Limits to the Restrictions to Freedom of Expression-Criteria and Application
General Material Designation
[Article]
First Statement of Responsibility
Mogens Schmidt
.PUBLICATION, DISTRIBUTION, ETC
Place of Publication, Distribution, etc.
Leiden
Name of Publisher, Distributor, etc.
Brill
SUMMARY OR ABSTRACT
Text of Note
The freedoms of opinion and of expression constitute the cornerstone of any democratic society and form a solid and fundamental basis for development. Without an open space for the marketplace of ideas to flourish, societies fail to progress by any measure on the human, social, and economic development scale. Given the paramount importance of this fundamental right, restrictions on freedom of expression, in order to be permissible, must be narrowly defined and will have to be derived from the relevant international legal standards. In this context it is equally important to note that there is no a priori hierarchy of rights.