Religious communities should be able to register freely and without restriction, say participants at OSCE human rights conference

Participants at the OSCE's annual human rights conference in Warsaw urged governments not to use registration procedures to prevent religious communities from exercising their rights to freedom of religion or belief.

During the annual OSCE Human Dimension Implementation Meeting, speakers representing non-governmental organizations, states and international organizations also called on participating States to oblige religious organizations to register only to receive certain legal or financial benefits, and not to impose registration as a blanket requirement.

"In many parts of the OSCE region, religious communities face challenges in obtaining registration to operate," said Cole Durham, a member of the ODIHR Advisory Council on Freedom of Religion or Belief.

"This can lead to significant practical difficulties and, in combination with other restrictions and penalties for operating unregistered associations, can significantly restrict the exercise of the freedom of religion or belief," he said.

Renata Uitz, an expert in the freedom of religion or belief at the Central European University, told participants that the registration of religious organizations should not be mandatory, although it might be appropriate to require organizations to register for the purposes of establishing a legal personality and claiming certain benefits, such as tax exemptions.

"Individuals and groups should be free to practise their religion without registration if they so desire," she said.

Participants also urged governments to provide religious groups with clear guidance on the requirements for acquiring legal entity status, adding that bureaucratic delays to registration should be eliminated.