Internationa human rights - Essay Example

dom for one to manifest his or her beliefs or religion is subjected to various limitations clearly defined by the law and is significant in a society that is democratic in the safety of the interests of the public. This paper hence seeks to critically assess the interests that are at stake and how the court has balanced this interest in dealing with the cases concerning the freedom to manifest one’s religion or belief (Berns, 1976). The article 9 of the Europe Council of Human Rights has been evaluated and applied in several of court cases within Europe.

The law of Europe has hence moved to recognize categories of belief or religion and handled or treated them as almost one category with religion or belief having not merely a vacuous but a wide interpretation. This has seen the court balancing the interests of both the public and the state. In Kokkinaski vs Greece (1994) 17 EHRR 397, paragraph 31, the freedom of conscience, thought and religion makes one of the things considered the foundation of the society that is democratic in the meaning of convention.

In balancing such interest of the community, the court stated that it is the dimension of the religion, one of the most significant elements that make up the conception of life and the believers’ identity; nevertheless, it matters to atheists and the skeptics (Morgan, 1972). In another court effort to balance the interest of the freedom to manifest one’s religion or belief, the court passed judgment in the case of Manoussakis vs Greece (1996), EHRR 387, paragraph 47 that the freedom of religion that is guaranteed in the Convention does not include any discretion on the side of the state to decide on whether the religion or the manner of expressing such religious belief is legitimate or not.

Belief in the light of the court is more than just feelings that are deeply held or opinions. But there must be firmly held philosophical or spiritual convictions with identifiable content that is practically formal.