Date: 31 July 2014
The author of the communication is Mr. Gareth Anver Prince, a South African national claiming to be the victim of violation by South Africa of his freedom of religion, freedom from discrimination and protection as a member of religious minority recognized under the Articles 18, 26 and 27 of the Covenant. The Author claimed that the ban of use of cannabis sativa for the religious purposes of Rastafari religion violated his freedom of religion as a follower of Rastafari religion, as well as constituting discrimination against his belief and Rastafarians as minority group.
Considering the Communication, the Committee did not recognize any violation of the Author's rights asserting that the prohibition of possession and use of drugs without any exemption for specific religious groups justified under the Article 18 para. 3 of the Covenant, that certain limitations on the right to practice one's religion through the use of drugs are compatible under article 27 of the Covenant and considered that the prohibition affects all individuals equally, including members of other religious movements thus is based on objective and reasonable grounds.
Citation. UN Human Rights Committee. 'Prince v. South Africa' (UN Doc. CCPR/C/91/D/1474/2006) 31 October 2007
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