A/63/161 50. Contrary to the right to have or adopt a religion (forum internum), the freedom to manifest one’s religion or belief (forum externum) may be subject to limitations, for example, according to article 29 (2) of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, article 18 (3) of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, article 1 (3) of the 1981 Declaration, article 9 (2) of the European Convention on Human Rights and article 12 (3) of the American Convention on Human Rights. However, these clauses only accept such limitations as are prescribed or determined by law and are necessary, in a democratic society, to protect public safety, order, health, morals, or the fundamental rights and freedoms of others. 51. The right to freedom of religion or belief is also included in the concept of identity, which is an integral part of the right to privacy, as enshrined in article 17 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. 46 According to article 17 (1) of the Covenant, no one shall be subjected to arbitrary or unlawful interference with his privacy, family, home or correspondence, nor to unlawful attacks on his honour and reputation. The Human Rights Committee elaborated in its general comment No. 16 (1988) that “the expression ‘arbitrary interference’ can also extend to interference provided for under the law. The introduction of the concept of arbitrariness is intended to guarantee that even interference provided for by law should be in accordance with the provisions, aims and objectives of the Covenant and should be, in any event, reasonable in the particular circumstances. … As all persons live in society, the protection of privacy is necessarily relative. However, the competent public authorities should only be able to call for such information relating to an individual’s private life the knowledge of which is essential in the interests of society as understood under the Covenant.” 47 52. With regard to the mentioning of religion on identity cards, the Committee on the Rights of the Child recommended in its concluding observations, in the light of article 7 of the Convention (right to name and nationality), that the State party concerned should “abolish the categories of citizens, as well as the statement on the national identity card of the religion and ethnic origin of citizens, including children”. 48 53. The privacy aspect also becomes important in those situations where the State asks taxpayers to mention their religion on the tax form, for the purpose of levying taxes for certain major churches. Under certain circumstances this practice could be perceived as according benefits to certain religions in a discriminatory manner. 49 The State should take appropriate steps to guarantee that the information provided on the tax forms is not used for any purposes other than within the framework of the levying of taxes. __________________ 46 47 48 49 08-43442 Nowak, op. cit., art. 17, para. 18. Official Records of the General Assembly, Forty-third Session, Supplement No. 40 (A/43/40), annex VI, paras. 4 and 7. Committee on the Rights of the Child, concluding observations: Myanmar (CRC/C/15/Add.237), para. 35. See E/CN.4/1998/6/Add.2 (on Germany), paras. 11 and 18, where the Special Rapporteur also explains that in the context of Germany these advantages are not related to the religious character of the church, but to recognition of the fact that it is in the public interest, or regarded as compensation for assets which had been confiscated without payment. 17