A TALE OF TWO INSTRUMENTS: RELIGIOUS MINORITIES AND THE COUNCIL OF EUROPE'S RIGHTS REGIME

The European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) has increasingly deferred to States' margin of appreciation when considering interferences with the right to manifest religion under Article 9 of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR). In contrast, the Advisory Committee (AC) on the Framework Convention on National Minorities (FCNM), despite originally being feared to be a highly politicised body, has allowed States very little room for manoeuvre when considering the implementation of Convention rights. In order to explore these seemingly contradictory positions, this article examines the approaches of the ECtHR and the AC towards two controversial manifestations of religion: the right to construct places of worship and the right to wear religious clothing. It argues that the ECtHR, by developing minimum standards that defer to the prejudices of the majority, is in danger of undermining the progress made by the AC towards establishing consistent minority rights standards throughout Europe.