The Challenge of Religious Discrimination at the Dawn of the New Millennium

The themes and issues explored in this book - religion, human rights, politics and society could not be more relevant to the post 11 September 2001 world. They lie at the heart of global political debate today. The collection explores these issues after the passing of just over two decades from the adoption of the United Nations Declaration on the Elimination of all Forms of Intolerance and Discrimination based on Religion or Belief. That declaration set out minimum international standards for the elimination of such discrimination. Sadly the challenge of intolerance on the basis of religion or belief continues to plague us, and tackling it seems to have become increasingly entrenched. The complexity of this phenomenon requires expertise from different quarters. This collection draws from diplomatic, activist and theological quarters and benefits from the analysis of scholars of law, history, religious studies and sociology. The ten chapters of this collection examine the relationship between human rights, law and religion; offer a typology for the study of religious persecution; problematise the consequences flowing from religious establishment in religiously plural society; analyse the implications of the directions being taken by the jurisprudence of the European Court of Human Rights and the protections offered by the European Commission council Directive 2000/43/EC outlawing workplace discrimination; study the 1981 Declaration and its promotion through the work of the UN Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Religion or Belief; and explore the intricacies of this freedom in detail from within the context of the United Kingdom and The Netherlands. Front Matter....Pages i-viii Introduction....Pages 1-7 The 1981 UN Declaration on the Elimination of All Forms of Intolerance and of Discrimination Based on Religion or Belief: Some Observations....Pages 9-31 The Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Religion or Belief....Pages 33-55 The Dimensions and Dynamics of Religious Discrimination: Findings and Analysis from the UK....Pages 57-81 A Human Rights Framework for Defining and Understanding Intra-Religious Persecution in Muslim Countries....Pages 83-105 Faith in Human Rights, Human Rights in Faith....Pages 107-132 Believing in Communities, European Style....Pages 133-155 Religious Discrimination in Britain: new opportunities and fresh challenges within employment....Pages 157-184 Freedom of thought, conscience and religion or belief in the context of recent social and political changes in the Netherlands....Pages 185-206 Fidei Defensor Revisited: Church and State in a Religiously Plural Society....Pages 207-222 The Place of Muslims in British Secular Multiculturalism....Pages 223-243 Back Matter....Pages 245-269 This volume combines edited chapters by academics, NGO and interfaith activists and government representatives who attended a spring 2001 human rights seminar at the U. of London, Institute of Commonwealth Studies, and additional chapters from invited contributors. The collection marks the 20th anniversary of the UN's 1981 Declaration on the Elimination of all Forms of Intolerance and Discrimination based on Religion or Belief. Coverage includes the origins and content of the 1981 Declaration; the UN's Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Religion or Belief; intra-religious persecution; various aspects of freedom of religion and belief in the UK and the Netherlands; the European Court of Human Rights; and the European Commission Council Directive regarding workplace discrimination. Annotation : 2004 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)