Publication at Faculty of Law |
2015
Abstract
The aim of this paper is to outline how the international protection of human rights may contribute to the clarification of the concept of freedom of conscience. In this context, we briefly discuss the approach of international human rights bodies with respect to the distinction between the freedom of conscience and religious freedom.
Furthermore, we focus on the question of how the case law of the European Court of Human Rights contributes to the objectification of the concept of conscience. At the end of the paper, we suggest that bringing a human rights claim before an international judicial body may be perceived as an act of individual conscience.