cover image: Special Report - Freedom of Thought Reviving and Protecting a Forgotten Human Right

Special Report - Freedom of Thought Reviving and Protecting a Forgotten Human Right

4 Sep 2024

Enshrined in article 18 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, freedom of thought sits alongside the right to freedom of conscience and religion and complements the right to freedom of opinion, which sits alongside the rights to freedom of expression and freedom of information in article 19. [...] In a rare example of jurisprudence touching on freedom of thought, the European Commission of Human Rights found that the right applied to the “comprehensiveness of the concept of thought.”7 The HRC explains the scope and absolute nature of the right as “far-reaching and profound; it encompasses freedom of thoughts on all matters, personal conviction and the commitment to religion or belief, wheth. [...] Since then, official recognition of the relevance of the right has been reflected in the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child “General Comment on the Rights of the Child in the Digital Environment” (UN Committee on the Rights of the Child 2021) and in the first thematic report of a UN Special Rapporteur dedicated to analysis of the right to freedom of thought in the modern context (Shaheed 2021. [...] The importance of the right to freedom of thought and the potential harms of its violation are reflected both in the consequences for individuals affected and in the societal consequences of violations. [...] Disinformation and freedom of opinion and expression — Report of the Special Rapporteur on the promotion and promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression.

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Pages
22
Published in
Canada