Elimination of All Forms of Intolerance and of Discrimination Based on Religion or Belief

A/RES/64/164No PDF available

Who created this mandate?

A Resolution of the General Assembly, under agenda item 69bHuman rights questions, including alternative approaches for improving the effective enjoyment of human rights and fundamental freedoms, published in 2010.

What other versions does this mandate have?

10 versions · 1977–2012

This is an older version — the most recent is A/RES/66/168

2012A/RES/66/168Elimination of all forms of intolerance and of discrimination based on religion or beliefLatestCompare with previous version
2011A/RES/65/211Elimination of all forms of intolerance and of discrimination based on religion or beliefCompare with previous version
2010A/RES/64/164Elimination of all forms of intolerance and of discrimination based on religion or beliefCompare with previous version
2009A/RES/63/181Elimination of all forms of intolerance and of discrimination based on religion or beliefCompare with previous version
2008A/RES/62/157Elimination of all forms of intolerance and of discrimination 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 does this mandate say?

32 operative paragraphs

Condemns all forms of intolerance and of discrimination based on religion or belief, as well as violations of freedom of thought, conscience and religion or belief;

Stresses that the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion applies equally to all persons, regardless of their religions or beliefs, and without any discrimination as to their equal protection by the law;

Emphasizes that, as underlined by the Human Rights Committee, restrictions on the freedom to manifest one’s religion or belief are permitted only if limitations are prescribed by law, are necessary to protect public safety, order, health or morals, or the fundamental rights and freedoms of others, are non-discriminatory and are applied in a manner that does not vitiate the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion;

Also emphasizes that freedom of religion or belief and freedom of expression are interdependent, interrelated and mutually reinforcing;

Recognizes with deep concern the overall rise in instances of intolerance and violence directed against members of many religious and other communities in various parts of the world, including cases motivated by Islamophobia, anti-Semitism and Christianophobia;

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

Expresses concern over the persistence of institutionalized social intolerance and discrimination practised against many on the grounds of religion or belief, and emphasizes that legal procedures pertaining to religious or belief-based groups and places of worship are not a prerequisite for the exercise of the right to manifest one’s religion or belief, and that such procedures, when legally required at the national or local level, should be non-discriminatory in order to contribute to the effective protection of the right of all persons to practise their religion or belief, either individually or in community with others and in public or private;

Recognizes with concern the situation of persons in vulnerable situations, including persons deprived of their liberty, refugees, asylum-seekers and internally displaced persons, children, persons belonging to national or ethnic, religious and linguistic minorities and migrants, as regards their ability to freely exercise their right to freedom of religion or belief;

Emphasizes that States have an obligation to exercise due diligence to prevent, investigate and punish acts of violence against persons belonging to religious minorities, regardless of the perpetrator, and that failure to do so may constitute a human rights violation;

Also emphasizes that no religion should be equated with terrorism, as this may have adverse consequences on the enjoyment of the right to freedom of religion or belief of all members of the religious communities concerned;

Urges States to step up their efforts to protect and promote freedom of thought, conscience and religion or belief, and to this end:

To ensure that their constitutional and legislative systems provide adequate and effective guarantees of freedom of thought, conscience, religion and belief to all without distinction, inter alia, by the provision of effective remedies in cases where the right to freedom of thought, conscience, religion or belief, or the right to practise freely one’s religion, including the right to change one’s religion or belief, is violated;

To ensure that no one within their jurisdiction is deprived of the right to life, liberty or security of person because of religion or belief and that no one is subjected to torture or other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, or arbitrary arrest or detention on that account and to bring to justice all perpetrators of violations of these rights;

To end violations of the human rights of women and to devote particular attention to abolishing practices that discriminate against women, including in the exercise of their right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion or belief;

To ensure that no one is discriminated against on the basis of his or her religion or belief when accessing, inter alia, education, medical care, employment, humanitarian assistance or social benefits, and to ensure that everyone has the right and the opportunity to have access, on general terms of equality, to public services in one’s country, without any discrimination on the basis of religion or belief;

To review, whenever relevant, existing registration practices in order to ensure that such practices do not limit the right of all persons to manifest their religion or belief, either alone or in community with others and in public or private;

To ensure that no official documents are withheld from the individual on the grounds of religion or belief and that everyone has the right to refrain from disclosing information concerning one’s religious affiliation on such documents against one’s will;

To ensure, in particular, the right of all persons to worship, assemble or teach in connection with a religion or belief and their right to establish and maintain places for these purposes and the right of all persons to write, issue and disseminate relevant publications in these areas;

To exert the utmost efforts, in accordance with their national legislation and in conformity with international human rights law, to ensure that religious places, sites, shrines and symbols are fully respected and protected and to take additional measures in cases where they are vulnerable to desecration and destruction;

To ensure that, in accordance with appropriate national legislation and in conformity with international human rights law, the freedom of all persons and members of groups to establish and maintain religious, charitable or humanitarian institutions is fully respected and protected;

To ensure that all public officials and civil servants, including members of law enforcement bodies and personnel of detention facilities, the military and educators, in the course of fulfilling their official duties, respect freedom of religion or belief and do not discriminate for reasons based on religion or belief, and that all necessary and appropriate awareness-raising, education or training is provided;

To take all necessary and appropriate action, in conformity with international standards of human rights, to combat hatred, discrimination, intolerance and acts of violence, intimidation and coercion motivated by intolerance based on religion or belief, as well as incitement to hostility and violence, with particular regard to members of religious minorities in all parts of the world;

To promote, through education and other means, understanding, tolerance, non-discrimination and respect in all matters relating to freedom of religion or belief by encouraging a wider knowledge in the society at large of the history, traditions, languages and culture of the various religious minorities existing within their jurisdiction;

To prevent any distinction, exclusion, restriction or preference based on religion or belief which impairs the recognition, enjoyment or exercise of human rights and fundamental freedoms on an equal basis, and to detect signs of intolerance that may lead to discrimination based on religion or belief;

Stresses the importance of a continued and strengthened dialogue in all its forms, including among and within religions or beliefs, and with broader participation, including of women, to promote greater tolerance, respect and mutual understanding, and welcomes different initiatives in this regard, including the Alliance of Civilizations and the programmes led by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization;

Welcomes and encourages the continuing efforts of all actors in society, including non-governmental organizations and bodies and groups based on religion or belief, to promote the implementation of the Declaration on the Elimination of All Forms of Intolerance and of Discrimination Based on Religion or Belief, and further encourages their work in promoting freedom of religion or belief and in highlighting cases of religious intolerance, discrimination and persecution;

Recommends that States, the United Nations and other actors, including non-governmental organizations and bodies and groups based on religion or belief, in their efforts to promote freedom of religion or belief, ensure the widest possible dissemination of the text of the Declaration, in as many different languages as possible, and promote its implementation;

Welcomes the work and the interim report of the Special Rapporteur of the Human Rights Council on freedom of religion or belief;

Urges all Governments to cooperate fully with the Special Rapporteur, to respond favourably to her requests to visit their countries and to provide all necessary information for the effective fulfilment of her mandate;

Requests the Secretary-General to ensure that the Special Rapporteur receives the resources necessary to fully discharge her mandate;

Requests the Special Rapporteur to submit an interim report to the General Assembly at its sixty-fifth session;

Decides to consider the question of the elimination of all forms of religious intolerance at its sixty-fifth session under the item entitled “Promotion and protection of human rights”.

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Elimination of All Forms of Intolerance and of Discrimination Based on Religion or Belief

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