Willy Fautré

Willy Fautré (1944) is a Belgian human rights activist,^[1] founder and director of Human Rights Without Frontiers International (HRWF).^[2][3] He has authored numerous articles in academic journals on the relationship between the state and religion. He specializes in the issues faced by religious and linguistic minorities in Europe.

Willy Fautré
Born	1944
Citizenship	Belgian
Occupation	Human rights defender
Employer	Belgian Federal Parliament Bitter Winter
Position held	president (2001–2017), director (2001–), Chargé de mission (1989–1990)

Biography

Fautré previously served as a chargé de mission in the Belgian Parliament.^[4] Through his work at HRWF, Fautré has also contributed to reporting and raising awareness about human rights violations, often interacting with international bodies, such as the United Nations, European Court of Human Rights (HUDOC) to call for stronger actions in defense of human rights worldwide.^[5]

Human rights work

Fautré founded Human Rights Without Frontiers International in 2001. He is known for "defending religious communities from persecution and interference by state authorities, often defending traditional believers from rigidly secular government policies".^[6] He has championed the cause of religious and linguistic minorities in Europe at the United Nations, Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe, European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights, and the European Parliament. He often hosts conferences on religious freedom at the European Parliament and gives lectures on subjects including religious freedom, discrimination, and intolerance.^[7]

Writing

Book chapter

• Fautré, W. (2004). "Belgium's Anti-Sect Policy". In Richardson, J. T. (ed.). Regulating Religion. Critical Issues in Social Justice. Springer, Boston, MA. pp. 113–125. doi:10.1007/978-1-4419-9094-5_8. ISBN 978-0-306-47887-1.

Articles

• Fautré, W. (1999). "Belgium's Anti-Sect War". Social Justice Research. 12 (4): 377–392. doi:10.1023/A:1022025326484.
• Fautré, W. (2020). "Coercive change of religion in South Korea: The case of the Shincheonji church". The Journal of CESNUR. 4 (3): 35–56.
• Fautré, W. (2020). "Opposition to Jehovah's Witnesses in Russia: Legal Measures". The Journal of CESNUR. 4 (6): 41–57.
• Fautré, W. (2024). "Abusive taxation of religious minorities. A comparative study of Tai Ji Men in Taiwan and the Jehovah's Witnesses in France". International Journal for Religious Freedom. 17 (1): 5–11. doi:10.59484/URQV1407. hdl:10520/ejc-ijrf_v17_n1_a4.