Discussions
Taming the gods: religion and politics
At the 2013 Jaipur Festival, Ian Buruma, Reza Aslan, Ahdaf Souief and Timothy Garton Ash, in conversation with Shoma Chaudhury, talk about the relationship between religion and politics and how to deal with religious threats to free speech.
Al-Azhar’s “Bill of Rights”
Following the Arab Spring, a venerable Islamic institution’s new Statement on Basic Freedoms suggests where sharia law may (and may not) be compatible with international conventions to guarantee free expression.
The defamation of religion
Three human rights experts scrutinise the defamation of religion, which they argue misses the point by protecting faith rather than the often vulnerable holders of faith.
Does Salman Rushdie exist?
"The one thing not at issue in the Jaipur controversy was some theologically motivated attack on the freedom of expression," writes historian Faisal Devji.
Islam between free speech and hate speech
The execution of apostates should be annulled but insulting religion should be recognised as a crime, writes Iranian cleric Mohsen Kadivar.
Case studies
Is the European Court of Human Rights merely defending the uncontroversial?
A famous case of state censorship in Austria highlights the tendency of governments to pander to the majority, leaving controversial views unprotected. By Michele Finck.
Does the Strasbourg court allow too much for local taboos?
En 2005, l’arrêt I.A. contre Turque constituait un précédent controversé concernant l’interprétation restrictive de l’article 10 de la Convention européenne des droits de l’homme au nom de la religion explique Michèle Finck
What’s your beef with my freedom to eat it?
Bans on eating beef and pork are contested in India. Manav Bhuhshan discusses why this is an issue of caste discrimination and can be seen as a restriction on freedom of expression.
Pussy Riot, Putin’s Russia and the Orthodox Church
Was punk band Pussy Riot’s anti-Putin performance in a Moscow church 'religious hatred hooliganism' or an artistic form of political dissent? Olga Shvarova considers the case.
Raising a “religious youth” in Turkey
A new law allowing parents to send their children to Islamic schools at an earlier age has polarized Turkish society, write İrem Kök and Funda Üstek.
