03/07/2026 09:00
- 12:20
HALL: Pola - AT12
Contact:
Köbel S.
Chair:
Köbel S.,
Van Den Broeke C.(.
The overarching topic of the conference is Religion and (In)equalities. The panel focuses on the numerous international conventions (UN International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, European Convention on Human Rights, Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, 1951 Refugee Convention) that declare the prohibition of discrimination, one aspect of which is the prohibition of discrimination on the basis of religious affiliation or religious (conscientious) beliefs.
Discrimination may occur in relation to the individual and collective aspects of religious freedom, as well as in a number of areas, such as labour and employment relations, education (e.g., religious education, establishment of educational institutions, operation of religious training programs, etc.), the legal status and state funding of religious communities (public tasks and religious activities), media coverage, and children's rights.
The question arises as to what impact discrimination has on social (In)equalities and what legal guarantees can be put in place to ensure equality and eliminate inequality. Further questions are where the necessity-proportionality test for restricting fundamental rights fits into the context of religious (In)equalities, and what the historical and current public law model of the relationship between the state and the church is (ideological neutrality, secularization, state-church model, separation model). It is important to examine the above questions through specific legal cases, as there are different solutions in different European countries. Therefore, special attention must be paid to the practice of the ECtHR, and in particular to the application of Articles 9 (freedom of thought, conscience and religion) and 14 (prohibition of discrimination) of the ECHR in specific legal cases. The panel presentations will seek to answer these questions.
