freedom of religious beliefs [ freedom of religious worship ]

political rights [ political freedom | civil and political rights(UNBIS) ]

freedom of movement [ freedom to travel | right to freedom of movement | right to move freely ]

freedom of assembly and of association

freedom of religion | freedom of religious belief

Sakharov Prize | Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought

New Testament Church of God

Church of God of Prophecy

Definition: Persecution or discrimination, perceived or real, on the basis of membership of some group (as defined by skin colour, religion, ethnic origin, etc.) rather than personal characteristics.

106. Condemns severely any persecution based on religion or belief; remains committed to the realisation of freedom of religion in all parts of the world as part of enhanced EU efforts in its bilateral and multilateral action; restates its concern regarding full and effective respect for the right to freedom of religion for all religious minorities in a number of third countries; reiterates its call on the Council and Commission to urgently develop a toolkit on the advancement of the right to freedom of religion or belief in the EU's external policy, including mechanisms to identify infringements and actions that the EU should underta ...[+++]ke in these cases, and to involve Parliament, civil society organisations, and academics in its preparation; welcomes the EU's action in various UN forums against intolerance and discrimination based on religion or belief and its unwavering and principled stance against the resolutions on combating defamation of religions; maintains that freedom of assembly is a vital aspect of the right to freedom of religion or belief, and stresses that registration of religious groups should not be a prerequisite for practising one's faith; calls on the EU Fundamental Rights Agency to provide Parliament with accurate and reliable data on infringements of freedom of religion or belief in the European Union, and to advise as to how these could be tackled;

102. Condemns severely any persecution based on religion or belief; remains committed to the realisation of freedom of religion in all parts of the world as part of enhanced EU efforts in its bilateral and multilateral action; restates its concern regarding full and effective respect for the right to freedom of religion for all religious minorities in a number of third countries; reiterates its call on the Council and Commission to urgently develop a toolkit on the advancement of the right to freedom of religion or belief in the EU‘s external policy, including mechanisms to identify infringements and actions that the EU should underta ...[+++]ke in these cases, and to involve Parliament, civil society organisations, and academics in its preparation; welcomes the EU‘s action in various UN forums against intolerance and discrimination based on religion or belief and its unwavering and principled stance against the resolutions on combating defamation of religions; maintains that freedom of assembly is a vital aspect of the right to freedom of religion or belief, and stresses that registration of religious groups should not be a prerequisite for practising one’s faith; calls on the EU Fundamental Rights Agency to provide Parliament with accurate and reliable data on infringements of freedom of religion or belief in the European Union, and to advise as to how these could be tackled;

108. Urges the EEAS to develop a permanent capacity within the Global and Multilateral Directorate-General to mainstream the issue of freedom of religion or belief across the geographical directorates and units, as well as linking the issue into general human rights promotion within the same DG and advancing the issue in international and multilateral organisations; encourages the EEAS to report on an annual basis on progress on freedom of religion or belief in the world;

107. Stresses in particular the importance of engaging in a constructive dialogue with the Organisation of the Islamic Conference (OIC) on this issue; calls on the Council and the Commission to pay special attention to implementing the right to freedom of religion or belief in candidate and ENP countries, especially in the light of the Arab Spring; expresses its profound concern about the increasing number of acts of religious intolerance and discrimination in various countries; strongly condemns all acts of violence against Christian, Jewish, Muslim and other religious communities, as well as all forms of discrimination and intoleran ...[+++]ce based on religion and belief against religious people, apostates and non-believers; stresses once again that the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion is a fundamental human right ; recognises the growing need in a number of countries for conflict transformation and reconciliatory efforts, including inter-faith dialogue at various levels, and urges the EU and VP/HR Ashton to address discriminatory and inflammatory content, e.g. in the media, and the issue of obstacles to the free profession of faith in its/her dialogues with third countries in the context of EU initiatives on human rights; considers that in third countries where religious minorities are faced with violations of their rights, such problems cannot be solved by protecting and isolating them ‘from’ the surrounding societies and thus creating ‘parallel societies’; urges the EEAS and the EU Member States, in the light of recent events in countries such as Nigeria, Egypt and Indonesia, to put in place concrete actions to help prevent the emergence of a cycle of violence;