On 28-30 July 2005, a loosely-affiliated consortium of academic institutions with interest in freedom of religion or belief (FORB) assembled in Strasbourg, France, to discuss the issues and concerns raised by the Leyla Sahin v. Turkey case then before the Grand Chamber of the European Court of Human Rights. The result was a wealth of scholarly analysis and commentary on issues of freedom of religion or belief ranging from the role of secularism in government, to the manifestation of religion or belief, to the understanding and treatment of Islam and Islamic symbols by the European Court of Human Rights and the West.
This scholarly analysis was made available on the Internet with the aim of developing an electronic forum, possibly stimulated from time to time by relevant academic conferences, to encourage in-depth discussion of issues pending before the European Court of Human Rights and other international institutions. This consortium has come to be known as the Strasbourg Conference Consortium.
This page has been created to preserve the discussion and analysis of the issues presented by the Sahin case and to encourage in-depth discussion of such issues.
For more information on the 2005 Strasbourg Conference, please click on the links below.