ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on the forum internum, the internal aspect of the right to freedom of conscience. International human rights law, as evidenced in treaties and state practice, accords a rather broad view of the forum internum since, in contrast to the forum externum, the forum internum is not subject to limitations. Analysing the function of the right provides a context for creating a framework for the operation of a right and for discerning the boundaries of the right. J. S. Mill notes the difference between violating personal dignity as opposed to violating a personal right. The principal considerations of the freedom to for the forum internum relate to situations where it is not necessarily the physical practice of the belief that merits protection but the ability to mentally adhere to a belief or thought. Conscience then retains its importance for the individual by focusing on the individual's striving for moral action and to better understand their social and individual practices.
