Prince or Pariah? The Place of Freedom of Religion in a System of International Human Rights

Lorenzo Zucca 

King's College London School of Law
February 13, 2013

Philosophy of Human Rights, OUP, 2013 Forthcoming 
Abstract:      
The human right to freedom of religion (HRFR) has radically different understanding in the historical constitutional instruments of the US and Europe. It is for example embedded in the first amendment of the American Constitution but finds no explicit recognition in the French Declaration of Rights. The question that emerges from this simple starting point is: what is the place of freedom of religion in a system of protection of international human rights? Is there a single answer to this question or is it a deeply contingent matter that depends on discrete constitutional histories? This chapter attempts to unravel this deeply contentious issue, which goes at the very core of disagreement about the nature of the human rights to freedom of religion. Lacking agreement on what constitutes freedom of religion, international intervention should limit itself to the bare minimum on that ground. This makes freedom of religion a pariah at the international level.

Full text available at: http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2216744