Appendix 1 
The normative basis for the right to freedom of religion or belief

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights of 1948 lays the foundation for international efforts to protect human rights and applies to all UN member countries. Human rights have further been made legally binding by being incorporated into various international conventions and covenants, and member states ratifying these into legal obligations. The right to freedom of religion or belief is enshrined in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and in several regional human rights instruments.

Freedom of religion or belief means that all people have the right to choose and to practise their religion or belief, either alone or in community with others, in public or in private. It includes the freedom to convert to another religion, including to have no religion, to observe religious traditions in the daily life, including to openly display one’s religious affiliation. In other words, the right to freedom of religion or belief protects individuals, not ideologies or religions. Non-discrimination and freedom from coercion and harmful practices are core principles.

Freedom of religion or belief also has a collective dimension, which is closely linked to freedom of assembly. Collective freedom of religion or belief primarily focuses on the autonomy of religious communities: their right to exist and freedom to determine their own practices in accordance with their religion or beliefs. The individual and collective aspects of the right to freedom of religion or belief are inextricably linked. Government regulation will often have an impact on both.

Freedom of religion or belief is enshrined in Article 18 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Article 18 of in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, and Article 9 of the European Convention on Human Rights, which all set out that everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion.

This right includes the freedom to change one’s religion or belief, and the freedom, either alone or in community with others and in public or private, to manifest his religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship and observance.’

Article 18 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights:

1. Everyone shall have the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion. This right shall include freedom to have or to adopt a religion or belief of his choice, and freedom, either individually or in community with others and in public or private, to manifest his religion or belief in worship, observance, practice and teaching.
2. No one shall be subject to coercion which would impair his freedom to have or to adopt a religion or belief of his choice.
3. Freedom to manifest one’s religion or beliefs may be subject only to such limitations as are prescribed by law and are necessary to protect public safety, order, health, or morals or the fundamental rights and freedoms of others.
4. The States Parties to the present Covenant undertake to have respect for the liberty of parents and, when applicable, legal guardians to ensure the religious and moral education of their children in conformity with their own convictions.

The UN Human Rights Committee is the body of independent experts that monitors implementation of the ICCPR by its state parties. The Human Rights Committee’s General Comment No. 22 (1993) is a normative interpretation of Article 18 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. It points out that the freedom to manifest religion or belief encompasses a broad range of acts, including the building of places of worship, the observance of dietary regulations, the wearing of distinctive clothing or head coverings, participation in rituals associated with certain stages of life, and the use of a particular language customarily spoken by a group. In addition, the general comment specifically mentions ‘acts integral to the conduct by religious groups of their basic affairs’, such as ‘the freedom to choose their religious leaders, priests and teachers’.

The right to freedom of religion or belief promotes respect for diversity. It does not place one religion or belief system over another. It is not the role of the state to seek to change or influence religious traditions or the interpretation of these. At the same time, freedom of religion or belief includes the right of individuals to seek to bring about change in their own religious or belief communities, and the state has an obligation to protect such individuals from any coercion they may face from within their own communities.

Everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion. This right may not be restricted under any circumstances. Government authorities may, however, place certain limitations on the freedom to manifest one’s religion or beliefs. Any such limitations must be prescribed by law, and must be proportionate and necessary to protect public safety, order, health or morals, or the fundamental rights and freedoms of others.

Freedom of religion or belief is an integral part of the human rights system. The Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action, adopted at the UN World Conference on Human Rights in 1993, states that “all human rights are ‘universal, indivisible and interdependent and interrelated”, and that they must be treated “in a fair and equal manner” across the globe. It is only when all human rights are respected that the protection of human rights can be said to be complete and genuine.

Issues relating to freedom of religion or belief often involve sensitive political matters. This may partly explain why, despite the significant challenges in this area, such issues are only included in roughly 3 % of the recommendations made to individual countries under the Universal Periodic Review process. The UN Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief has called attention to this.

The thematic reports of the UN Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief will be of great use in the Foreign Service’s efforts in this area. See the website of the Special Rapporteur for information about the mandate. These guidelines seek to shed light on how the right to freedom of religion or belief is linked to other human rights and to show how this right can only be properly understood in the context of the broader human rights agenda.

For a more detailed discussion of the normative framework for the right to freedom of religion or belief, in Norwegian law, see chapter 5 in Prop. 130 L (2018–2019) Proposition to the Storting (Norwegian only), available on the Government website ( regjeringen.no ).