Combating Intolerance, Negative Stereotyping and Stigmatization of, and Discrimination, Incitement to Violence and Violence Against, Persons Based on Religion or Belief

A/HRC/RES/37/38No PDF available

Who created this mandate?

A Resolution of the General Assembly, under agenda item 9Racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related forms of intolerance, follow-up to and implementation of the Durban Declaration and Programme of Action, published in 2018.

What other versions does this mandate have?

15 versions · 2011–2026

This is an older version — the most recent is A/HRC/RES/61/36

2026A/HRC/RES/61/36Combating intolerance, negative stereotyping and stigmatization of, and discrimination, incitement to violence and violence against, persons based on religion or beliefLatestCompare with previous version
2025A/HRC/RES/58/29Combating intolerance, negative stereotyping and stigmatization of, and discrimination, incitement to violence and violence against, persons based on religion or beliefCompare with previous version
2023A/HRC/RES/52/38Combating intolerance, negative stereotyping and stigmatization of, and discrimination, incitement to violence and violence against, persons based on religion or beliefCompare with previous version
2022A/HRC/RES/49/31Combating intolerance, negative stereotyping and stigmatization of, and discrimination, incitement to violence and violence against, persons based on religion or beliefCompare with previous version
2021A/HRC/RES/46/27Combating intolerance, negative stereotyping and stigmatization of, and discrimination, incitement to violence and violence against, persons based on religion or beliefCompare with previous version

Versions are identified automatically by matching titles within the same organ (~97% accuracy on a manual audit).

What subjects does this mandate have?

6 topics

Anti-Discrimination Measures Discrimination Group Hatred Religious Freedom Religious Intolerance Violence

What does this mandate say?

26 operative paragraphs

Expresses deep concern at the continued serious instances of derogatory stereotyping, negative profiling and stigmatization of persons on the basis of their religion or belief, and programmes and agendas pursued by extremist organizations and groups aimed at creating and perpetuating negative stereotypes about religious groups, in particular when condoned by Governments;

Expresses its concern that incidents of religious intolerance, discrimination and related violence and of negative stereotyping of individuals on the basis of religion or belief continue to rise around the world, condemns in this context any advocacy of religious hatred against individuals that constitutes incitement to discrimination, hostility or violence, and urges States to take effective measures, as set forth in the present resolution, consistent with their obligations under international human rights law, to address and combat such incidents;

Condemns deeply any advocacy of religious hatred that constitutes incitement to discrimination, hostility or violence, whether it involves the use of print, audiovisual or electronic media or any other means;

Welcomes international, regional and national initiatives aimed at promoting interreligious, intercultural and interfaith harmony and combating discrimination against individuals on the basis of religion or belief, in particular the series of expert meetings held in Washington, D.C., London, Geneva, Doha, Jeddah and Singapore in the framework of the Istanbul Process to discuss the implementation of Human Rights Council resolution 16/18;

Notes the efforts of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights and the holding of four regional workshops, in Austria, Chile, Kenya and Thailand, on separate but related issues, and the final workshop in Morocco and its outcome document, the Rabat Plan of Action on the prohibition of advocacy of national, racial or religious hatred that constitutes incitement to discrimination, hostility or violence, and the recommendations and conclusions contained therein;

Recognizes that open, public debate of ideas and interfaith and intercultural dialogue at the local, national and international levels can be among the best protections against religious intolerance and can play a positive role in strengthening democracy and combating religious hatred, and convinced that continuing dialogue on these issues can help to overcome existing misperceptions;

Notes the speech given by Secretary-General of the Organization of the Islamic Conference at the fifteenth session of the Human Rights Council, and draws upon his call on States to take the following actions to foster a domestic environment of religious tolerance, peace and respect by:

Encouraging the creation of collaborative networks to build mutual understanding, promoting dialogue and inspiring constructive action towards shared policy goals and the pursuit of tangible outcomes, such as servicing projects in the fields of education, health, conflict prevention, employment, integration and media education;

Creating an appropriate mechanism within Governments to, inter alia, identify and address potential areas of tension between members of different religious communities, and assisting with conflict prevention and mediation;

Encouraging the training of government officials in effective outreach strategies;

Encouraging the efforts of leaders to discuss within their communities the causes of discrimination, and evolving strategies to counter those causes;

Speaking out against intolerance, including advocacy of religious hatred that constitutes incitement to discrimination, hostility or violence;

Adopting measures to criminalize incitement to imminent violence on the basis of religion or belief;

Understanding the need to combat denigration and negative religious stereotyping of persons and incitement to religious hatred by strategizing and harmonizing actions at the local, national, regional and international levels through, inter alia, education and awareness-building;

Recognizing that the open, constructive and respectful debate of ideas and interfaith and intercultural dialogue at the local, national and international levels can play a positive role in combating religious hatred, incitement and violence;

Calls upon all States:

To take effective measures to ensure that public functionaries, in the conduct of their public duties, do not discriminate against an individual on the basis of religion or belief;

To foster religious freedom and pluralism by promoting the ability of members of all religious communities to manifest their religion and to contribute openly and on an equal footing to society;

To encourage the representation and meaningful participation of individuals, irrespective of their religion, in all sectors of society;

To make a strong effort to counter religious profiling, which is understood to be the invidious use of religion as a criterion in conducting questionings, searches and other law enforcement investigative procedures;

Encourages States to consider providing updates on efforts made in this regard as part of their ongoing reporting to the Office of the High Commissioner;

Calls upon States to adopt measures and policies to promote full respect for and protection of places of worship and religious sites, cemeteries and shrines, and to take measures in cases where they are vulnerable to vandalism or destruction;

Takes note of the report submitted by the High Commissioner pursuant to Human Rights Council resolution 34/26 summarizing the contributions received from States, and also takes note of the conclusions of the report based on those contributions;

Stresses the urgent need to implement all parts of the action plan outlined in paragraphs 7 and 8 above with equal focus and attention in order to address religious intolerance;

Requests the High Commissioner to prepare and submit to the Human Rights Council at its fortieth session a comprehensive follow-up report with elaborated conclusions based upon information provided by States on the efforts and measures taken for the implementation of the action plan outlined in paragraphs 7 and 8 above, and views on potential follow-up measures for further improvement of the implementation of that plan;

Calls for strengthened international efforts to foster a global dialogue for the promotion of a culture of tolerance and peace at all levels, based on respect for human rights and diversity of religions and beliefs.

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