Freedom of Thought, Conscience, and Religion

Abstract

Abstract The struggle for religious liberty in the international arena can be traced back to the battles of the sixteenth century, and possibly even to the Roman Empire. However it was not until the twentieth century that religious liberty finally attained positive recognition in international human rights instruments. Today, in addition to Article 18 of the International Covenant of Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), freedom of religion is guaranteed in Article 18 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights 1948 (UDHR), Article 9 of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR), Article 12 of the American Convention on Human Rights 1969 (ACHR), Principle VII of the Final Act of the Helsinki Conference on Security and Co-operation in Europe 1975, Article 8 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples Rights 1981, and Article 14 of the 1989 Convention on the Rights of the Child.