Religious freedom, health, and bodily integrity in the anti-vaccination debate: Case study on religious non-vaccination in the Dutch Biblebelt

Berkum, van, Anne (2019) Religious freedom, health, and bodily integrity in the anti-vaccination debate: Case study on religious non-vaccination in the Dutch Biblebelt. Bachelor thesis, Bachelor Godsdienstwetenschap.

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Abstract

In this thesis I will explore to which extent the rights to religious freedom, health, and bodily integrity play a role in the contemporary anti-vaccination debate in the Netherlands and what the connotations for the Biblebelt are. Using media coverage, human rights law, medical-, political- and religious scholars I will argue that there are multiple factors – religious freedom, health and integrity, and governmental interferences – at play which take on a plethora of meanings according to local context and scale in the Netherlands. The anti-vaccination debate has deep social roots in the Orthodox Protestant (OP) history of the Dutch Biblebelt. The decline in immunisation rate results in a national danger to public health, but locally to religious freedom for the OP. Legally, the OP have the right to exemption from vaccination, regardless of a mandatory immunisation programme. Concerning health, however, within the Biblebelt the (public) health of children has always been in danger. In addition, it does not respect the best interest of the child, which should be leading according to court and law. With the increase of anti-vaccination, the public health is in danger nationally. It can be suggested that the choice to vaccinate is a public choice, and not private as it may seem. Thus, morally and publicly, both anti-vaccination groups do not have the best interest of the child(ren) in mind. The contemporariness of the debate, and its many connotations depending on context and scale make the anti-vaccination debate a complex and unfinished issue.

Type:	Thesis (Bachelor)
Supervisors (RUG):	Supervisor E-mail Tutor organization Tutor email McIvor, M.B. M.McIvor@rug.nl Knibbe, K.E. K.E.Knibbe@rug.nl
Degree programme:	Bachelor Godsdienstwetenschap
Academic year:	2018- 2019
Date of delivery:	28 Jun 2019
Last modified:	28 Jun 2019 09:15
URI:	https://rcs.studenttheses.ub.rug.nl/id/eprint/514

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