The dissertation examines the justification and conditions of global citizenship and the relation between global citizenship education and education in general. An applicable concept of... Show moreThe dissertation examines the justification and conditions of global citizenship and the relation between global citizenship education and education in general. An applicable concept of cosmopolitanism is derived from both a historical and conceptual analysis and by means of a comparative method lessons are drawn from (the history of) Afghanistan and the detrimental effects of foreign intervention on the formation of a democratic nation-state. The case for new forms of a cosmopolitan concept of democracy is made, applicable to an interdependent and globalising world. This philosophical analysis is applied to the present-day educational systems of both the Netherlands and Afghanistan. From this a starting point for a proposal towards world citizenship education is derived. In this research the case of the human rights violation of Farkhunda is used as a benchmark for the validity of the discussed theories. Show less
I investigate the intersection of two of the most important areas governing how modern society is organized: the law governing religion. I investigate whether the purportedly (or presumptively)... Show moreI investigate the intersection of two of the most important areas governing how modern society is organized: the law governing religion. I investigate whether the purportedly (or presumptively) secular Western legal understanding of the idea of “religion,” as it is understood in court judgments, reflects any religious presuppositions or bias. In other words, to what extent is the idea of “religion,” as it is understood by courts, sectarian rather than secular? If a bias exists, what should be done about it in order to bring our understanding, our definitions, and our approach to legal issues involving religion into conformity with broader legal norms concerning formal equality? To investigate whether such a bias exists I begin by examining two sets of court decisions: one from the United Kingdom and one from Israel, discussing the question “who is a Jew?” in a legal context. I then discuss what the implications of those findings are, with particular regard to how “religion” as a legal term of art should be interpreted by courts. How should judicial interpretation of fundamental guarantees of religious freedom take account of the Christian provenance of the criteria governing what it means to be a religion in the first place? Show less
