CEDH · PRESS;HEARINGS;ENG — 3 octobre 2006

.s800EAC49 { font-size:12pt } .sFE10DC93 { margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt; text-align:center } .s29100277 { font-family:Arial; font-weight:bold } .s40F41F73 { margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt; text-align:right } .s32563E28 { margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt } .sBB9EE52A { font-family:Arial } .s4DDA3AA3 { font-family:Arial; font-weight:bold; font-style:italic } .s7ED160F0 { text-decoration:none } .s653E6C45 { font-family:Arial; font-size:6.67pt; vertical-align:super; color:#0069d6 } .sCB9E0544 { margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt; text-align:left } .s69BE285C { margin-top:0pt; margin-left:85.05pt; margin-bottom:0pt; text-indent:-85.05pt } .s9A223E1B { width:11.03pt; text-indent:0pt; display:inline-block } .s595A57E4 { width:85.05pt; text-indent:0pt; display:inline-block } .sA8C2B9B0 { width:20.37pt; text-indent:0pt; display:inline-block } .sC7EAD8B { font-family:Arial; font-weight:bold; text-decoration:underline } .sA36B60A1 { font-family:Arial; font-style:italic } .sF6A12959 { width:33%; height:1px; text-align:left } .s2EB42ED2 { margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt; font-size:10pt } .s8EB5F569 { font-family:Arial; font-size:6.67pt; vertical-align:super } EUROPEAN COURT OF HUMAN RIGHTS   550 3.10.2006   Press release issued by the Registrar   CHAMBER HEARING ZENGİN v. TURKEY   The European Court of Human Rights is holding a Chamber hearing today Tuesday 3   October 2006 at 9 a.m., on the merits in the case of Zengin v. Turkey (application no.   1448/04).   The applicants   Hasan Zengin and his daughter Eylem Zengin, are Turkish nationals who were born in 1960 and 1988 respectively and live in Istanbul. Mr Zengin’s family are adherents of Alevism. [1]   Summary of the facts   At the time the present application was lodged, Eylem Zengin was attending the seventh grade of the State school in Avcılar, Istanbul. As a pupil at a State school, she was obliged to attend classes in religious culture and ethics. Under Article 24 of the Turkish Constitution and section 12 of Basic Law no. 1739 on national education, religious culture and ethics is a compulsory subject in Turkish primary and secondary schools.   In February 2001 the applicant submitted a request to the Provincial Directorate of National Education for his daughter to be exempted from lessons in religious culture and ethics. When the authorities refused his request, Mr Zengin applied to the administrative courts, arguing that the course in question was incompatible with the principle of secularism and that the lessons, which were based on the teaching of Sunni Islam, were not neutral.   On 28 December 2001 Istanbul Administrative Court rejected the application on the ground that the course in religious culture and ethics was in accordance with the Constitution and with Turkish legislation. The applicant applied to the Supreme Administrative Court, which upheld the judgment on 5 August 2003.   Complaints   The applicants maintain that the way in which religious culture and ethics is taught in Turkey infringes Miss Zengin’s right to freedom of religion and her parents’ right to ensure her education in conformity with their religious convictions. They rely on Article 9 of the European Convention on Human Rights (right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion) and Article 2 of Protocol No. 1 (right to education).   Procedure   The application was lodged with the European Court of Human Rights on 13 January 2004 and declared admissible on 6 June 2006.   Composition of the Court   The case will be heard by a Chamber composed as follows:   Jean-Paul Costa (French), President , András Baka (Hungarian), Ireneu Cabral Barreto (Portuguese), Riza Türmen (Turkish), Mindia Ugrekhelidze (Georgian), Antonella Mularoni (San Marinese), Danutė Jočienė (Lithuanian), judges , Elisabet Fura-Sandström (Swedish), Dragoljub Popović (Serbian), substitute judges , and also Stanley Naismith , Deputy-Section Registrar .   Representatives of the parties   Government :   Münci Özmen , Co-Agent ,   Hüsrev Ünler , Zeynep Gökşen Acar , Esin Esin , Didem Kilislioğlu ,   İrfan Aycan and Süleyman Duman , Advisers ;   Applicants :   Kazım Genç , Counsel,   Ali Şevki Yakişan , İrine Melikoff and Turgut Öker , Advisers .   The applicant, Hasan Zengin, will also attend the hearing.     ***   After the hearing the Court will begin its deliberations, which are held in private. Judgment will be delivered at a later date.   Press Contacts   Emma Hellyer (telephone: 00 33 (0)3 90 21 42 15) Stéphanie Klein (telephone: 00 33 (0)3 88 41 21 54) Beverley Jacobs (telephone: 00 33 (0)3 90 21 54 21)   The European Court of Human Rights was set up in Strasbourg by the Council of Europe Member States in 1959 to deal with alleged violations of the 1950 European Convention on Human Rights. [1] Alevism, which has deep roots in Turkish society and history, is generally considered as one of the branches of Islam, influenced in particular by the great Sufis of the 12 th and 14 th centuries and by certain pre-Islamic beliefs. Its religious practices differ from those of the Sunni schools of law in certain aspects such as prayer, fasting and pilgrimage.