Sinan Işık v. Turkey, No. 21924/05, ECtHR (Second Section), 2 February 2010

Indication of the religious belief on the identity card. Breach of Article 9 of ECHR.
 

Art. 9 ECHR

1. Freedom of religion entails, inter alia, freedom to hold or not to hold religious beliefs and to practise or not to practise a religion.

2. The right to manifest one’s religion or beliefs also has a negative aspect, namely an individual’s right not to be obliged to disclose his or her religion or beliefs and not to be obliged to act in such a way that it is possible to conclude that he or she holds – or does not hold – such beliefs. Consequently, State’s authorities are not entitled to intervene in the sphere of an individual’s freedom of conscience, to seek to discover his or her religious beliefs and oblige him or her to disclose them.

3. In a democratic society where the State is the ultimate guarantor of pluralism, including religious pluralism, the role of the authorities is not to adopt measures favouring one interpretation of religion over another aimed at forcing a divided community, or part of it, to come together under a single leadership against its own wishes.

4. The mere fact of having to apply for religion to be deleted from civil registers could constitute disclosure of information concerning an aspect of the individual’s attitude towards religion.
(The applicant, a Turkish citizen, complained that his identity card indicated his belonging to the Islamic religion, instead of the Alevi creed. The Court observes that the very fact that the card bore indications relating to the religious belief of its holder was in contrast with the negative aspect of his right to freedom of religion)