{"id":16094,"date":"2023-04-05T08:52:35","date_gmt":"2023-04-05T08:52:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/adfinternational.org\/?p=16094"},"modified":"2024-02-16T10:04:30","modified_gmt":"2024-02-16T09:04:30","slug":"former-eu-envoy-for-freedom-of-religion-tackles-covid-restrictions-on-public-worship-at-europes-top-human-rights-court","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/adfinternational.org\/news\/religious-freedom-covid-ecthr","title":{"rendered":"Former EU Envoy for Freedom of Religion tackles Covid restrictions on public worship at Europe\u2019s Top Human Rights Court"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t<div data-elementor-type=\"wp-post\" data-elementor-id=\"16094\" class=\"elementor elementor-16094\" data-elementor-post-type=\"post\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-42781ce elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"42781ce\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-e-type=\"section\" data-settings=\"{&quot;background_background&quot;:&quot;classic&quot;}\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-a4127c9\" data-id=\"a4127c9\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-00bab60 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"00bab60\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<ul>\n<li>\n<p><b>Dr. J\u00e1n Figel\u2019, former Special Envoy for Freedom of Religion or Belief outside the EU, challenges 2021 Covid restrictions on public worship in Slovakia at European Court of Human Rights.<\/b><\/p><\/li><li><p><b style=\"font-family: var( --e-global-typography-5916e0c-font-family ), Sans-serif; font-size: var( --e-global-typography-5916e0c-font-size ); letter-spacing: var( --e-global-typography-5916e0c-letter-spacing ); word-spacing: var( --e-global-typography-5916e0c-word-spacing );\">Worship bans are \u201cilliberal and disproportionate,\u201d states Figel\u2019.<\/b><\/p><\/li>\n<li>\n<p><b>In many parts of Europe Easter services had been prohibited in 2020 and 2021<\/b><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-0b434b5 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"0b434b5\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p><b>STRASBOURG, FRANCE (5 April 2023)<\/b> &#8211; The former Special Envoy for Freedom of Religion or Belief outside the EU, Dr. J\u00e1n Fige\u013e, has brought a challenge to the 2021 Covid restrictions on public worship in Slovakia at the European Court of Human Rights. The Court has officially communicated the case by formally notifying the Slovak government of the application and requiring a response. Thus, the case is one of the first ones where Europe\u2019s top human rights court examines the impact of Covid restrictions on religious freedom in Europe.<\/p><p>In February 2021 the Slovak Republic prolonged its Covid-related restrictions, banning cultural, social, and sporting events as well as religious services. Exceptions were made only for baptisms and weddings with up to six people. The ban on communal worship for all religions was not in conformity with the Slovak Constitution and fundamental rights, Fige\u013e claims.<\/p><p><b>Fige\u013e: \u201cWorship bans are a disproportionate infringement on the right to religious freedom\u201d<\/b><\/p><p>\u201cReligious freedom as a basic human right must be given the highest level of protection. Everyone has the right to live according to their convictions. Prohibiting people from doing so is profoundly illiberal and non-democratic. Worship bans are an unfair and disproportionate infringement on the right to religious freedom, as evidenced by the significantly greater flexibility and openness elsewhere in Europe.<\/p><p>National judicial decisions Europe-wide (for example in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.gesetze-bayern.de\/Content\/Document\/Y-300-Z-BECKRS-B-2021-N-29086\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Germany<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conseil-etat.fr\/actualites\/limite-de-30-personnes-dans-les-etablissements-de-culte-decision-en-refere-du-29-novembre\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">France<\/a>) have shown that worship bans are religious freedom violations,\u201d stated Fige\u013e. The former Special Envoy is supported by ADF International, a legal advocacy organisation acting as co-counsel in the case at the European Court of Human Rights.<\/p><p>Fige\u013e added: \u201cAs Special Envoy, it was evident to me that the EU cannot credibly advance religious freedom throughout the world if its Member States fail to uphold fundamental freedoms at home.\u201d<\/p><p><b>Human rights organisation ADF International supporting Figel as co-counsel<\/b><\/p><p>\u201cWe are committed to supporting Dr. J\u00e1n Fige\u013e and his defence of religious freedom. The international legal framework is very clear in its protection of this right as it benefits everyone \u2013 people of faith as well as people of no faith. Fundamental freedoms apply to all, and in times of crisis they must be protected rather than weakened,\u201d said Dr. Adina Portaru, Senior Counsel for <a href=\"https:\/\/adfinternational.org\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">ADF International<\/a>.<\/p><p>\u201cEveryone should be able to live out their faith, and for many, communal worship is an inherent part of this. This is why international law explicitly protects communal worship as a key aspect of religious freedom,\u201d Portaru further noted.<\/p><p><b>Legal Context: criteria for restrictions not fulfilled<\/b><\/p><p>Both the European Convention on Human Rights and the Constitution of the Slovak Republic protect freedom of religion as a fundamental right. The ECHR explicitly includes the \u201c<span class=\"NormalTextRun SCXW167405034 BCX0\">freedom<\/span><span class=\"NormalTextRun SCXW167405034 BCX0\"> \u2026 to manifest [one\u2019s] religion or belief in worship.\u201d <\/span><span class=\"NormalTextRun SCXW167405034 BCX0\">(Article 9 ECHR)<\/span><\/p><p>Only in rare cases can states restrict the religious freedom of their citizens. Exceptions must meet strict criteria: there must be a legal basis, the measure has to pursue a legitimate aim and must be necessary to reach that aim. None of the three criteria were fulfilled, argues Fige\u013e in his application to the ECtHR. The Slovak worship ban had no clear legal basis.<\/p><p>\u201cIt is disingenuous to pit religious freedom against safety when both can work in harmony. Communal worship is an essential part of navigating times of crisis for many people, and can be done safely and prudently, in accordance with necessary and balanced restrictions,\u201d stated Portaru.<\/p><p>Fige\u013e\u2019s challenge has been backed by a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tkkbs.sk\/view.php?cisloclanku=20210322041\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">civil society coalition of diverse representatives<\/a> from the arts, academia, and politics with different faith backgrounds. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tkkbs.sk\/view.php?cisloclanku=20210322036\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Bishops<\/a> and faith leaders also have welcomed his case.<\/p><p>ADF International has been involved worldwide in cases regarding worship bans and violations of religious freedom in the context of Covid restrictions. In Uganda, the group supported a coalition of Christians and Muslims challenging a discriminatory prohibition of religious gatherings. Further, ADF International conducted advocacy to help open churches for worship in Ireland, Scotland, and Switzerland.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-623fda8 elementor-widget-divider--view-line elementor-widget elementor-widget-divider\" data-id=\"623fda8\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"divider.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-divider\">\n\t\t\t<span class=\"elementor-divider-separator\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-28714ec elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"28714ec\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tImages for free use in print or online in relation to this story only\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-e8e6734 elementor-widget elementor-widget-gallery\" data-id=\"e8e6734\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-settings=\"{&quot;aspect_ratio&quot;:&quot;1:1&quot;,&quot;columns_mobile&quot;:2,&quot;lazyload&quot;:&quot;yes&quot;,&quot;gallery_layout&quot;:&quot;grid&quot;,&quot;columns&quot;:4,&quot;columns_tablet&quot;:2,&quot;gap&quot;:{&quot;unit&quot;:&quot;px&quot;,&quot;size&quot;:10,&quot;sizes&quot;:[]},&quot;gap_tablet&quot;:{&quot;unit&quot;:&quot;px&quot;,&quot;size&quot;:10,&quot;sizes&quot;:[]},&quot;gap_mobile&quot;:{&quot;unit&quot;:&quot;px&quot;,&quot;size&quot;:10,&quot;sizes&quot;:[]},&quot;link_to&quot;:&quot;file&quot;,&quot;overlay_background&quot;:&quot;yes&quot;,&quot;content_hover_animation&quot;:&quot;fade-in&quot;}\" data-widget_type=\"gallery.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-gallery__container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a class=\"e-gallery-item elementor-gallery-item elementor-animated-content\" href=\"https:\/\/adfinternational.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/Adina_Portaru_400x400.jpg\" data-elementor-open-lightbox=\"yes\" data-elementor-lightbox-slideshow=\"e8e6734\" data-elementor-lightbox-title=\"Adina Portaru 400x400\" data-e-action-hash=\"#elementor-action%3Aaction%3Dlightbox%26settings%3DeyJpZCI6NzUyNSwidXJsIjoiaHR0cHM6XC9cL2FkZmludGVybmF0aW9uYWwub3JnXC93cC1jb250ZW50XC91cGxvYWRzXC8yMDIxXC8wNVwvQWRpbmFfUG9ydGFydV80MDB4NDAwLmpwZyIsInNsaWRlc2hvdyI6ImU4ZTY3MzQifQ%3D%3D\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-gallery-image elementor-gallery-item__image\" data-thumbnail=\"https:\/\/adfinternational.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/Adina_Portaru_400x400-300x300.jpg\" data-width=\"300\" data-height=\"300\" aria-label=\"Adina Portaru\" role=\"img\" ><\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-gallery-item__overlay\"><\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a class=\"e-gallery-item elementor-gallery-item elementor-animated-content\" href=\"https:\/\/adfinternational.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/jan-figel-2-scaled.jpg\" data-elementor-open-lightbox=\"yes\" data-elementor-lightbox-slideshow=\"e8e6734\" data-elementor-lightbox-title=\"Jan Figel 2\" data-e-action-hash=\"#elementor-action%3Aaction%3Dlightbox%26settings%3DeyJpZCI6MTYwOTgsInVybCI6Imh0dHBzOlwvXC9hZGZpbnRlcm5hdGlvbmFsLm9yZ1wvd3AtY29udGVudFwvdXBsb2Fkc1wvMjAyM1wvMDRcL2phbi1maWdlbC0yLXNjYWxlZC5qcGciLCJzbGlkZXNob3ciOiJlOGU2NzM0In0%3D\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-gallery-image elementor-gallery-item__image\" data-thumbnail=\"https:\/\/adfinternational.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/jan-figel-2-300x215.jpg\" data-width=\"300\" data-height=\"215\" aria-label=\"Jan Figel\" role=\"img\" ><\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-gallery-item__overlay\"><\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a class=\"e-gallery-item elementor-gallery-item elementor-animated-content\" href=\"https:\/\/adfinternational.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/jan-figel-1-scaled.jpg\" data-elementor-open-lightbox=\"yes\" data-elementor-lightbox-slideshow=\"e8e6734\" data-elementor-lightbox-title=\"Jan Figel 1\" data-e-action-hash=\"#elementor-action%3Aaction%3Dlightbox%26settings%3DeyJpZCI6MTYwOTUsInVybCI6Imh0dHBzOlwvXC9hZGZpbnRlcm5hdGlvbmFsLm9yZ1wvd3AtY29udGVudFwvdXBsb2Fkc1wvMjAyM1wvMDRcL2phbi1maWdlbC0xLXNjYWxlZC5qcGciLCJzbGlkZXNob3ciOiJlOGU2NzM0In0%3D\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-gallery-image elementor-gallery-item__image\" data-thumbnail=\"https:\/\/adfinternational.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/jan-figel-1-300x224.jpg\" data-width=\"300\" data-height=\"224\" aria-label=\"\" role=\"img\" ><\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-gallery-item__overlay\"><\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-eb2db0d elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"eb2db0d\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-e-type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-3aca193\" data-id=\"3aca193\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The former Special Envoy for Freedom of Religion or Belief outside the EU, Dr. J\u00e1n Fige\u013e, has brought a challenge to the 2021 COVID restrictions on public worship in Slovakia at the European Court of Human Rights.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":44,"featured_media":16098,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"give_campaign_id":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[130,383,64,566,27],"class_list":["post-16094","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","tag-europe","tag-european-court-of-human-rights","tag-freedom-of-speech","tag-jan-figel","tag-religious-freedom"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v27.3 (Yoast SEO v27.3) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Former EU Envoy for Freedom of Religion tackles COVID-19 restrictions on public worship<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Dr. J\u00e1n Fige\u013e, has brought a challenge to the 2021 COVID-19 restrictions on public worship in Slovakia at the European Court of Human Rights.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/adfinternational.org\/de\/news\/religious-freedom-covid-ecthr\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"de_DE\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Former EU Envoy for Freedom of Religion tackles Covid restrictions on public worship at Europe\u2019s Top Human Rights Court\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Dr. J\u00e1n Fige\u013e, has brought a challenge to the 2021 COVID-19 restrictions on public worship in Slovakia at the European Court of Human Rights.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/adfinternational.org\/news\/religious-freedom-covid-ecthr\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"ADF International\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/facebook.com\/adfinternational\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2023-04-05T08:52:35+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2024-02-16T09:04:30+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/adfinternational.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/jan-figel-2-scaled.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"2560\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1836\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Philipp Bues\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@adfintl\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@adfintl\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Verfasst von\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Philipp Bues\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Gesch\u00e4tzte Lesezeit\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 Minuten\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/adfinternational.org\\\/news\\\/religious-freedom-covid-ecthr#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/adfinternational.org\\\/news\\\/religious-freedom-covid-ecthr\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Philipp Bues\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/adfinternational.org\\\/de\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/6b776fc8535453c6aad8a6f9d78e6141\"},\"headline\":\"Former EU Envoy for Freedom of Religion tackles Covid restrictions on public worship at Europe\u2019s Top Human Rights Court\",\"datePublished\":\"2023-04-05T08:52:35+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2024-02-16T09:04:30+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/adfinternational.org\\\/news\\\/religious-freedom-covid-ecthr\"},\"wordCount\":739,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/adfinternational.org\\\/de\\\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/adfinternational.org\\\/news\\\/religious-freedom-covid-ecthr#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/adfinternational.org\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2023\\\/04\\\/jan-figel-2-scaled.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"europe\",\"European Court of Human RIghts\",\"freedom of speech\",\"Jan Figel\",\"Religious freedom\"],\"articleSection\":[\"News\"],\"inLanguage\":\"de-DE\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/adfinternational.org\\\/news\\\/religious-freedom-covid-ecthr\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/adfinternational.org\\\/news\\\/religious-freedom-covid-ecthr\",\"name\":\"Former EU Envoy for Freedom of Religion tackles COVID-19 restrictions on public worship\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/adfinternational.org\\\/de\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/adfinternational.org\\\/news\\\/religious-freedom-covid-ecthr#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/adfinternational.org\\\/news\\\/religious-freedom-covid-ecthr#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/adfinternational.org\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2023\\\/04\\\/jan-figel-2-scaled.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2023-04-05T08:52:35+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2024-02-16T09:04:30+00:00\",\"description\":\"Dr. J\u00e1n Fige\u013e, has brought a challenge to the 2021 COVID-19 restrictions on public worship in Slovakia at the European Court of Human Rights.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/adfinternational.org\\\/news\\\/religious-freedom-covid-ecthr#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"de-DE\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/adfinternational.org\\\/news\\\/religious-freedom-covid-ecthr\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"de-DE\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/adfinternational.org\\\/news\\\/religious-freedom-covid-ecthr#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/adfinternational.org\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2023\\\/04\\\/jan-figel-2-scaled.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/adfinternational.org\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2023\\\/04\\\/jan-figel-2-scaled.jpg\",\"width\":2560,\"height\":1836,\"caption\":\"Jan Figel\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/adfinternational.org\\\/news\\\/religious-freedom-covid-ecthr#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/adfinternational.org\\\/de\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Former EU Envoy for Freedom of Religion tackles Covid restrictions on public worship at Europe\u2019s Top Human Rights Court\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/adfinternational.org\\\/de\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/adfinternational.org\\\/de\\\/\",\"name\":\"ADF International\",\"description\":\"Protecting Fundamental Freedoms. Promoting Inherent Dignity.\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/adfinternational.org\\\/de\\\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/adfinternational.org\\\/de\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"de-DE\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/adfinternational.org\\\/de\\\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Alliance Defending Freedom International\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/adfinternational.org\\\/de\\\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"de-DE\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/adfinternational.org\\\/de\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/adfinternational.org\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2021\\\/08\\\/ADF_Intl_R_RGB_175px.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/adfinternational.org\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2021\\\/08\\\/ADF_Intl_R_RGB_175px.png\",\"width\":175,\"height\":106,\"caption\":\"Alliance Defending Freedom International\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/adfinternational.org\\\/de\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/facebook.com\\\/adfinternational\",\"https:\\\/\\\/x.com\\\/adfintl\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.linkedin.com\\\/company\\\/adfinternational\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.instagram.com\\\/adfinternational\\\/\"]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/adfinternational.org\\\/de\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/6b776fc8535453c6aad8a6f9d78e6141\",\"name\":\"Philipp Bues\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"de-DE\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/adfinternational.org\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2025\\\/02\\\/Philipp-Bues-Headshot-150x150.jpg\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/adfinternational.org\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2025\\\/02\\\/Philipp-Bues-Headshot-150x150.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/adfinternational.org\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2025\\\/02\\\/Philipp-Bues-Headshot-150x150.jpg\",\"caption\":\"Philipp Bues\"},\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/adfinternational.org\\\/de\\\/author\\\/pbuesadfinternational-org\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Former EU Envoy for Freedom of Religion tackles COVID-19 restrictions on public worship","description":"Dr. J\u00e1n Fige\u013e, has brought a challenge to the 2021 COVID-19 restrictions on public worship in Slovakia at the European Court of Human Rights.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/adfinternational.org\/de\/news\/religious-freedom-covid-ecthr","og_locale":"de_DE","og_type":"article","og_title":"Former EU Envoy for Freedom of Religion tackles Covid restrictions on public worship at Europe\u2019s Top Human Rights Court","og_description":"Dr. J\u00e1n Fige\u013e, has brought a challenge to the 2021 COVID-19 restrictions on public worship in Slovakia at the European Court of Human Rights.","og_url":"https:\/\/adfinternational.org\/news\/religious-freedom-covid-ecthr","og_site_name":"ADF International","article_publisher":"https:\/\/facebook.com\/adfinternational","article_published_time":"2023-04-05T08:52:35+00:00","article_modified_time":"2024-02-16T09:04:30+00:00","og_image":[{"width":2560,"height":1836,"url":"https:\/\/adfinternational.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/jan-figel-2-scaled.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Philipp Bues","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@adfintl","twitter_site":"@adfintl","twitter_misc":{"Verfasst von":"Philipp Bues","Gesch\u00e4tzte Lesezeit":"4 Minuten"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/adfinternational.org\/news\/religious-freedom-covid-ecthr#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/adfinternational.org\/news\/religious-freedom-covid-ecthr"},"author":{"name":"Philipp Bues","@id":"https:\/\/adfinternational.org\/de\/#\/schema\/person\/6b776fc8535453c6aad8a6f9d78e6141"},"headline":"Former EU Envoy for Freedom of Religion tackles Covid restrictions on public worship at Europe\u2019s Top Human Rights Court","datePublished":"2023-04-05T08:52:35+00:00","dateModified":"2024-02-16T09:04:30+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/adfinternational.org\/news\/religious-freedom-covid-ecthr"},"wordCount":739,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/adfinternational.org\/de\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/adfinternational.org\/news\/religious-freedom-covid-ecthr#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/adfinternational.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/jan-figel-2-scaled.jpg","keywords":["europe","European Court of Human RIghts","freedom of speech","Jan Figel","Religious freedom"],"articleSection":["News"],"inLanguage":"de-DE"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/adfinternational.org\/news\/religious-freedom-covid-ecthr","url":"https:\/\/adfinternational.org\/news\/religious-freedom-covid-ecthr","name":"Former EU Envoy for Freedom of Religion tackles COVID-19 restrictions on public worship","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/adfinternational.org\/de\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/adfinternational.org\/news\/religious-freedom-covid-ecthr#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/adfinternational.org\/news\/religious-freedom-covid-ecthr#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/adfinternational.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/jan-figel-2-scaled.jpg","datePublished":"2023-04-05T08:52:35+00:00","dateModified":"2024-02-16T09:04:30+00:00","description":"Dr. J\u00e1n Fige\u013e, has brought a challenge to the 2021 COVID-19 restrictions on public worship in Slovakia at the European Court of Human Rights.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/adfinternational.org\/news\/religious-freedom-covid-ecthr#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"de-DE","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/adfinternational.org\/news\/religious-freedom-covid-ecthr"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"de-DE","@id":"https:\/\/adfinternational.org\/news\/religious-freedom-covid-ecthr#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/adfinternational.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/jan-figel-2-scaled.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/adfinternational.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/jan-figel-2-scaled.jpg","width":2560,"height":1836,"caption":"Jan Figel"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/adfinternational.org\/news\/religious-freedom-covid-ecthr#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/adfinternational.org\/de"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Former EU Envoy for Freedom of Religion tackles Covid restrictions on public worship at Europe\u2019s Top Human Rights Court"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/adfinternational.org\/de\/#website","url":"https:\/\/adfinternational.org\/de\/","name":"ADF International","description":"Protecting Fundamental Freedoms. Promoting Inherent Dignity.","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/adfinternational.org\/de\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/adfinternational.org\/de\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"de-DE"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/adfinternational.org\/de\/#organization","name":"Alliance Defending Freedom International","url":"https:\/\/adfinternational.org\/de\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"de-DE","@id":"https:\/\/adfinternational.org\/de\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/adfinternational.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/ADF_Intl_R_RGB_175px.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/adfinternational.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/ADF_Intl_R_RGB_175px.png","width":175,"height":106,"caption":"Alliance Defending Freedom International"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/adfinternational.org\/de\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/facebook.com\/adfinternational","https:\/\/x.com\/adfintl","https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/company\/adfinternational","https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/adfinternational\/"]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/adfinternational.org\/de\/#\/schema\/person\/6b776fc8535453c6aad8a6f9d78e6141","name":"Philipp Bues","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"de-DE","@id":"https:\/\/adfinternational.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/Philipp-Bues-Headshot-150x150.jpg","url":"https:\/\/adfinternational.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/Philipp-Bues-Headshot-150x150.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/adfinternational.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/Philipp-Bues-Headshot-150x150.jpg","caption":"Philipp Bues"},"url":"https:\/\/adfinternational.org\/de\/author\/pbuesadfinternational-org"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/adfinternational.org\/de\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16094","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/adfinternational.org\/de\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/adfinternational.org\/de\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adfinternational.org\/de\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/44"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adfinternational.org\/de\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=16094"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/adfinternational.org\/de\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16094\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adfinternational.org\/de\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/16098"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/adfinternational.org\/de\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=16094"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adfinternational.org\/de\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=16094"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adfinternational.org\/de\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=16094"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}