCPR/C/85/D/1249/2004),
communication no. 1249/2004, 4 April 2001. 74
Factual background 74
The complaint 75
Contents vii
The State party’s submissions on admissibility and merits 77
Authors’ comments on the State party’s submissions 78
Issues and proceedings before the Committee 79
Consideration of the merits 80
B.5. UN Human Rights Committee (HRC), Gareth Anver
Prince v. South Africa (CCPR/C/91/D/1474/2006),
Communication No. 1474/2006, 14 November 2007. 82
Facts as presented by the author 83
The complaint 84
The State party’s submission on admissibility and merits 85
Issues and proceedings before the Committee 89
C. Non-discrimination 92
C.1. Francesco Capotorti (Special Rapporteur of the
Sub-Commission on Prevention of Discrimination and
Protection of Minorities), Study on the Rights of Persons
Belonging to Ethnic, Religious and Linguistic Minorities
(ST/HR(05)/H852/no.5), 1979. 92
III. The position of persons belonging to ethnic, religious and
linguistic minorities in the society in which they live 92
C.2. UN Human Rights Committee (HRC), General
Comment No. 22: The Right to Freedom of Thought,
Conscience and Religion: Art. 18 (CCPR/C/21/Rev.1/
Add.4), 30 July 1993. 94
C.3. UN Human Rights Committee (HRC), CCPR General
Comment No. 23: Article 27 (Rights of Minorities)
(CCPR/C/21/Rev.1/Add.5), 8 April 1994. 95
C.4. UN Human Rights Committee (HRC), Fatima
Anderson v. Denmark (CCPR/C/99/D/1868/2009),
Communication No. 1868/2009, 7 September 2010. 96
Decision on admissibility 96
The facts as presented by the author 96
The complaint 97
The state party’s observations on the admissibility and merits
of the communication 98
Issues and proceedings before the Committee 99
C.5. UN Office of the High Commissioner for human rights
(OHCHR), Minority Rights: International Standards
and Guidance for Implementation (HR/PUB/10/3),
2010. 100
C. Equality and non-discrimination 101
D. Right to culture 104
viii Contents
D.1. UN Human Rights Committee (HRC), CCPR General
Comment No. 23: Article 27 (Rights of Minorities)
(CCPR/C/21/Rev.1/Add.5), 8 April 1994. 104
E. Right to education 105
E.1. Francesco Capotorti (Special Rapporteur of the
Sub-Commission on Prevention of Discrimination and
Protection of Minorities), Study on the Rights of Persons
Belonging to Ethnic, Religious and Linguistic Minorities
(ST/HR(05)/H852/no.5), 1979. 105
Section 2 109
Convention relating to the Status of Refugees 109
Protocol relating to the status of refugees 112
A. Right to asylum 115
A.1. UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR), Guidelines on
International Protection: “Membership of a particular
social group” within the context of Article 1A(2) of the
1951 Convention and/or its 1967 Protocol relating to the
Status of Refugees (HCR/GIP/02/02), 7 May 2002. 115
B. UNHCR’s definition 115
Relevance of size 116
A.2. UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR), Guidelines on
International Protection: Religion-Based Refugee Claims
under Article 1A(2) of the 1951 Convention and/or the
1967 Protocol relating to the Status of Refugees
(HCR/GIP/04/06), 28 April 2004. 117
I. Introduction 117
II. Substantive analysis 118
Section 3 121
Convention on the elimination of all forms of discrimination
against women 121
A. Discrimination against minority women 122
A.1. Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination
against Women (CEDAW), Concluding Comments of the
Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination Against
Women: Greece (CEDAW/C/GRC/CO/6), 2007. 122
A.2. UN Human Rights Council (HRC), Freedom of
religion or belief. Report of the Special Rapporteur
on freedom of religion or belief (A/HRC/43/48),
27 February 2020. 123
Section 4 125
Convention on the rights of the child 125
Contents ix
A. Right to education 126
A.1. Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights,
Promoting and Protecting Minority Rights. A Guide for
Advocates (HR/PUB/12/7), 2012. 126
Minority children 126
Basic education and gender equality 126
B. Right to maintain religion or belief 127
B.1. Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief –
Independent Expert on minority issues – Special
Rapporteur on the sale of children, child prostitution
and child pornography – Special Rapporteur on
trafficking in persons, especially women and children –
Chair-Rapporteur of the Working Group on the issue of
discrimination against women in law and in practice –
Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes
and consequences, Special procedures of the Human
Rights Council, Communication 29 May 2013 – Iraq
(IRQ 2/2013). 127
Section 5 131
Declaration on the Rights of Persons Belonging to National or
Ethnic, Religious and Linguistic Minorities 131
A. Right to existence 134
A.1. UN Commission on Human Rights, Sub-Commission
on the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights,
Commentary of the Working Group on Minorities
to the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of
Persons Belonging to National or Ethnic, Religious and
Linguistic Minorities (E/CN.4/Sub.2/AC.5/2005/2),
4 April 2005. 134
A.2. UN Office of the High Commissioner for human rights
(OHCHR), Minority Rights: International Standards and
Guidance for Implementation (HR/PUB/10/3),
2010. 136
B. Promotion and protection of the identity of
minorities 136
A.3. Forum on Minority Issues, Note by the Independent
Expert on minority issues, Rita Izsák, on guaranteeing the
rights of religious minorities (A/HRC/FMI/2013/2),
3 October 2013. 136
III. Legal framework 136
B. Right to culture 137