The UN Human Rights Council has adopted a new resolution on religious intolerance that human rights groups hope is a step forward in eliminating the controversial “blasphemy laws.”
The essence of the resolution is that it protects individuals from discrimination, but does not necessarily protect religions from criticism.
Last week, the inter-governmental body adopted the “Resolution on Combating Intolerance and Violence against Persons Based on Religion or Belief,” that urged UN states to adopt policies that respect and protect the full diversity of human religious expression.
In so doing, the 47-member state body also challenged the “defamation of religions” concept, which some organisations have been lobbying the UN to incorporate into its policies.
“The resolution properly focuses on protecting individuals from discrimination or violence, instead of protecting religions from criticism,” noted the US Commission on International Religious Freedom.
“Unlike the defamation of religions resolution, the new consensus resolution does not call for legal restrictions on peaceful expression, but rather, for positive measures, such as education and awareness-building, to address intolerance, discrimination, and violence based on religion or belief,” the bipartisan federal body added.
In a separate statement last Thursday, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton added, “The United States strongly supports today’s resolution, which rejects the broad prohibitions on speech called for in the former ‘defamation of religions’ resolution, and supports approaches that do not limit freedom of expression or infringe on the freedom of religion."
“Today’s adoption of this resolution by the UN Human Rights Council is an important statement that must be followed by sustained commitment,” stated Clinton.
It was feared that endorsement of the “defamation of religions” would lead to further “blasphemy laws” such as those adopted in Pakistan, and which is used to silence minority religions, both on a community and governmental level.