THE LEgAL REguLATION OF RELIgIOuS SyMBOLS IN THE PuBLIC SPHERE IN THE CzECH REPuBLIC Construction of a new democratic legal basis until 1992 The constitutional foundation was first laid through the Charter of Fundamental Rights and Freedoms. 8 Article 15 of the Charter enshrines the guarantee of freedom of thought and conscience, scientific research, and the creation of art, as well as the right to refuse military service on grounds of conscience or religion. Article 16 strongly guarantees both

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... individual and corporate religious freedom. This document continued to play a very important role in the case law of the Constitutional Court. The special act on churches and religious communities (further "CRC") was adopted in 1991. 9 The law was rather short and favorable for the activities of the CRCs. The minimum number of signatures necessary for an application to register as a CRC was further regulated (and in different manners) by the national assemblies of the individual parts of the Czechoslovak Federation: in the Czech Republic 10,000 adult members with permanent residence were required, while in the Slovak Republic up to 20,000 people were necessary, which in practice (according to the number of inhabitants) was four-times more demanding. 10 Based on this law, twenty-one CRCs were registered or reciprocated. For the first time, this law legally guaranteed the protection of confessional and similar secrets, especially in criminal proceedings. The manner in which the right to perform civilian instead of military service was exercised was further regulated at the end of 1991, maintaining respect for individuals' conscience and religious beliefs. 11 Conscience protection developed gradually in the healthcare field. Although the right to informed patient consent has been enshrined since 1966, 12 it was given little respect in practice, though this changed with amendments to the law from 1990 to 1991. 13 In 1991, professional chambers were established in the medical, dental, and pharmaceutical fields. They gradually developed their codes of ethics, which, to a limited extent, made it possible to exercise conscientious objection, but only for individuals (dental and pharmaceutical chambers in 1992, medical chambers in 1995). 14