Article 9 of the ECHR reads:
“1 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.
2 Freedom to manifest one’s religion or beliefs shall be subject only to such limitations as are prescribed by law and are necessary in a democratic society in the interests of public safety, for the protection of public order, health or morals, or for the protection of the rights and freedoms of others.”
The freedom of thought, conscience and religion is considered to be one of the foundations of a democratic society, and the right to manifest one’s religion or beliefs also includes a negative aspect, namely the right not to be forced to disclose one’s religion or beliefs, nor to be obliged to act in a way that enables one to infer those beliefs (see more on the content of Article 9 at 1, 2).
On 25-6-2020 the decision (1, 2, 3) in the case Stavropoulos and Others v Greece (case no. 52484/18) was issued.
In this case, the applicants complained that the insertion of the word “onomatodosia” next to the name of the third applicant on her birth certificate violated the negative aspect of the freedom to manifest their religious beliefs.
The Ombudsman, who was invited by the President of the Chamber to intervene in the proceedings, submitted some observations on the matter (see paragraphs 40-42 for those observations).
The ECtHR noted that the word in question was not written inadvertently on the birth certificate and carries connotations with regard to the manner in which the third applicant acquired her name (through a naming certificate rather than baptism). The appearance of such information on a public document issued by the state interferes with the applicant’s right not to be obliged to express their beliefs. The court therefore concluded that there had been an interference with the negative aspect of the applicant’s right to manifest their religion and found a violation of Article 9 ECHR.
The fundamental rights that every citizen should enjoy are enshrined in the European Convention on Human Rights. It is a primary obligation of the State to respect these rights.
In this case, however, the European Court of Human Rights held that the applicants’ right to the freedom of thought, conscience and religion, as enshrined in Article 9 of the ECHR, had been infringed upon, because the wording used on the third applicant’s birth certificate constituted an interference with the right of the applicant not to disclose their religious beliefs.
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