This freedom goes hand in hand with the freedom of opinion and press. It means the right to form any kind of association for such purpose as religious, social, political, scientific, commercial or cultural and literary. Mere freedom of opinion will not be enough in the long run, if the citizens are not free to associate with like-minded citizens.
This right also means the right to form peaceful assemblies, to take out processions, etc. The concrete example of this freedom is the formation of political parties, which must be free to work. But this right is also not absolute. Only such associations and organisations can be formed which serve legal ends; and they must be formed and operated in a peaceful and constitutional manner. Illegal or
“The only freedom of speech worth having is the freedom to speak things that run wholly counter to the spirit of the time.”
violent assemblies which disturb peace and order are prohibited by law. Nevertheless, the rights of freedom of opinion and of association are the two most important rights of modern democratic States. They are, moreover, the rights which are on the borderline between the civil and political rights.