Incidents or WHAT HAS HAPPENED?

This section illustrates discrimination on the basis of religion and belief, taking real cases. The cases mentioned do not necessarily exactly mirror the actual lawsuits, as they may be simplified for sake of clarity. The discrimination they involve was not always proved in court, and some cases did not reach trial.

The cases given are used as examples for thought and contemplation on various forms of discrimination. The real lawsuits with precise descriptions and verdicts can be found in the section called Judikatúra (Jurisdiction).

• Law that discriminates

Enforced laws can also discriminate, as in the example of a law governing identity cards which prescribes how a person should look in an official photograph for documents. According to this law, a person must be photographed without headgear. In this case, Muslim women are discriminated against because covering their hair represents their bond to their religious persuasion and still they must appear in official pictures with hair uncovered. There is no objective reason for such a restriction since the Muslim woman in question most likely always wears headgear, and therefore it is her most usual appearance. Furthermore, the same law allows Catholic nuns to be covered in their traditional dress when in official pictures. Concluding from these examples, such law treats nuns and Muslim women - who both wear headgear for religious reasons - in a different manner.

• Unfavorable conditions when registering new churches

In 2007 a new amendment was ratified on church status. Many experts regard it as discriminatory in relation to members of smaller religious communities that strive for registration. The amendment not only validates the conditions for registration, such as proof of at least 20.000 followers of the given religion (like the former law anchored), but also requires statutory declaration from 20.000 adult persons with a permanent residence in the Slovak Republic that they are regular members of the given community and that they are familiar with the basic principles of their religion.

Of all churches registered to date, the majority would not be able to fulfill this condition if they had to. The suspicion exists that the amendment was aimed directly against Muslims and other small religious communities in Slovakia. According to initiators of the amendment “a complete liberalization of the registry’s conditions is presently impossible given that Slovakia does not yet consider a total financial separation of registered churches from the state, as well as the fact there are noticeable cultural and historic specifics of the country”. Initiators claimed the given terms do not violate the constitutional rights and freedoms of smaller church members as they are still allowed to gather and pray without limitation.

However, in 2004 the Attorney General of the SR expressed a different opinion, proposing an incentive at the Constitutional Court of the SR on the discrepancy between the registration limit and the Constitution of the SR as well as the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms. In this document the Attorney General declared that ”the state in requiring a registration census discriminates those citizens who profess a religion or belief of yet unregistered religious association in Slovakia, because in contrast with other believers they cannot practice their religion to its full extent due to its size” In other words, members of smaller “new” churches are discriminated against when compared to members of small but “older” churches. The Constitutional Court of the SR did not manage to decide the case before passing the given amendment after which the Attorney General's office withdrew the incentive concerning the already ineffective law.

Registered churches and religious associations in Slovakia have those rights:

Churches and religious associations are allowed to provide religious and material services, teach religion, teach and train their spiritual leaders and staff in their own schools and other facilities, theological faculties and universities, organize gatherings without prior notice, own movable and immovable property and have other proprietary rights, found and operate special/purpose facilities, prints, publishers, own cultural institutions, medical and social service facilities, attend a service provision in state facilities in accordance with generally binding directives. They have a right to send their representatives abroad and receive foreign churches delegates from abroad. It follows from directive č. 308/1991 Col. on freedom of religious faith and status of churches and religious associations within the meaning of former directives which also asserts that ”the state recognizes only registered churches and religious associations”.

Based on agreements with registered churches and religious associations, the state guarantees inviolability of sacred places and temples which are by canon law and internal directives of churches aimed at conducting religious acts and rituals. Consequently, it is not exactly truthful when many politicians supporting the amendment claim that members of registered and unregistered churches have equal rights and freedom to profess their religion publicly.

• Teaching religion in schools

Article 23 of the Constitution ordains that churches and religious associations “provide religion classes” and act n. 308/1991 Col. says that believers have a right to be educated in a religious way, or teach religion after fulfilling the conditions constituted by the internal directives of a church or religious association and generally binding regulations. The right for religious education is based in directive n. 29/1984 Col. Religion can be taught only by registered churches and religious associations in all schools and educational institutions accredited in Slovakia.

It is obligatory in Slovak Schools that students make a choice between taking religion or ethics. The minimum number of students enrolled in either religion or ethic classes is 12. If the number of students is lower than 12, a school’s principal permits religion classes during classes of other church or ethics or after other classes have ended. Registered churches and religious associations are allowed to enroll students of different age groups and professions in religion classes upon agreement.

Troubles arise in so called ”strong Catholic regions” where applicants for Roman-Catholic education almost completely prevail and other students in the same school have difficult access to different religion classes or classes of ethics. Despite the fact that directives offer alternative solutions for these kind of situations, the administration of school XY handled this problem by asking for the “voluntary” consent of children by their parents to visit Roman-Catholic religion classes even though they had been raised in an atheist family. When parents objected, their family became a target for mockery and they were scorned by the school community. This approach is considered discrimination on the grounds that religion, including the lack of religious affiliation, is a basic human right according to the Constitution and may not become a reason for discrimination.