and fundamental freedoms without distinction as to, inter alia, religion or belief,
Reaffirming also the obligation of States to prohibit discrimination on the basis of
religion or belief and to implement measures to guarantee the equal and effective protection
of the law,
Reaffirming further that the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights
provides, inter alia, that everyone shall have the right to freedom of thought, conscience and
religion or belief, which shall include freedom to have or to adopt a religion or belief of his
choice, and freedom, either individually or in community with others and in public or
private, to manifest his religion or belief in worship, observance, practice and teaching,
Reaffirming the positive role that the exercise of the right to freedom of opinion and
expression and the full respect for the freedom to seek, receive and impart information can
play in strengthening democracy and combating religious intolerance,
Deeply concerned about incidents of intolerance, discrimination and violence
against persons based on their religion or belief in all regions of the world,
* The resolutions and decisions adopted by the Human Rights Council will be contained in the report of
the Council on its sixteenth session (A/HRC/16/2), chap. I.United Nations A/HRC/RES/16/18
General Assembly Distr.: General
12 April 2011
Original: English
A/HRC/RES/16/18
2
Deploring any advocacy of discrimination or violence on the basis of religion or
belief,
Strongly deploring all acts of violence against persons on the basis of their religion
or belief, as well as any such acts directed against their homes, businesses, properties,
schools, cultural centres or places of worship,
Concerned about actions that wilfully exploit tensions or target individuals on the
basis of their religion or belief,
Noting with deep concern the instances of intolerance, discrimination and acts of
violence in many parts of the world, including cases motivated by discrimination against
persons belonging to religious minorities, in addition to the negative projection of the
followers of religions and the enforcement of measures that specifically discriminate
against persons on the basis of religion or belief,
Recognizing the valuable contribution of people of all religions or beliefs to
humanity and the contribution that dialogue among religious groups can make towards an
improved awareness and understanding of the common values shared by all humankind,
Recognizing also that working together to enhance implementation of existing legal
regimes that protect individuals against discrimination and hate crimes, increase interfaith
and intercultural efforts, and to expand human rights education are important first steps in
combating incidents of intolerance, discrimination and violence against individuals on the
basis of religion or belief,
1. Expresses deep concern at the continued serious instances of derogatory
stereotyping, negative profiling and stigmatization of persons based on their religion or
belief, as well as 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;
2. Expresses its concern that incidents of religious intolerance, discrimination
and related violence, as well as of negative stereotyping of individuals on the basis of
religion or belief, continue to rise around the world, and 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;
3. 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;
4. Recognizes that the open public debate of ideas, as well as 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 a continuing dialogue on
these issues can help overcome existing misperceptions;
5. 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 on his
call on States to take the following actions to foster a domestic environment of religious
tolerance, peace and respect, by:
(a) 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;
A/HRC/RES/16/18
3
(b) 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;
(c) Encouraging training of Government officials in effective outreach strategies;
(d) Encouraging the efforts of leaders to discuss within their communities the
causes of discrimination, and evolving strategies to counter these causes;
(e) Speaking out against intolerance, including advocacy of religious hatred that
constitutes incitement to discrimination, hostility or violence;
(f) Adopting measures to criminalize incitement to imminent violence based on
religion or belief;
(g) Understanding the need to combat denigration and negative religious
stereotyping of persons, as well as incitement to religious hatred, by strategizing and
harmonizing actions at the local, national, regional and international levels through, inter
alia, education and awareness-building;
(h) Recognizing that the open, constructive and respectful debate of ideas, as
well as interfaith and intercultural dialogue at the local, national and international levels,
can play a positive role in combating religious hatred, incitement and violence;
6. Calls upon all States:
(a) 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;
(b) 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;
(c) To encourage the representation and meaningful participation of individuals,
irrespective of their religion, in all sectors of society;
(d) 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;
7. Encourages States to consider providing updates on efforts made in this
regard as part of ongoing reporting to the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner
for Human Rights;
8. Calls upon States to adopt measures and policies to promote the 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;
9. 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, and decides to convene a panel discussion on
this issue at its seventeenth session, within existing resources.
46th meeting
24 March 2011
[Adopted without a vote.]