Stijn Smet
Biographic Data
| ID | 1265776 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Stijn Smet |
| GIVEN NAMES | Stijn |
| FAMILY NAME | Smet |
| SIGNATURE | SMET S |
| AFFILIATIONS | Hasselt University |
| ORCID | 0000-0003-0629-6626 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 9 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 2 |
| WORKS AS AUTHOR | 8 |
| WORKS AS EDITOR | 1 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2009 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2023 |
| H-INDEX | 1 |
State Neutrality and Religious Diversity in Europe
In Europe, states are under a duty of ‘ensuring, neutrally and impartially, the exercise of various religions, faiths and beliefs’, or so the European Court of Human Rights has repeatedly held.1 But what does it mean, exactly, for a state to be neutral towards all religions and beliefs? The answer to this question is not obvious, given that the principle of state neutrality vis-à-vis religion and belief is contested and illusive. The concept of n…
The Impossibility of Neutrality? How Courts Engage with the Neutrality Argument
The principle of state neutrality vis-à-vis religion and belief is contested and illusive. Some scholars even label it an impossible principle. Nevertheless, the meanings and functions assigned to neutrality are often determinative of, among others, the scope of the right to manifest one’s religion in public institutions. Focusing on recent developments in Europe, this article makes two claims: one conceptual and the other doctrinal. The conceptu…
Comparative Constitutional Interpretation of Religious Freedom
When adjudicating religious disputes, constitutional courts often resort to a particular discursive register. The notions ‘tolerance’ and ‘respect’ are an integral part of this religion-specific constitutional register. But what do judges mean when they deploy the language of tolerance and respect? And what substantive role, if any, do both notions play in the constitutional interpretation of religious freedom? This article seeks to answer these …
Conscientious Objection through the Contrasting Lenses of Tolerance and Respect
Scholars disagree on how the law should respond to conscientious objections. Among these scholars, some cast their arguments in terms of tolerance and respect. Yossi Nehushtan, for instance, favours the lens of tolerance, while John Olusegun Adenitire, among others, favours the contrasting lens of respect. In this article, I argue that we need both lenses—tolerance and respect—to make sense of how constitutional democracies (ought to) respond to …
On the Existence and Nature of Conflicts between Human Rights at the European Court of Human Rights
Conflicts between human rights continue to trouble both legal theory and human rights practice. In legal theory, some deny the very existence of conflicts between rights. Kantian theorists, in particular, strive to render rights systems harmonious and devoid of conflict. The thought that human rights might clash with each other has been a cause for occasional pause in human rights practice as well. The European Court of Human Rights, in particula…
When Human Rights Clash at the European Court of Human Rights
This book aims to answer key questions surrounding (purported) conflicts of human rights at the European Court of Human Rights. Some of these questions concern the very existence of human rights conflicts. Can human rights really conflict with one another? Or should they be interpreted in harmony with one another? Other questions relate to the resolution of genuine human rights conflicts. How should such genuine conflicts be resolved? To what ext…
Resolving Conflicts between Human Rights
Under the influence of the global spread of human rights, legal disputes are increasingly framed in human rights terms. Parties to a legal dispute can often invoke human rights norms in support of their competing claims. Yet, when confronted with cases in which human rights conflict, judges face a dilemma. They have to make difficult choices between superior norms that deserve equal respect. In this high-level book, the author sets out how judges…
Conflicts between Absolute Rights
Can absolute rights conflict? Is it permissible to torture a person to save others from torture? And what can judges learn from trolleys? In this article, presented as a reply to an article by Steven Greer, I investigate the above questions in the context of the case law of the European Court of Human Rights. Drawing on Gäfgen v Germany, I construct a hypothetical case of conflicting absolute rights, which cannot be resolved by the existing stran…
A window of opportunity - improving gender relations in post-conflict societies
Those playing a role in the immediate aftermath of armed conflicts widely state the pursuit of gender equality as a specific objective. This article both assesses the theoretical feasibility of this objective and questions the practical efforts undertaken by development actors in this respect in the concrete case of Sierra Leone. The case study focuses on discrimination against women and girls in Sierra Leonean society and on gender bias and disc…
When Human Rights Clash at the European Court of Human Rights
This book aims to answer key questions surrounding (purported) conflicts of human rights at the European Court of Human Rights. Some of these questions concern the very existence of human rights conflicts. Can human rights really conflict with one another? Or should they be interpreted in harmony with one another? Other questions relate to the resolution of genuine human rights conflicts. How should such genuine conflicts be resolved? To what ext…
A window of opportunity - improving gender relations in post-conflict societies
Those playing a role in the immediate aftermath of armed conflicts widely state the pursuit of gender equality as a specific objective. This article both assesses the theoretical feasibility of this objective and questions the practical efforts undertaken by development actors in this respect in the concrete case of Sierra Leone. The case study focuses on discrimination against women and girls in Sierra Leonean society and on gender bias and disc…
A window of opportunity - improving gender relations in post-conflict societies
Those playing a role in the immediate aftermath of armed conflicts widely state the pursuit of gender equality as a specific objective. This article both assesses the theoretical feasibility of this objective and questions the practical efforts undertaken by development actors in this respect in the concrete case of Sierra Leone. The case study focuses on discrimination against women and girls in Sierra Leonean society and on gender bias and disc…
Conflicts between Absolute Rights
Can absolute rights conflict? Is it permissible to torture a person to save others from torture? And what can judges learn from trolleys? In this article, presented as a reply to an article by Steven Greer, I investigate the above questions in the context of the case law of the European Court of Human Rights. Drawing on Gäfgen v Germany, I construct a hypothetical case of conflicting absolute rights, which cannot be resolved by the existing stran…
Resolving Conflicts between Human Rights
Under the influence of the global spread of human rights, legal disputes are increasingly framed in human rights terms. Parties to a legal dispute can often invoke human rights norms in support of their competing claims. Yet, when confronted with cases in which human rights conflict, judges face a dilemma. They have to make difficult choices between superior norms that deserve equal respect. In this high-level book, the author sets out how judges…
On the Existence and Nature of Conflicts between Human Rights at the European Court of Human Rights
Conflicts between human rights continue to trouble both legal theory and human rights practice. In legal theory, some deny the very existence of conflicts between rights. Kantian theorists, in particular, strive to render rights systems harmonious and devoid of conflict. The thought that human rights might clash with each other has been a cause for occasional pause in human rights practice as well. The European Court of Human Rights, in particula…
When Human Rights Clash at the European Court of Human Rights
This book aims to answer key questions surrounding (purported) conflicts of human rights at the European Court of Human Rights. Some of these questions concern the very existence of human rights conflicts. Can human rights really conflict with one another? Or should they be interpreted in harmony with one another? Other questions relate to the resolution of genuine human rights conflicts. How should such genuine conflicts be resolved? To what ext…
Conscientious Objection through the Contrasting Lenses of Tolerance and Respect
Scholars disagree on how the law should respond to conscientious objections. Among these scholars, some cast their arguments in terms of tolerance and respect. Yossi Nehushtan, for instance, favours the lens of tolerance, while John Olusegun Adenitire, among others, favours the contrasting lens of respect. In this article, I argue that we need both lenses—tolerance and respect—to make sense of how constitutional democracies (ought to) respond to …
Comparative Constitutional Interpretation of Religious Freedom
When adjudicating religious disputes, constitutional courts often resort to a particular discursive register. The notions ‘tolerance’ and ‘respect’ are an integral part of this religion-specific constitutional register. But what do judges mean when they deploy the language of tolerance and respect? And what substantive role, if any, do both notions play in the constitutional interpretation of religious freedom? This article seeks to answer these …
State Neutrality and Religious Diversity in Europe
In Europe, states are under a duty of ‘ensuring, neutrally and impartially, the exercise of various religions, faiths and beliefs’, or so the European Court of Human Rights has repeatedly held.1 But what does it mean, exactly, for a state to be neutral towards all religions and beliefs? The answer to this question is not obvious, given that the principle of state neutrality vis-à-vis religion and belief is contested and illusive. The concept of n…
The Impossibility of Neutrality? How Courts Engage with the Neutrality Argument
The principle of state neutrality vis-à-vis religion and belief is contested and illusive. Some scholars even label it an impossible principle. Nevertheless, the meanings and functions assigned to neutrality are often determinative of, among others, the scope of the right to manifest one’s religion in public institutions. Focusing on recent developments in Europe, this article makes two claims: one conceptual and the other doctrinal. The conceptu…
Law (8 works) · Political science (8 works) · Sociology (7 works) · Law and economics (5 works) · American Constitutional Law and Politics (4 works) · International Law and Human Rights (4 works) · Philosophy (4 works) · Argument (complex analysis) (3 works) · Epistemology (3 works) · Politics (3 works)