Kokkinakis v Greece 1993 ECHR 20
Citation: Kokkinakis v Greece 1993 ECHR 20
Rule of thumb: Can it be made a crime trying to get a person to convert to a religion? No, it is a violation of the right to freedom of religion to make this a criminal offence.
Judgment:
Freedom of thought is an absolute right, although freedom to practice one’s religion is a qualified right. The right to try and convert people to a religion is protected. It was held that religion is one area where greater care must be taken with speech so that all religions can co-exist peacefully together, ‘In so doing, it recognises that in democratic societies, in which several religions co-exist within one and the same population, it may be necessary to place restrictions on this freedom in order to reconcile the interests of the various groups and ensure that everyone’s beliefs are respected.’
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