Kyriaki Topidi
European Centre for Minority Issues, Culture and Diversity, Department Member
- University of Fribourg, Institute of Law and Religion /Faculty of Law, Department Memberadd
- I have lectured extensively and researched in the areas of Public International Law, European Law, Human Rights and C... moreI have lectured extensively and researched in the areas of Public International Law, European Law, Human Rights and Comparative Law. My research interests focus on diversity management, minority protection rights and mechanisms (with a special interest in religion) and human rights law. My current research project deals with religious diversity in education.edit
Within the frame of the management of increasing cultural and religious diversity in Europe, concerns around minority religious schools are commonly identified within policies related to integration, social cohesion, citizenship and... more
Within the frame of the management of increasing cultural and religious diversity in Europe, concerns around minority religious schools are commonly identified within policies related to integration, social cohesion, citizenship and rights to religious freedom and education. In the present policy paper, the main question is whether the creation (and proliferation) of such minority religious schools and religious education related to the Muslim faith represents an effort of socio-cultural preservation and reproduction of religious values that can be classified as a form of non-territorial autonomy (NTA), conducive to the integration of the minority group and the development of societal group coexistence within difference. To illustrate the issue, the brief examples of Belgium, Germany and the UK offer a short and concise overview of how the question of Islamic schools is treated in each context
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There has been considerable discussion on how the European Union (EU) has offered both internally and also in its external relations a largely unclear mandate to protect minorities within its space. Despite its mono-dimensional... more
There has been considerable discussion on how the European Union (EU) has offered both internally and also in its external relations a largely unclear mandate to protect minorities within its space. Despite its mono-dimensional anti-discrimination legal framework, the Union in its workings has considered alternative governance mechanisms in order to pursue indirectly a more efficient minority agenda. This chapter will argue that the present framework of action within minority protection at the EU’s internal and legal policy level on fundamental rights is in need of reinforcement at three distinct levels: first, in its continued focus on the implementation as well as on the adoption of legislation; second, in the sustained treatment of minority protection as a cross-cutting issue across all fields of competence of the EU; and finally, in the encouragement of the development of clear qualitative and quantitative indicators for minority protection for existing (and aspiring) member states. With the help of the review of the main instruments of law and policy on fundamental rights, the contribution will conclude that minority protection in the EU is under pressure to change its paradigm: this need for a shift is based on the underlying tension between non-discrimination and a more holistic minority approach that protects EU citizens and to some extent third-country nationals residing on its territory, in accordance with their needs.
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Ubuntu represents the African concept of humanness. It reflects the importance of community, solidarity and sharing. In terms of governance, the concept has begun to be considered more seriously as an approach that privileges community... more
Ubuntu represents the African concept of humanness. It reflects the importance of community, solidarity and sharing. In terms of governance, the concept has begun to be considered more seriously as an approach that privileges community rather than individualism in a variety of sectors, including environment management. Following this trend, it will be argued that it offers a viable approach to contemporary environmental governance.
The proposed chapter will begin with the necessary conceptual overview of the notion of Ubuntu, as a worldview rooted in African societies. This overview will cover the lack of a universally agreed definition of the term and the issue of its difficult transposition in Western epistemological thought. The second part of the contribution will attempt to answer two questions: the first one will focus on the conceptual uniqueness of the concept, especially as connected to the broader ethical/moral way (or duty) to be in relation to others. The second one will look at whether Ubuntu is indeed applicable only within the African context. The analysis will then justify why Ubuntu is relevant when connecting the local with the universal in legal and policy terms. The final section of this part will engage with the criticisms raised against Ubuntu, namely its vagueness, its collectivist dimension and its limited ‘exportability’ due to its anachronistic essence. The analysis will counter-propose a flexible interpretation of the concept where the connection of identity with solidarity becomes adjustable to contemporary conditions.
The third part of the chapter will consider the colonial and apartheid historical trajectories of the concept and how these have contributed to the shaping of the political aspects of Ubuntu.
Along a line of emerging scholarship, it will be argued that humans and the environment are an inseparable entity that must co-exist in a respectful and non-exploitative manner. In that sense, Ubuntu will be construed as part of African collective identity and morality. Ultimately, it will be concluded that the present environmental crisis can be treated as a religious and cultural problem connected to the neglect of Ubuntu and the horizontal relationships among all members of the universe. As such, sustainable utilization, management and conservation of natural resources become religious, cultural and moral issues to which the eco-wisdom of Ubuntu offers a valuable approach useful beyond the confines of the African continent.
The proposed chapter will begin with the necessary conceptual overview of the notion of Ubuntu, as a worldview rooted in African societies. This overview will cover the lack of a universally agreed definition of the term and the issue of its difficult transposition in Western epistemological thought. The second part of the contribution will attempt to answer two questions: the first one will focus on the conceptual uniqueness of the concept, especially as connected to the broader ethical/moral way (or duty) to be in relation to others. The second one will look at whether Ubuntu is indeed applicable only within the African context. The analysis will then justify why Ubuntu is relevant when connecting the local with the universal in legal and policy terms. The final section of this part will engage with the criticisms raised against Ubuntu, namely its vagueness, its collectivist dimension and its limited ‘exportability’ due to its anachronistic essence. The analysis will counter-propose a flexible interpretation of the concept where the connection of identity with solidarity becomes adjustable to contemporary conditions.
The third part of the chapter will consider the colonial and apartheid historical trajectories of the concept and how these have contributed to the shaping of the political aspects of Ubuntu.
Along a line of emerging scholarship, it will be argued that humans and the environment are an inseparable entity that must co-exist in a respectful and non-exploitative manner. In that sense, Ubuntu will be construed as part of African collective identity and morality. Ultimately, it will be concluded that the present environmental crisis can be treated as a religious and cultural problem connected to the neglect of Ubuntu and the horizontal relationships among all members of the universe. As such, sustainable utilization, management and conservation of natural resources become religious, cultural and moral issues to which the eco-wisdom of Ubuntu offers a valuable approach useful beyond the confines of the African continent.
Research Interests:
The chapter discusses the impact of the economic crisis and austerity measures in Greece on the exercise of fundamental rights and access to justice. It critically assesses the connection between a functioning judicial system and a... more
The chapter discusses the impact of the economic crisis and austerity measures in Greece on the exercise of fundamental rights and access to justice. It critically assesses the connection between a functioning judicial system and a stagnating, struggling economy in crisis using Greece as a case-study.
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This chapter discusses the legal aspects of the protection of unaccompanied and separated children from both the viewpoint of international humanitarian law as well as of international human rights law. The main question addressed,... more
This chapter discusses the legal aspects of the protection of unaccompanied and separated children from both the viewpoint of international humanitarian law as well as of international human rights law. The main question addressed, through the comparative study of the two legal frameworks, will concern the compatibility and complementarities of the two regimes but also their responsiveness and adequacy for current humanitarian crises. Do the two regimes award similar or contradictory rights? Do they result in the creation of legal gaps? The field for such application is the case of Iraq, where armed conflict has caught children for the third time in 20 years and where almost half of the population is under the age of 18. It concludes on the impact of the available frameworks on the legal standing and actual opportunities of unaccompanied and separated children to mend the rupture in their family ties that war has caused. Keywords: armed conflict; human rights law (HRL); humanitarian crises; international humanitarian law (IHL); Iraq; right to family reunification; separated children; unaccompanied minors
The Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities (FCNM) of the Council of Europe counts more than 20 years of existence in the European human rights landscape. Normatively, the protection of minority religious identity... more
The Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities (FCNM) of the Council of Europe counts more than 20 years of existence in the European human rights landscape. Normatively, the protection of minority religious identity is embedded in three main articles of the Convention: first, under Articles 7 and 8 which outline a general right to freedom of religion but also under Article 6 that considers religious minority rights for ‘new’ minorities as related to tolerance. The analysis that follows here will unfold in three stages: the first stage will engage with the crucial issue of the scope of protection of the FCNM and how this relates to the protection of religious minority rights contained in the Convention in today’s European societies. The second stage will focus on the main relevant articles of the FCNM that concern religious freedom. Starting with Articles 7 and 8 FCNM that focus on the religious rights of minorities stricto sensu, the discussion will then extend to Articles 5 and 6 FCNM due to their relevance for the religious rights’ exercise of minorities in their cultural and diversity management dimensions. This extension is necessary to illustrate the current implications of religious identity for minority-majority relations. Methodologically, the study relies heavily on a detailed survey of the four completed cycles of monitoring mapping the typology of issues pertaining to religious minorities as encountered by the Advisory Committee to the FCNM (ACFC) in the monitored states. The final stage of the analysis will provide some concluding thoughts on the general contribution of the ACFC towards standard setting on religious freedom in the European context.
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The traditional framework governing the relationship between the state and citizens has radically changed in the twenty-first century. Instead of a binary structure between two main actors - the state and the citizens- the present setting... more
The traditional framework governing the relationship between the state and citizens has radically changed in the twenty-first century. Instead of a binary structure between two main actors - the state and the citizens- the present setting involves multiple actors, both state and non-state, as well as transnational ones, all involved in the process of production of public goods. This plurality has inevitably affected the locus and operationalization of accountability. The purpose of this contribution is to reflect on the challenges that accountability is presented with in the area of online content moderation, with emphasis on practices adopted for the regulation of hate speech online. To do so, the chapter first considers the implications of the shift regarding online content moderation from states to online platforms, in the fast-developing area of digital constitutionalism. The analysis will deal not only with the role of the State in the digital environment, but also with that of Internet intermediaries – labelled as ‘private superpowers’- in providing more accountable webs of protection for affected individuals and groups in the post-truth era. The discussion of the regulatory ‘exchange’ between the two actors will reveal the difficulties and advantages of this evolving policy areas on the level of accountability for digital platform users.The second part of the analysis takes a closer look at how the most common tools of online content moderation pose in more specific terms a challenge to accountability, in order then to explore the current trends in the European legal landscape on the question. Ultimately, the chapter concludes with a consideration of the challenges ahead.
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Multiculturalism is continuously and relentlessly put to the test in the so-called West. The question as to whether religious or custom-based legal orders can or should be tolerated by liberal and democratic states is, however, by no... more
Multiculturalism is continuously and relentlessly put to the test in the so-called West. The question as to whether religious or custom-based legal orders can or should be tolerated by liberal and democratic states is, however, by no means a new challenge. The present article uses as its starting point the case of religious legal pluralism in Greece, as exposed in recent European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) case-law, in an attempt to explore the gaps and implications in the o cially limited use of sharia in Western legal systems. More speci cally, the discussion is linked to the ndings of the ECtHR on the occasion of the recent Molla Sali v. Greece case to highlight and question how sharia has been evolving in the European legal landscape.
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Europe is experiencing an intense dilemma in regulating hate speech and online harassment. The question in the European continent has shifted from whether there should be limits to freedom of expression to where these limits should be... more
Europe is experiencing an intense dilemma in regulating hate speech and online harassment. The question in the European continent has shifted from whether there should be limits to freedom of expression to where these limits should be placed. The aim of this chapter is to explore the features of some of the approaches undertaken in Europe on online hate speech regulation within the broader digital ecosystem, through a comparison between a supra-national and a national example, the EU and Germany respectively in order to reflect on the broad directions on the regulation of online content moderation as connected to hate speech. To do so, the analysis first discusses the normative underpinnings of hate speech regulation placing emphasis briefly on the main applicable international legal standards on the issue and then on the (often) invoked concepts of autonomy and dignity as they relate to freedom of expression. It then proceeds with an overview of the current features in the governance of online hate speech, approaching two concrete challenges in the regulation of online hate speech, namely the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) by Information Technology (IT) companies and the limits of the role of the states in online content regulation (digital authoritarianism). The second part of the article deals with the examples of the EU framework on online hate speech regulation as compared with the German one, in order to conclude arguing for the need for more regulatory imagination in combatting hate speech in the digital ecosystem that escapes the routine of shifting regulation to non-state actors, such as online intermediaries.
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Η ενισχυμένη θέση της θρησκείας στον δημόσιο χώρο επιβάλλει τον προσδιορισμό του ρόλου του κράτους έναντι της υποχρέωσής του να πα-ρέχει ένα σύγχρονο πλαίσιο θρησκευτικής αγωγής στη δημόσια εκπαίδευ-ση. Σε γενικές γραμμές, ο ρόλος του... more
Η ενισχυμένη θέση της θρησκείας στον δημόσιο χώρο επιβάλλει τον προσδιορισμό του ρόλου του κράτους έναντι της υποχρέωσής του να πα-ρέχει ένα σύγχρονο πλαίσιο θρησκευτικής αγωγής στη δημόσια εκπαίδευ-ση. Σε γενικές γραμμές, ο ρόλος του κράτους στη ρύθμιση της θέσης της θρησκείας στον δημόσιο χώρο έχει τρεις βασικές διαστάσεις κατά τη νομο-λογία του Ε∆∆Α: πρώτον, «να συμβιβάζει τα συμφέροντα των διάφορων θρησκευτικών ομάδων» , δεύτερον, «να δρα αμερόληπτα ασκώντας διαχειριστική εξουσία» και τρίτον, «να λειτουργεί ως ουδέτερος οργανωτής της θρησκευτικής ζωής (…)» . Με αφετηρία το πλαίσιο αυτό μέσα στο οποίο το κράτος ρυθμίζει την παρουσία της θρησκείας στον δημόσιο χώρο, η ανάλυση που ακολουθεί θέτει σε ένα πρώτο επίπεδο μια σειρά από ερωτήματα, όπως αυτά προκύπτουν από τον συσχετισμό της δημόσιας παιδείας με τη θρησκευτική αγωγή σε επίπεδο ανθρωπίνων δικαιωμάτων στην Ευρώπη. Πώς συνδέεται, για παράδειγμα, κατά τη νομολογία του Ε∆∆Α, το δικαίωμα στην εκπαίδευση με την άσκηση θρησκευτικών ελευθεριών; Ποιες προϋποθέσεις πρέπει να πληρούνται σύμφωνα με την ισχύουσα νομολογία του ∆ικαστηρίου του Στρασβούργου, προκειμένου να εξισορροπούνται τα δύο καίρια δικαιώματα στην εκπαίδευση και τη θρησκευτική ελευθερία; Στη συνέχεια και σε ένα δεύτερο επίπεδο, η ανάλυση εισάγει ένα πλουραλιστικό και διεπιστημονικό πλέγμα επιχειρημάτων, προκειμένου να θεμελιώσει τη θέση ότι η θρησκευτική εκπαίδευση αποτελεί δημόσιο αγαθό.
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While education remains strictly speaking within the realm of the state’s duty, the chapter challenges the assumption that autonomy is primarily perceived as personal autonomy. It explains how normative pluralism may operate on the level... more
While education remains strictly speaking within the realm of the state’s duty, the chapter challenges the assumption that autonomy is primarily perceived as personal autonomy. It explains how normative pluralism may operate on the level of a functional normative system (creating self-governing institutions within education) in the case of Britain, increasingly combined with a background of religious normativity.
Through the use of recent cases on segregation of boys and girls at faith schools, discrimination on admission criteria on the basis on faith to many of these schools as well as the growing discussion of British values taught at those same schools, the discussion engages with the development of the debate on faith-schools in its broader socio-legal dimensions.
Questioning the decline of religiosity in this field, the chapter will set out the major challenges for the state that this new ‘arrangement’ creates. Ultimately, it will also ‘re-read’ state-funded religious education as the next phase in the development of normative pluralism towards the protection of specific ethno-cultural groups in super-diverse contexts.
Keywords: religious freedom, equality, education, faith schools, normative pluralism, multiculturalism, England
Through the use of recent cases on segregation of boys and girls at faith schools, discrimination on admission criteria on the basis on faith to many of these schools as well as the growing discussion of British values taught at those same schools, the discussion engages with the development of the debate on faith-schools in its broader socio-legal dimensions.
Questioning the decline of religiosity in this field, the chapter will set out the major challenges for the state that this new ‘arrangement’ creates. Ultimately, it will also ‘re-read’ state-funded religious education as the next phase in the development of normative pluralism towards the protection of specific ethno-cultural groups in super-diverse contexts.
Keywords: religious freedom, equality, education, faith schools, normative pluralism, multiculturalism, England
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Similar to the colonial reality, some States maintain a compartmentalized arrangement of their societies, where religious groups are subjected to communal laws that form part of the 'official' State legal system. These same States endorse... more
Similar to the colonial reality, some States maintain a compartmentalized arrangement of their societies, where religious groups are subjected to communal laws that form part of the 'official' State legal system. These same States endorse these 'parallel' legal systems as a means to keep control over competing communities. Israel is one of these States. Ethno-religious communities in Israel are for the most equipped with their own communal courts, where communal judges sit. Any attempted reforms in personal status law are tainted in the Israeli context by the majority versus minority cleavage between Jews and Arabs. The focus of this paper is therefore to explore how, within a state-endorsed pluralist legal framework, minority religious systems evolve, navigate and reform, emphasizing the role played by actors in the judicial process, in particular judges (qadis) sitting in shari'a courts and adjudicating on family law cases.
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Faced with a piecemeal approach to hate speech in Europe, leading to the reduced visibility of the phenomenon with often serious consequences, a variety of regional and international organisations have contributed legal documents and... more
Faced with a piecemeal approach to hate speech in Europe, leading to the reduced visibility of the phenomenon with often serious consequences, a variety of regional and international organisations have contributed legal documents and interpretative recommendations that attempt to guide states in their practice of combating hate speech.
The present paper, following up on a previous one, will engage first with the international legal and regulatory framework of hate speech, placing emphasis on the European elements of the system in place. At a second stage, the paper will briefly survey twenty European national systems exposing the variety of regulatory patterns on the issue. Finally, the study will conclude with a list of common observations pertaining to the regulation of hate speech in the European continent, as they have emerged from the comparative analysis of the case-studies.
The present paper, following up on a previous one, will engage first with the international legal and regulatory framework of hate speech, placing emphasis on the European elements of the system in place. At a second stage, the paper will briefly survey twenty European national systems exposing the variety of regulatory patterns on the issue. Finally, the study will conclude with a list of common observations pertaining to the regulation of hate speech in the European continent, as they have emerged from the comparative analysis of the case-studies.
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Europe is experiencing at present intense dilemmas in regulating hate speech and online harassment. Free speech exercise can be offensive and even contribute to a climate of prejudice and discrimination against minorities. Often, the... more
Europe is experiencing at present intense dilemmas in regulating hate speech and online harassment. Free speech exercise can be offensive and even contribute to a climate of prejudice and discrimination against minorities. Often, the media exacerbate the tendency by reporting negatively about minorities. The first working paper on this topic engages with the normative dimensions of the balance between the need to control and limit incitement to violence in reconciliation with the fundamental right to freedom of expression.
Three distinct aspects of hate speech are covered: the first relates to the role of freedom of expression as a tool of inclusiveness. With the limits of liberal tolerance being unclear, just like the definition of hate speech itself, legal actors and systems are torn between criminalising the speaker’s motive alone or in conjunction with the effects of the speech. A survey of recent related European Court of Human Rights case-law demonstrates these ambiguities. The second aspect covered looks at the challenges of the regulation of the freedom of expression in the digital age, with emphasis of the online dimensions of the phenomenon from a legal perspective. The final aspect of the paper proposes an actor-based analysis of hate speech, as it emerges from the current regulatory frameworks applied. This section deals not only with the role of the State but also with that of equality bodies, political parties and private businesses in providing more efficient networks of protection of minorities from such violent expressions of hatred.
Three distinct aspects of hate speech are covered: the first relates to the role of freedom of expression as a tool of inclusiveness. With the limits of liberal tolerance being unclear, just like the definition of hate speech itself, legal actors and systems are torn between criminalising the speaker’s motive alone or in conjunction with the effects of the speech. A survey of recent related European Court of Human Rights case-law demonstrates these ambiguities. The second aspect covered looks at the challenges of the regulation of the freedom of expression in the digital age, with emphasis of the online dimensions of the phenomenon from a legal perspective. The final aspect of the paper proposes an actor-based analysis of hate speech, as it emerges from the current regulatory frameworks applied. This section deals not only with the role of the State but also with that of equality bodies, political parties and private businesses in providing more efficient networks of protection of minorities from such violent expressions of hatred.
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In the most common representations of the Polish people, the Catholic Church is not simply considered as a part of the Polish nation; it is the Polish nation. This is reflected in the constitutional relationship of the Church and the... more
In the most common representations of the Polish people, the Catholic Church is not simply considered as a part of the Polish nation; it is the Polish nation. This is reflected in the constitutional relationship of the Church and the State, in the form of a concordat. Yet, despite a formally constitutionally warranted separation, the Church retains heavy weight in the legal and political debates to the point that currently, in a time of resurgence of populism across the globe, a number of right-wing parties adopt positions based on those of the Church, establishing a dangerous nexus between religion and nationalism. The aim of the present contribution is to map this unique process within Eastern Europe in order to show how, in the case of Poland, religious identity and the exercise of religious freedoms, despite its fragmented nature at the individual level of believers, has acquired the features of an autonomous field of intervention, with clear consequences on morality and the exercise of politics, as well as religious rights and freedoms of citizens. Using the example of religious education in public schools, the article will demonstrate the complex paths of the process of secularization in the light of the historical dynamics of state, nation, and Church in Poland. In fact, it will argue that we are gradually moving away from the triumph of secularism as a "teleological theory of religious development" but firmly entering the perilous territory of religious belief as a "traditional carrier of national identity." Tasked with the mission by Pope John Paul II to "restore Europe for Christianity," upon joining the EU in 2004 and based on the premise that "majorities have rights too," this shift implies new forms of religious nationalism for Poland that significantly affect religious freedom by creating dichotomies between "Us" and "Others." It also offers, similarly to other Eastern European countries, a nuanced interpretation of religious equality that assumes the role of law as limited to protecting religions recognized by reference to established traditions, ignoring the realities of pluralized religious markets.
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Drawing on Tom Bennett’s work on the constitutional ambivalence towards culture in South Africa within a normatively pluralist frame, the proposed paper will claim, explain and problematize the ‘reading’ of religion as a cultural... more
Drawing on Tom Bennett’s work on the constitutional ambivalence towards culture in South Africa within a normatively pluralist frame, the proposed paper will claim, explain and problematize the ‘reading’ of religion as a cultural phenomenon.
To do so, the analysis will operate on three levels: the first level will observe through constitutional practice and interpretation how religion has been ‘secularized’ and ‘culturalized’ at the same time, within a broader project of transformative constitutionalism, placing unambiguous emphasis on other important rights, such as equality. The fusion of religion with culture is indeed a recurring methodological instrument in different parts of the world to avoid engaging with the challenge of including religious identity in the open public space for fear of frontal conflicts. It also remains a largely unresolved theoretical issue in contemporary human rights discourse.
The second level of analysis will attempt to investigate the reasons for the lawmakers and the courts to prefer this approach, against the background of desegregation and the circumstances conditioning post-apartheid diversity management approaches in the country. Particular emphasis will be placed on the effects of the culturalization of religion in socio-legal terms.
The third level of analysis will be based on a comparative constitutional exercise that will illustrate how the treatment of religion as culture is not a phenomenon restricted to the South African context. The European context, in particular through the decisions of the European Court of Human Rights has often vested religion with the features of a cultural phenomenon, though not necessarily in an attempt to give secularism and secularity a more inclusive meaning.
The paper will conclude with a risk assessment of the (con)-fusion of religion with culture, against the context of persistent religiosity and the increasingly diversified needs of believers and non-believers.
To do so, the analysis will operate on three levels: the first level will observe through constitutional practice and interpretation how religion has been ‘secularized’ and ‘culturalized’ at the same time, within a broader project of transformative constitutionalism, placing unambiguous emphasis on other important rights, such as equality. The fusion of religion with culture is indeed a recurring methodological instrument in different parts of the world to avoid engaging with the challenge of including religious identity in the open public space for fear of frontal conflicts. It also remains a largely unresolved theoretical issue in contemporary human rights discourse.
The second level of analysis will attempt to investigate the reasons for the lawmakers and the courts to prefer this approach, against the background of desegregation and the circumstances conditioning post-apartheid diversity management approaches in the country. Particular emphasis will be placed on the effects of the culturalization of religion in socio-legal terms.
The third level of analysis will be based on a comparative constitutional exercise that will illustrate how the treatment of religion as culture is not a phenomenon restricted to the South African context. The European context, in particular through the decisions of the European Court of Human Rights has often vested religion with the features of a cultural phenomenon, though not necessarily in an attempt to give secularism and secularity a more inclusive meaning.
The paper will conclude with a risk assessment of the (con)-fusion of religion with culture, against the context of persistent religiosity and the increasingly diversified needs of believers and non-believers.
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Ελάχιστα αµφισβητείται σήµερα ότι βιώνουµε στην Ευρώπη ένα επίµονο νοµοθετικό κύµα απαγόρευσης της ισλαµικής µαντίλας σε δηµόσιους χώρους. Η αύξηση της ορατότητας της θρησκείας σε πολυπολιτισµικά περιβάλλοντα προκαλεί αντίστοιχη αύξηση σε... more
Ελάχιστα αµφισβητείται σήµερα ότι βιώνουµε στην Ευρώπη ένα επίµονο νοµοθετικό κύµα απαγόρευσης της ισλαµικής µαντίλας σε δηµόσιους χώρους. Η αύξηση της ορατότητας της θρησκείας σε πολυπολιτισµικά περιβάλλοντα προκαλεί αντίστοιχη αύξηση σε διενέξεις περί συµβόλων, πρόσβασης, αναγνώρισης, ακόµη και πόρων. Ο σκοπός του παρόντος άρθρου, σε αυτό το πλαίσιο, είναι να επεξηγήσει τα νομικά χαρακτηριστικά της σύγκρουσης μεταξύ της θρησκευτικής ελευθερίας και της ισότητας μέσα από την τροχιά των θρησκευτικών συμβόλων των μειονοτήτων. Θα ασχοληθεί με πρόσφατη εθνική και υπερεθνική ευρωπαϊκή νομολογία ως βάση προκειμένου να επεξηγήσει τους δικαιολογητικούς λόγους των περιορισμών ή απαγορεύσεων των θρησκευτικών συμβόλων, εστιάζοντας κυρίως στις μουσουλμανικές μειονότητες που βρίσκονται σε ευρωπαϊκό έδαφος. Ταυτόχρονα, θα προσπαθήσει να αποδομήσει τα χρησιμοποιούμενα ευρωπαϊκά νομικά πρότυπα για τα θρησκευτικά σύμβολα υπό το πρίσμα της αρχής της ισότητας.
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The chapter discusses the impact of the economic crisis and austerity measures in Greece on the exercise of fundamental rights and access to justice. It critically assesses the connection between a functioning judicial system and a... more
The chapter discusses the impact of the economic crisis and austerity measures in Greece on the exercise of fundamental rights and access to justice. It critically assesses the connection between a functioning judicial system and a stagnating, struggling economy in crisis using Greece as a case-study.
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Given the, often, abstract conceptual understanding of NTA, the aim of this chapter is not to provide an analysis of the ideal type(s) of cultural autonomy arrangements in minority group contexts. Instead, it purports to evaluate the... more
Given the, often, abstract conceptual understanding of NTA, the aim of this chapter is not to provide an analysis of the ideal type(s) of cultural autonomy arrangements in minority group contexts. Instead, it purports to evaluate the design, implementation and evolution of such arrangements between states and minority groups as applied in specific areas of minority culture.Following a first brief section that describes the main features of cultural autonomy (see also chapter 8), the chapter will focus on two important identity markers of minority groups to show how these have formed the basis for a number of NTA arrangements. These are language and religion which are at the heart of the protection of minority identities. Through the lens of these two important identity-markers, the chapter will adopt a double objective: first, to outline the variety of cultural NTA arrangements and their limitations from a diversity governance perspective on the basis of language and religion and second, to highlight the link between cultural forms of NTA and minority agency.
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The chapter looks at the legal situation in education with regards to the protection of religious diversity. Assuming that human rights are not fixed constructions that are included in legal systems, the paper demonstrates through... more
The chapter looks at the legal situation in education with regards to the protection of religious diversity. Assuming that human rights are not fixed constructions that are included in legal systems, the paper demonstrates through empirical analysis of the Swiss and British systems of adjudicating religious identity conflicts in public classrooms, why transnational law and transnational legal processes have become necessary to address these conflicts. The analysis reaches the conclusion, sourced from domestic and European case law, that classic judicial responses related to religious symbols or exemptions are inconsistent and unsatisfactory from both an individual and collective rights perspective, calling for more transnational responses to religious identity claims in multicultural settings.
Research Interests:
The chapter deals with the essential question of the nature of the relationship between law and religion. It is concerned with the scenarios where two elements overlap and/or collide. It is concerned with the questions surrounding the... more
The chapter deals with the essential question of the nature of the relationship between law and religion. It is concerned with the scenarios where two elements overlap and/or collide. It is concerned with the questions surrounding the patterns and conditions for the mobilization of religion towards an expansion of one's legal rights. The discussion confirms the importance of context in defining and studying the impact of religion on legal empowerment but argues that providing more public space to religion and the exercise of religious rights is necessary but not self-sufficient. It also cautions that not all differences ought to be legally protected within the growing disorder of legal hybridity within multicultural societies.
Research Interests:
The chapter focuses on the role that fundamental rights have played in demonstrating the possibilities and need for constitutional dialogue in a European Union of 27 Member States. It argues more specifically that following enlargement,... more
The chapter focuses on the role that fundamental rights have played in demonstrating the possibilities and need for constitutional dialogue in a European Union of 27 Member States. It argues more specifically that following enlargement, fundamental rights are necessary to foster essential constitutional communication between the various "languages" that courts speak within and beyond Central and Eastern Europe.
Research Interests:
The chapter begins with the assumption that there is an inherent interest in allowing religious expression in any given society but not just for reasons of respect of individual rights. Beyond, that there are also arguments that the... more
The chapter begins with the assumption that there is an inherent interest in allowing religious expression in any given society but not just for reasons of respect of individual rights. Beyond, that there are also arguments that the expression of religious rights contributes to the construction of identity, especially and particularly through the medium of public education. In order to make these points, the chapter proceeds a contrario and utilises different understandings of state neutrality as applied in the German and Turkish cases, as well as supra-nationally in Europe to demonstrate the need for a holistic interpretation of religious diversity in education.
Research Interests:
The chapter uses as its starting point the notion of state neutrality to problematize and reflect on the connection between religious rights and the EU constitutional space. It aims to deconstruct the notion of state neutrality towards... more
The chapter uses as its starting point the notion of state neutrality to problematize and reflect on the connection between religious rights and the EU constitutional space. It aims to deconstruct the notion of state neutrality towards religion and to do so compares the cases of Germany with Turkey.
Research Interests:
The chapter looks at the workings of legal pluralism in public education in a system that has been openly recognized as multicultural. It deals with the interplay of law and religion in public education through the versatility of... more
The chapter looks at the workings of legal pluralism in public education in a system that has been openly recognized as multicultural. It deals with the interplay of law and religion in public education through the versatility of religious law, legal pluralism as well as religion’s possible adaptation and reconciliation with modernity in the concrete Israeli setting. It explores more specifically how legal and policy responses to religious diversity in education are balanced (or not) with the exercise of other fundamental rights within a multicultural society as well as the implications that these clashes of rights produce. The basis of each conflict involving religion in the public sphere relates to whether the preservation of cultural identity should take priority over the enforcement of shared citizenship (values) or vice versa. It is the nature and resolution of these conflicts that the discussion will engage with.
To that effect, the chapter will focus on how, from a constitutional perspective, the rights to religious freedom, education and equality are balanced and through which constitutional tools they are operationalized. The factors of legal tradition, constitutional make-up, constitutional recognition of diversity/religion will be taken into account along with more socio-historical factors dictating constitutional choices.
To that effect, the chapter will focus on how, from a constitutional perspective, the rights to religious freedom, education and equality are balanced and through which constitutional tools they are operationalized. The factors of legal tradition, constitutional make-up, constitutional recognition of diversity/religion will be taken into account along with more socio-historical factors dictating constitutional choices.
Research Interests:
The chapter considers the intersection of religious rights and public education in legal pluralist environment. It discusses alternative approaches to the accommodation of religious diversity claims drawing inspiration from the cases of... more
The chapter considers the intersection of religious rights and public education in legal pluralist environment. It discusses alternative approaches to the accommodation of religious diversity claims drawing inspiration from the cases of Canada and South Africa.
Research Interests:
The primary aim of this contribution is to reflect on the regulatory arrangements and practices of the Greek state in the case of its historically present Muslim minority with emphasis on the area of family law. To do so, the first step... more
The primary aim of this contribution is to reflect on the regulatory arrangements and practices of the Greek state in the case of its historically present Muslim minority with emphasis on the area of family law. To do so, the first step of the analysis will be to present a brief overview of legal pluralism as a frame for the management of religious difference, stressing the kinds of questions that it poses for states and state law. The second stage of the discussion will introduce the distinct (within Europe) case of the Greek pluralist legal system, explaining both the past and present backgrounds of the prevailing arrangements. Within this frame, the case that reached the European Court of Human Rights of Molla Sali v Greece will be used in a double role: first, to outline in a socio-legal sense the type of legally plural arrangements prevailing in the case at hand; and second, to explore the European Court of Human Rights’ position vis-à-vis legal pluralism and sharia law in Europe. The final part of the discussion will evaluate the legal approach of the Greek state in dealing with religious plurality and transpose it to the broader critical frame of a relevant paradigm for diversity management.
Research Interests:
Current aims of the role and position of religious education in public schools at the global scale are still lingering between transmitting or instructing a specific religious system of faith to responding to the challenges of... more
Current aims of the role and position of religious education in public schools at the global scale are still lingering between transmitting or instructing a specific religious system of faith to responding to the challenges of globalization and super-diversity in more holistic terms. In other words, the constitutionally declared secular States are presently realizing the need to move beyond the mere acknowledgement of the relevance of religion to more pro-active attempts to control and/or at least influence prevalent discourses on religions as they are connected to religious diversity management. But states are not alone. This process is spearheaded considerably by the presence of religious institutions as actors within the education system. For education, this translates into attempts to influence and even control in some cases how beliefs and traditions are taught (e.g. through textbooks) with the broader intention to construct positive imagery of certain faiths. The paper will illustrate the growing awareness that non-state religious institutions and actors are increasing their leverage in organizing and dispensing public education with evidence from publicly funded education from England. They challenge the limits of the liberal state, using autonomy and human rights discourses towards the construction of pluri-legality through the content, the modalities and the implications of education for co-existence.
Through the example of faith schools in Britain, the discussion will illustrate the new discursive opportunities to negotiate and re-shape a central fundamental right, such as the right to education, in conjunction with other essential rights such as the freedom of religion and that to equality.
Questioning the impact of the decline of religiosity in this field, the chapter will set out the major challenges for the liberal constitutional state that this new ‘arrangement’ creates. Ultimately, it will also ‘re-read’ state-funded religious education as the next phase in the development of normative pluralism towards the protection of specific ethno-cultural groups in super-diverse contexts in multicultural and intercultural theoretical frameworks.
Through the example of faith schools in Britain, the discussion will illustrate the new discursive opportunities to negotiate and re-shape a central fundamental right, such as the right to education, in conjunction with other essential rights such as the freedom of religion and that to equality.
Questioning the impact of the decline of religiosity in this field, the chapter will set out the major challenges for the liberal constitutional state that this new ‘arrangement’ creates. Ultimately, it will also ‘re-read’ state-funded religious education as the next phase in the development of normative pluralism towards the protection of specific ethno-cultural groups in super-diverse contexts in multicultural and intercultural theoretical frameworks.
Research Interests:
Περιεχόμενα Συγγραφείς τόμου (με αλφαβητική σειρά) ............................. 5 Συντομογραφίες περιοδικών ................................................... 7 Πρόλογος... more
Περιεχόμενα
Συγγραφείς τόμου (με αλφαβητική σειρά) ............................. 5
Συντομογραφίες περιοδικών ................................................... 7
Πρόλογος .................................................................................... 9 Εισαγωγή.................................................................................... 11
Πρώτο μέρος: Δημόσιο Δίκαιο και Ανθρώπινα Δικαιώματα
Kyriaki Topidi - Religious visibility and non-discriminaiton in Europe:
Towards a paradigm shift?....................................................... 19
Μιχάλης Πικραμένος - Απαγόρευση των διακρίσεων και δημόσια λειτουργήματα:
Το Συμβούλιο της Επικρατείας και η ερμηνεία των εθνικών
και ενωσιακών κανόνων ....................................................... 34
Δημοσθένης Λέντζης - Οι πολλαπλές διακρίσεις στο δίκαιο της Ευρωπαϊκής
Ένωσης: Status quo και προοπτικές μεταβολής του..................... 53
Στέργιος Κοφίνης - Η ιθαγένεια ως ύποπτος λόγος διάκρισης:
Επεκτείνοντας την προστασία κατά των διακρίσεων στους πολίτες τρίτων χωρών (πρόσφυγες και μετανάστες) ........................... 67
Δεύτερο μέρος: Εργατικό και εν γένει Ιδιωτικό Δίκαιο
Lisa Waddington - Reasonable Accommodation for Persons with Disabilities:
Part of the Right to Equality and Non-Discrimination .............. 89
Δημήτρης Γούλας - Οι διακρίσεις σε βάρος εργαζομένων με προβλήματα
ψυχικής υγείας........................................ 98
Παναγιώτης Μπουμπουχερόπουλος - Η (ηθική) παρενόχληση στην εργασία
ως προσβολή της αξιοπρέπειας και ως διάκριση........................... 127
Kyriaki Pavlidou - Religious Expression in the Workplace Before the European
Court of Human Rights and the Court of Justice of the European Union: Discriminating Against a Fundamental Right?........................... 146
Ευάγγελος Αγγελόπουλος - Η οικονομική ανάλυση του δικαίου των διακρίσεων – Δικονομικές εκφάνσεις ..................................... 164
Τρίτο Μέρος: Οι διακρίσεις στην πράξη
Despoina Anagnostopoulou - Intercultural dialogue (ICD)
as a tool against racism..................................................... 181
Κωστής Παπαϊωάννου - Καταπολέμηση των διακρίσεων σε χώρα υπερηφάνως ομοιογενή και δημοσιονομικώς ασφυκτιώσα ............. 200
Joanna Tsiganou - Acute Discrimination in the Field of Entrepreneurship:
The case of Muslim Migrant and Roma Entrepreneurs in Contemporary
Greece under Crisis................................................... 207
Συγγραφείς τόμου (με αλφαβητική σειρά) ............................. 5
Συντομογραφίες περιοδικών ................................................... 7
Πρόλογος .................................................................................... 9 Εισαγωγή.................................................................................... 11
Πρώτο μέρος: Δημόσιο Δίκαιο και Ανθρώπινα Δικαιώματα
Kyriaki Topidi - Religious visibility and non-discriminaiton in Europe:
Towards a paradigm shift?....................................................... 19
Μιχάλης Πικραμένος - Απαγόρευση των διακρίσεων και δημόσια λειτουργήματα:
Το Συμβούλιο της Επικρατείας και η ερμηνεία των εθνικών
και ενωσιακών κανόνων ....................................................... 34
Δημοσθένης Λέντζης - Οι πολλαπλές διακρίσεις στο δίκαιο της Ευρωπαϊκής
Ένωσης: Status quo και προοπτικές μεταβολής του..................... 53
Στέργιος Κοφίνης - Η ιθαγένεια ως ύποπτος λόγος διάκρισης:
Επεκτείνοντας την προστασία κατά των διακρίσεων στους πολίτες τρίτων χωρών (πρόσφυγες και μετανάστες) ........................... 67
Δεύτερο μέρος: Εργατικό και εν γένει Ιδιωτικό Δίκαιο
Lisa Waddington - Reasonable Accommodation for Persons with Disabilities:
Part of the Right to Equality and Non-Discrimination .............. 89
Δημήτρης Γούλας - Οι διακρίσεις σε βάρος εργαζομένων με προβλήματα
ψυχικής υγείας........................................ 98
Παναγιώτης Μπουμπουχερόπουλος - Η (ηθική) παρενόχληση στην εργασία
ως προσβολή της αξιοπρέπειας και ως διάκριση........................... 127
Kyriaki Pavlidou - Religious Expression in the Workplace Before the European
Court of Human Rights and the Court of Justice of the European Union: Discriminating Against a Fundamental Right?........................... 146
Ευάγγελος Αγγελόπουλος - Η οικονομική ανάλυση του δικαίου των διακρίσεων – Δικονομικές εκφάνσεις ..................................... 164
Τρίτο Μέρος: Οι διακρίσεις στην πράξη
Despoina Anagnostopoulou - Intercultural dialogue (ICD)
as a tool against racism..................................................... 181
Κωστής Παπαϊωάννου - Καταπολέμηση των διακρίσεων σε χώρα υπερηφάνως ομοιογενή και δημοσιονομικώς ασφυκτιώσα ............. 200
Joanna Tsiganou - Acute Discrimination in the Field of Entrepreneurship:
The case of Muslim Migrant and Roma Entrepreneurs in Contemporary
Greece under Crisis................................................... 207
Research Interests:
This contribution will discuss, mainly from the perspective of the state, the implications of religious minority faiths reimagining their agency and of their working openly within civil society in European multicultural contexts. It will... more
This contribution will discuss, mainly from the perspective of the state, the implications of religious minority faiths reimagining their agency and of their working openly within civil society in European multicultural contexts. It will focus on how and why the developments outlined above inevitably shift the role of the state from ‘neutral’ moderator of the public space to partner in the effort to ‘accentuate the positive’. It will also place emphasis on how the recognition of minority faiths and religious actors is connected to the new parameters within the role of the state in religious diversity management. The discussion of the evolution of the role of the state in the management of religious diversity from a European perspective will unfold as follows: first, a theoretical connection between religious minorities and state recognition will be sketched, in order in a second stage to develop the link between religious minority agency (covering actors per se as well as related minority institutions) and state recognition. As a third step, the contribution will focus on the evolution of the role of state to respond to the changing sociolegal conditions of minority claims-making. The example of religious minority education within state-supported schools will be used as an illustration of the challenges connected to state recognition of religious minority groups. The concluding part of the discussion will attempt to demonstrate how the interaction between religious minority agency with recognition can function as a precondition towards inclusive law- and policy-making in religiously plural societies.