MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION

13.11.2007

with request for inclusion in the agenda for the debate on cases of breaches of human rights, democracy and the rule of law
pursuant to Rule 115 of the Rules of Procedure
by Hélène Flautre, Raül Romeva i Rueda
on behalf of the Verts/ALE Group
on Human Rights Violations of the Freedom of Thought, Conscience and religion

NB: This motion for a resolution is available in the original language only.

B6‑0458/2007

European Parliament resolution on Human Rights Violations of the Freedom of Thought, Conscience and religion

The European Parliament,

• -having regard to Article 18 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) of 1948,
• -having regard to Article 9 of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) of 1950,
• -having regard to Article 18 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) of 1966,
• -having regard to the UN Declaration on the Elimination of All Forms of Intolerance and of Discrimination based on Religion and Belief of 1981,
• -having regard to the reports of the UN Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief and in particular, her reports of 8 March 2007, 20 July 2007 and 20 August 2007,
• -having regard to Rule 115(5) of its Rules of Procedure,
• A.whereas, according to International Human Rights law and namely, Article 18 of the ICCPR, “everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion; this right includes freedom to change his religion or belief and freedom, either alone or in community with others and in public or private, to manifest his religion or belief, in worship, teaching, practice and observance”;
• B.whereas UN Special Rapporteur on Freedom of religion or belief, Asma Jahangir, highlights worrying situations where the freedom to adopt, change or renounce a religion or belief has been infringed and reports back numerous cases of inter-religious discrimination and violence, killings and arbitrary detention for reasons of religion or belief;
• C.whereas women are in a particularly vulnerable situation and suffer from aggravated discrimination with regard to their religious, ethnic and sexual identities, such as practices that are harmful to the health, attacks on the right to life, honour killings, and attacks on their dignity, such as restrictions related to education or their exclusion from certain functions;
• D.whereas other groups of people such as refugees, internally displaced persons, asylum-seekers, migrants, persons deprived of their liberty, ethnic, religious and linguistic minorities and children of believers also face a growing number of violations of the right to freedom of religion or belief; recalling, in this respect, that the principle of non-refoulement, according to Article 33 of the Geneva Convention, prevents Contracting States from expelling or returning a refugee to the borders of territories where his life or freedom would be threatened on account of his religion;
• E.whereas human rights are exercised in a context where rights coexist with each other and emphasizing the interrelated and indivisible nature of human rights and freedoms; recalling therefore the interdependence between the freedom of thought, conscience and religion and freedom of expression which, as articulated in Article 19 of ICCPR, constitutes a pillar of democracy and reflects a country’s standard of justice and fairness;
• 1.Points out that the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion is a fundamental human right which is guaranteed by various international legal instruments; recalls, at the same time, its attachment to the fundamental notion of interdependency of human rights;
• 2.Strongly condemns all kinds of discrimination and intolerance based on religion and belief and acts of violence against all religious communities; urges the concerned countries to ensure that their constitutional and legislative systems provide adequate and effective guarantees of freedom of religion or belief as well as effective legal remedies for victims where the right to freedom of religion or belief is violated;
• 3.Calls therefore on EU Member States as well as Partner countries to fully cooperate with UN Special procedures and in particular, to issue a standing invitation to the Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief so as to facilitate the assessment of the State’s respect in this matter;
• 4.Calls on the Council and the Commission to take duly account of the promotion of the freedom of thought, conscience and religion into its human rights policy with third countries and notably, in the context of country strategy papers, bilateral action plans, ENP sub-committees on human rights and human rights dialogues;
• 5.Calls in particular on third countries and neighbour countries to ensure that freedom of thought, religion and belief be respected in both law and practice according to their international commitments and to release all those imprisoned for their beliefs;
• 6.Calls on the EU to play a leading role in developing a genuine human right culture based on inter-religious understanding and tolerance with the view to develop respect for pluralism;
• 7.Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission, the Governments of the EU Member States and the UN Human Rights Council.