Jehovah’s Witnesses to Appeal “Unconstitutional Ruling” in Norway

Key Points of the March 4, 2024 Court Judgement of the Oslo District Court

• The protection of having an inner conviction and the freedom to change one's religion or belief is absolute and inviolable. The freedom to express one's religion or belief can, however, be limited under the terms of Article 9 No. 2.
• Article 9 must often be seen in the context of other freedoms and rights.
• It is, for example, up to a religious community itself to decide who should be a member, including making decisions about exclusion. At the same time, it is emphasized that the right to free exercise of religion for individuals is secured by the right for the individual to leave a religious community, cf. HR-2022-883-A sections 45-47 and ECtHR, Mirolubovs et al. v. Latvia (2009) section 80 c ) and D).
• Through the policies and practices of exclusion, Jehovah's Witnesses encourage members who are ostracized or withdraw, so that with few exceptions they are exposed to social isolation from those remaining in the faith community. The court agrees with the state that this has effects that are to be regarded as serious violations of the rights and freedoms of others which provide grounds for refusing state subsidies and registration, cf. § 6 of the Religious Communities Act, cf. §§ 2 and 4.
• The court believes that Jehovah's Witnesses violate children's rights as sufficient grounds for refusing grants and registration. In particular, this applies to their right to freely opt out.
• Freedom of religion is protected by, among other things, Article 9 of the ECHR and Section 16 of the Constitution. The right to freely change religion or belief is absolute and inviolable. It provides strong protection against pressure or coercion that stands in the way of being able to exercise this right.
• Children should not be put in a situation where they bind themselves to rules that in practice will cause major obstacles to their right and freedom to change their religion or belief, both as minors and later in life. It is not sufficient to show that the minor is well acquainted with the practice of exclusion before baptism, or that the religious age of majority is 15.
• Children's rights are also violated by the fact that the social isolation that comes with the practice of exclusion, or the fear of being exposed to it, poses a risk of serious damage to their health and well-being. The treatment then qualifies as psychological violence and a violation of Article 19 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, cf. General comment no. 13 (2011) and John Tobin, The UN Convention on the rights of the child (2019) pp. 694 and 695.
• There is no doubt that Jehovah's Witnesses are responsible for the violations in the assessment of whether grants and registration should be refused according to the Religious Communities Act, cf.