Legal Adviser, the Commission of Catholic Episcopal Conferences of the European Union

José Luis Bazán obtained his PhD from the University of Navarre in Spain with a thesis on the protection of private and family life in the jurisprudence of the European Court of Human Rights. While at the university, he was an assistant professor of philosophy of law and human rights and a member of the Institute of Human Rights. He has lectured at Rey Juan Carlos University, the International University of La Rioja (Spain), and the Catholic University of Paris and has been a frequent speaker at international human rights conferences and political fora—including the European Parliament—since 2010. Dr. Bazán is a legal advisor on international religious freedom, migration, and asylum in the Commission of Catholic Episcopal Conferences of the European Union. He is also an independent international affairs consultant working on the situation of religious minorities in Syria (proposal for its constitutional process), Iraq (measures for the protection of Christian minorities), Lebanon (provision of health and education services by churches), Nigeria (Middle Belt conflict), Mozambique (situation in Cabo Delgado), Democratic Republic of the Congo (crisis with Rwanda), and Pakistan (blasphemy legislation). Dr. Bazán is a member of the editorial committee of the Religious Freedom in the World report, which is published by the international charity Aid to the Church in Need, and he contributed to its 2023 report. He has published several articles and working papers in his areas