Religious organisations, internal autonomy and other religious rights before the European Court of Human Rights and the OSCE

This article considers the rights of religious organisations in Europe, by taking the position of the European Court of Human Rights and of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe. It primarily argues that religious organisations have a clear set of rights to internal autonomy, that is, to organise their own affairs, and that the State has a limited role. Nevertheless, in cases involving disputes between the rights of the organisation and the rights of others such as individual employees, there are complex balancing interests. This article also considers other rights of religious organisations, in particular their very right to existence and to legal entity status, their right not to be discriminated against, and other rights over property. Overall, what emerges is a clear set of rights to internal autonomy for religious organisations, a confirmation of rights to legal entity status, while other issues are more peripheral and not taken into account to the same extent.