Religious Minorities and Their Rights in Latvia

Abstract

AbstractThis chapter seeks to reveal the current status of religious minorities in Latvia. The notion of ‘traditional religious organisation’ used to be widespread in Latvian public discourse, which assumes the existence of the opposite concept, i.e., an ‘untraditional religious organisation’ or a ‘religious minority’. However, the judgement of the Latvian Constitutional Court of 26 April 2018 acted as a ‘game-changer’ within the national legal system. The concept of ‘new religious movements (organisations)’ or ‘newly established congregations’, which used to comprise the concept of a religious minority and was included in the Latvian Law on Religious Organisations, was officially revoked in order to bring more equality between religious groups. This chapter presents the current situation regarding religious minorities in Latvia, analyses the legal background of the aforementioned judgement, and then focuses on the right of minor religious communities to obtain the official status of a religious organisation.KeywordsReligionsReligious minoritiesFreedom of religionThe right to freedom of conscienceTraditional religious organisationPrinciples in the relationship between the State and religious organisations