The European Platform against Religious Intolerance and Discrimination (EPRID) is a network of civil society organisations, religious bodies and individuals working at the EU level to promote freedom of religion or belief in the world.
Freedom of Religion or Belief
Freedom of thought, conscience, religion, or belief (commonly abbreviated to “FoRB”) is a fundamental human right enshrined internationally by the Universal Declaration on Human Rights (art. 18) and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (art. 18). It is also enshrined in several regional treaties, including the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (art. 9), and the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union (art.10).
Vision
Freedom of thought, conscience, religion or belief (commonly abbreviated to “FoRB”) is a fundamental human right enshrined internationally by the Universal Declaration on Human Rights (art. 18) and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (art. 18). It is also enshrined in several regional treaties, including the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (art. 9), and the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union (art.10).
Freedom of religion or belief is a central component in EU human rights policy: the promotion and protection of the rights of persons belonging to ethnic and religious minorities continues to be a key concern in the EU’s relations with third countries.
EPRID endeavours to ensure that religious intolerance and discrimination are addressed in a consistent manner both in EU policy and in practice.
Objectives
The members of EPRID strive to encourage European institutions and decision-makers to have a deeper interest in and commitment to religious intolerance and discrimination issues.
The platform aims to encourage participation of and cooperation between civil society organisations, religious bodies and individuals working on religious intolerance and discrimination, as we should be among the first stakeholders promoting the right to freedom of religion or belief.
EPRID endeavours to conduct a structured dialogue between the platform and European institutions to jointly identify ways in which to strengthen EU policy and practice in this area.
EPRID will, where appropriate, act as a liaison between EU institutions and its members and aims to further cooperation and exchange of information.
Participation
Participants of the network can be civil society organisations, religious bodies and individuals that are actively lobbying at European level on religious intolerance and discrimination both as a thematic issue and in the realm of European external relations and the European Neighbourhood Policy.
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You can contact us for further details.
You will find the links to current members here.
Coordination & Communication
EPRID is a consensus-based network. Its activities are facilitated by a Board of coordinators [*]:
The platform members meet at least once a year in Brussels.
[*] The Board of coordinators for 2025-2026 consists of Jonathan de Leyser (CSW), Huub Sloot (Mensen met een Missie), and Daniel Hoffman (Middle East Concern).