GENEVA: The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Turk, called for dialogue and respect for religious tolerance as member states met in Geneva in response to the recent burning of the Holy Quran in the Swedish capital.
The 47-member body is debating a motion, brought by Pakistan in response to last month’s incident, seeking a report from the UN rights chief on the topic and calls on states to review their laws and plug gaps that may “impede the prevention and prosecution of acts and advocacy of religious hatred”.
Addressing the Human Rights Council, the UN rights chief noted that the holy book was the “core of faith” for well over one billion Muslims. Turk said that those who had burned the Holy Quran most likely did so “to express contempt and inflame anger”, but warned that these acts also aimed “to drive wedges between people”, to provoke and transform differences into hatred.
Dialogue to repair differences of opinion and faiths is key, he continued, as he condemned hate speech against and by people of all mainstream and minority faiths, highlighting instead the benefits of diversity to all societies.
He said leading politicians and senior religious figures have a “particularly crucial role to play” in speaking out clearly against disrespect and intolerance. “They should also make it clear that violence cannot be justified by prior provocation, whether real or perceived”, he added.
The High Commissioner stressed that limiting free speech or expression to any degree must remain “as a matter of fundamental principle” an exception, especially given that laws limiting speech are “often misused” by authoritarian governments.
He added that some acts of speech constitute an incitement to violence and discriminatory action. Numerous acts of violence, terror and mass atrocity, have targeted people based on their religious beliefs, including inside places of worship.
Although international law is clear on the issue, national courts must determine each case in a manner “that is consistent with the guardrails that international humanitarian law provides”, he said.
“My second point is this: advocacy of hatred that constitutes incitement to violence, discrimination and hostility should be prohibited in every State”, Turk told delegates to the Council in Geneva.
He gave examples of abusing Muslim women who wear a headscarf, sneering at people with disabilities, or making false claims against migrants and minorities, noting that “all such hate speech is similar” stemming from the idea that some are less deserving than others.
He warned against the tide of hate speech is being powered by social media, and increasing discord and polarization. He called for rising hate speech to be addressed through dialogue, education, greater awareness, and interfaith or community engagement.
“We must not allow ourselves to be reeled in and become instrumentalized by these merchants of chaos for political gain – these provocateurs who deliberately seek out ways to divide us.”
The UN rights chief said all societies need to become “magnets of respect, dialogue and cooperation among different peoples, as has been achieved by multiple civilizations in the past.”
