Respecting Rights?: Measuring the World’s Blasphemy Laws: Measuring the World’s Blasphemy Laws

This report examines and compares the content of laws prohibiting blasphemy ( blasphemy laws ) worldwide through the lens of international and human rights law principles. The laws examined in this study prohibit or criminalize the expression of opinions deemed blasphemous, or counter to majority views or religious belief systems, and many impose serious, often criminal, penalties. Blasphemy laws are actively enforced in many states throughout the world. Many governments deem repeal not feasible or desirable and justify the prohibition and criminalization of blasphemy as necessary to promote religious harmony. This study seeks to evaluate the language and content of blasphemy laws to understand what aspects of these laws adhere to–or deviate from–international and human rights law principles. A better understanding of the laws’ compliance with these principles may assist in the public policy community in developing clear, specifically-tailored recommendations for areas for reform.

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