Balancing Religious Autonomy and Other Human Rights under the European Convention

This article addresses human rights conflicts between religious groups and individuals under the European Convention on Human Rights from the viewpoint of recognition of religious autonomy. The status of religious organizations and the treatment of collective religious liberty under the Convention are analysed, together with the implications for the state, before attention turns to various ways in which conflict with individual rights may occur and the main approaches to dealing with these conflicts. The questions of internal disputes within religious organizations, of procedural standards and human rights in religious adjudication, and dismissals following departure from the sexual and doctrinal standards of religious ethos employers are specifically addressed. There is evidence of a new contextual approach at the Strasbourg level but this needs to be applied in a way that recognizes the special contribution and diversity that religious groups bring to civil society.