Communication No. 1155/2003 – Remedies
taken by Norway
1. Introduction
Reference is made to the views
adopted by the Human Rights Committee on 3 November 2004 under
article 5, paragraph 4 of the Optional Protocol in respect of
communication No 1155/2003.
The views have been studied
carefully by the Government and have been discussed in meetings of
the full Cabinet. The Government will take effective and
appropriate measures respecting the rights of the authors of
communication No 1155/2003, as presented below.
2. The new subject Christianity and
General Religious and Ethical Education (CREE)
2.1 Amendments in the legal framework
and curriculum
The Government will propose to
Parliament that for the forthcoming school year, starting in August
2005, the following substantial changes will enter into force:
The Government will propose
deletion of the reference in section 2-4 of the Education Act to
the object clause in section 1-2. Thus section 2-4 would no
longer prescribe that the object of the subject CREE is “to help to
give students a moral and Christian upbringing”.
Furthermore section 2-4 of the
Education Act will be amended, so that the different religions and
philosophies of life are treated in a qualitatively equal
manner
.Changes to the national curriculum will be made
accordingly.
2.2 Amendments related to the exemption
scheme
The following amendments to the
exemption scheme will enter into force at the same time as the
substantial changes in the legal framework and teaching of CREE are
implemented, i.e. in August 2005:
The right to exemption from any
part of the school curriculum that could be conceived of as the
practice of a particular belief will be set out in a separate
section of the Education Act. This will make it clear that the
right to exemption from the practice of religious belief applies to
all aspects of primary and lower secondary education.
The Ministry’s circular on CREE
will be amended to clearly identify those elements of the subject
that could be conceived of as the practice of a particular belief.
The rules enabling parents to enrol their children in the exemption
scheme will be simplified. The duty of schools to provide
information to the parents about their right to exemption from any
part of the teaching that they conceive of as the practice of
religion will be stipulated in the Education Act.
The amended circular on CREE will
also instruct teachers to pay particular attention when using
teaching methods that students could conceive of as the practice of
a religion. If such methods are used, alternative instruction is to
be offered.
3. Promoting tolerance and respect for
religious beliefs
A core aim of CREE is to promote
mutual respect and tolerance between students belonging to
different religions and philosophies of life. Another core aim is
to provide knowledge that helps pupils to better understand their
own identity and background. Norway will pursue these aims, in
accordance with article 29 of the UN Convention on the Rights of
the Child – while concurrently respecting the right to freedom of
religion as protected by article 18 of the ICCPR in the terms
expressed by the Committee in General Comment No 22.
4. Intermediate measures
The Norwegian Government will in
due course inform the Committee about the implementation of the
above mentioned measures. Until the appropriate measures to amend
the legal framework, the curriculum and the exemptionscheme take
effect by August 2005, the Government will provide students with a
temporary right to exemption from the subject CREE. Under this
intermediate measure, a written notice from the parents will be
sufficient for the student to be exempted. Schools will have a duty
to attempt as far as possible to offer alternative teaching to
these students.
Your sincerely
Wegger Chr. Strømmen
Ambassador
Permanent
Representative
