No one shall be subject to discrimination by any State, institution, group of persons or person on grounds of religion or other beliefs.

Introduction

Article 2 in the 1981 U.N. Declaration paradigm, is to learn to identify who can be identified as committing alleged acts of discrimination, and who the victims may be. The U.N. makes it clear that States are to police their own acts of state institutional discrimination, as well as religious and non-religious institutions, non-governmental organizations, unaffiliated groups of persons or persons. According to the Bahiyyih G. Tahzib commentary, this represents “a bold attempt to require countries to outlaw private discrimination as well as discrimination by the state, a strategy not mirrored in the U.N. conventions on racial or gender discrimination.” 15

Objectives

Learn to identify the four types or categories who may allegedly discriminate, or be discriminated against, based on religion or belief.

• State
• Institution
• Groups of Persons
• Person

Term 2.1.1: State

• State: A State is defined as a body of people living under a single independent government; a nation. This includes the territory of the government and all its political and geographic subdivisions, and everyone who represents or works for federal, regional and local governments, departments and agencies. There are usually federal, regional and local government offices in a community, with many sub-divisions and departments. For our purposes, it is important to identify the major ones such as federal government ministries, a city or village council, police department, zoning department, public health department, housing department, public school boards, etc. Many of these State representatives in your community should be listed by now in your Community Resources List. If they represent the public through the State in any way, they are prohibited from all forms of coercion or impairment that may be discriminatory based on religion or belief.

Term 2.1.2: Institution

• Institution: Institution is defined as an organization, especially one with a public purpose. However, the 1981 U.N. Declaration does not define the term that way, or any way. For our purposes, an institution refers to any non-governmental organization including places of worship, religious schools, private schools, religious or private universities or colleges, for profit corporations, not-for-profit corporations, legally incorporated associations, non-governmental human rights organizations, etc. In other words, this may be any legal corporation that is not a State or governmental entity. Many of these institutional representatives in your community should be listed by now in your Community Resources List. Organizations defined in this way as institutions are prohibited from all forms of coercion or impairment that may be discriminatory based on religion or belief.

Term 2.1.3: Group of Persons

• Group: Group is defined as a number of persons classified together by common characteristics, interests, etc. A group is not a legal entity such as a state or institution. Groups of people form within States, institutions, religions or beliefs, non-governmental organizations, or smaller groups within larger groups, around common interests. A non-traditional religious group is sometimes referred to as a sect, a term that is used pejoratively by some people. The General Comment on Article 18 warns against discrimination of a sect, “The terms belief and religion are to be broadly construed. Article 18 is not limited in its application to traditional religions or to religions and beliefs with institutional characteristics or practices analogous to those of traditional religions.” 16 Because the U.N. does not define what a “group of persons” is, we use the entity test, either they are an institution/organization, or an unaffiliated group which cover religious and non-religious beliefs, and groups of people in all other sectors of society that come together for a common interest.

2.1.4 Person

• Person: An individual human being. The United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights is committed to the inherent dignity, equal and inalienable rights of all members [persons] of the human family, which includes protection for the rights of all religious and non-religious beliefs under the international rule of law. Freedom of conscience, to believe or not to believe, as a person so chooses, is a fundamental human right. This protection includes the right as an individual not be discriminated against on the grounds of religion or belief. But it also includes an obligation or duty on the part of persons not to discriminate against others on the basis of religion or belief.

Related Examples

• Georgia: The U.N. Special Rapporteur, in his report to the General Assembly of 8 September 2000, reported that in Georgia, on 17 October 1999, “a mob led by Bassilists (followers of the teachings of a priest excommunicated by the Georgian Orthodox Church) is alleged to have perpetrated a violent attack on 120 Jehovah’s Witnesses, including women and children, during a religious service in Tbilisi. The police were called, but reportedly refused to protect the Jehovah’s Witnesses, 15 of whom are said to have been hospitalized.” Would this related example be reported as discrimination by a group of persons against another group of persons, even though both groups were part of larger legal entities, the Georgian Orthodox Church and the Jehovah’s Witnesses church? Is the police refusal to protect the Jehovah’s Witnesses against violent forms of coercion, an act of discrimination by the State to maintain pubic safety and order?
  
• Israel: In the same U.N. report it was alleged, in Israel, that “near Holon, a synagogue has reportedly been built on the tomb of a sheikh in a Muslim cemetery after a Jewish religious group declared it to be the site of the tomb of Shimon Ben-Ya’akov”. How would this related example be classified? As institutional discrimination by the Jewish Orthodox faith in that it involved the building of a synagogue, or as discrimination by a group of persons, a Jewish religious group that was involved in building the synagogue? What specific rights in Article 6, paragraph 6.1 were violated?

Learning Experiences

If several monitors are taking this study topic together, a discussion is suggested of the four classifications capable of acts of discrimination; state, institution, group of persons, person, is suggested. Assign a monitor to lead the discussion by asking the group to list examples in your community of each of the four classifications.

TOPIC NOTES

PARAGRAPH 2.1: FOUR CATEGORIES

No one shall be subject to discrimination by any State, institution, groups of persons or person on grounds of religion or belief.

Paragraph 2.1 adds a second dimension of understanding to the 1981 U.N. Declaration as a paradigm for a community report on human rights and freedom of religion or belief. If a case study consists of learning what, where, when, who and why, paragraph 2.1 asks the question who discriminates and against whom? For instance, in the paragraph 1.2 on coercion, who is being allegedly charged with coercion and who was allegedly coerced?

Term 2.1.1: States

Update your Community Resources contact list to make sure you have as many of the federal, regional and community governmental offices as possible on the list. Research past media stories, do interviews, talk with neighbors in the community, to see if anyone knows if acts of intolerance and discrimination based on religion or belief have been committed by representatives of the police, city hall, village hall, zoning board, religious affairs office, school board, health, housing or welfare departments, employment departments, etc. Pick five State (governmental offices and departments) examples that may have allegedly committed discrimination in the past few years. Describe them below. These may be used as case study examples in your community report on human rights and freedom of religion or belief.

Term 2.1.2: Institution

Read the definition for institution in this study topic. Update your Community Resources contact list to include as many legal corporations as possible in your community. Research past media stories, do interviews, talk to neighbors, to see if there are any of these institutions that may have allegedly committed acts of discrimination or had acts committed against them in the past few years. Write five examples using at least two places of worship, a religious school, a private school, a profit business corporation and a non-governmental organization. Summarize below keeping in mind they may be used as case study examples for your community report on human rights and freedom of religion or belief.

Term 2.1.3: Group of Persons

Read the definition of Group of Persons. This is any non-legal group of people that may reside within the State, a religion or belief, a school, a private profit corporation or non-governmental organization. Your research on institutions may turn up groups of persons who allegedly have committed actions of intolerance and discrimination based on religion or belief on their own, without the knowledge of the institution. Pay special attention to small groups of non-traditional religions or beliefs that may be unaffiliated and discriminated against or who are committing acts of discrimination. Write five examples of groups of persons who may have been involved in such acts in the past few years. Summarize your research below, keeping in mind these examples may be used for case studies in your community report on human rights and freedom of religion or belief.

Term 2.1.4: Person

Read the definition of person in the study topic. Research the community to see if there are persons who have allegedly committed acts of discrimination or been discriminated against (conscientious objectors, etc.). Do not name names. Write the examples below keeping in mind they may be used for case studies in your community report on human rights and freedom of religion or belief.

15. Bahiyyih G. Tahzib, Freedom of Religion or Belief: Ensuring Effective International Legal Protection, Kluwer Law International, The Hague , The Netherlands (1996), p. 172 back

16. U.N. Doc. CCPR/C/18. The General Comment 22 on Article 18, (1993) paragraph 2. back