Гарантії свободи совісті та віросповідання в світлі альтернативної (невійськової) служби в Україні

Freedom of conscience and religion is one of the most important fundamental human rights enshrined in international and national legal acts. It includes the ability of a person to profess any religion or to be non-religious, as well as the right to refuse actions that contradict his religious or moral beliefs. One of the most important forms of implementation of this right is the possibility of refusing military service and undergoing alternative (non-military) service. Ukraine, as a democratic state, recognizes the right of citizens to alternative service and enshrines it in the Constitution and special legislation. However, despite the presence of legal guarantees, there are numerous challenges in the implementation of this right, associated with administrative difficulties, public perception and insufficient awareness of citizens. Since the announcement of mobilization in Ukraine against the backdrop of a full-scale Russian invasion, believers of those religious communities that are prohibited from holding weapons have found themselves in a difficult situation, without exaggeration. After all, if in peacetime they could count on alternative service instead of military service (although there were also problems with this), then in the conditions of mobilization this turned out to be practically impossible. The purpose of the study is to analyze international and Ukrainian legislation, identify the main problems in the field of alternative service, and provide recommendations for improving legislation in this area. The subject of the study is the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion, enshrined in the European Convention on Human Rights, the legislation of Ukraine and court decisions. Comparative, systemic and formal-legal methods were used in writing the article. Based on the results of the research conducted, the article presents conclusions about the existence and meaning of freedom of thought, conscience and religion within the meaning of the European Convention on Human Rights and Ukrainian legislation. The topic of human rights and freedoms, including in the light of the European Convention on Human Rights, is certainly quite widely developed by both Ukrainian and foreign researchers. However, there are not many studies by domestic authors devoted specifically to the guarantee of freedom of conscience and religion in the light of alternative (non-military) service in Ukraine, which makes conducting such research desirable for Ukraine.