The Arc of the Covenant: The unfinished business of UN efforts to combat religious intolerance

by Ben Greenacre, Universal Rights Group Blog BORRAR, Blog BORRAR, Human Rights Council BORRAR, Human rights institutions and mechanisms, In Focus: Human rights and religion BORRAR, Istanbul process BORRAR, Religion, Religious intolerance BORRAR, Resolution 16/18 BORRAR, Thematic human rights issues

A ‘Lost Covenant’ The combating of religious discrimination is one of the oldest thematic topics of discussion within the UN human rights system. Originally bound closely with discussions on racial discrimination, particularly in the context of resurgent anti-Semitism in the aftermath of World War 2, it harks back to the mandate first handed the Commission on Human Rights by the …

Lost Covenant: A Story of the Failed 1967 Convention on Elimination of Religious Intolerance

by Steven L. B. Jensen, Researcher at the Danish Institute for Human Rights and the URG team Blog BORRAR, By invitation, By invitation BORRAR, In Focus: Human rights and religion BORRAR, Religion, Religious intolerance BORRAR, Thematic human rights issues

2016 witnessed the 50th anniversary for a vital legacy for international human rights work, namely the adoption of the 1966 Covenants on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and on Civil and Political Rights. I would argue that the legacy from 1967 may be of equal relevance for today. In 2017, we face another highly pertinent 50th anniversary even if it …

How to move forward with the implementation of resolution 16/18 and with global efforts to combat religious intolerance and discrimination

by Marghoob Saleem Butt, Executive Director of the Independent Permanent Human Rights Commission of the OIC and the URG team Blog BORRAR, Blog BORRAR, By invitation, By invitation BORRAR, HRC BORRAR, Human rights implementation and impact, Human rights institutions and mechanisms, Implementation BORRAR, In Focus: Human rights and religion BORRAR, Religion, Religious intolerance BORRAR, Resolution 16/18 BORRAR, Thematic human rights issues

Incitement to religious hatred, discrimination and violence needs to be addressed by everyone, and at all levels. That is especially so when one considers the increasingly globalised and interconnected world in which we live — events on one side of the planet can have immediate and far-reaching consequences for people on the other side. News relating to religious discrimination or …

UN strategy to combat religious intolerance – is it fit for purpose?

by Marc Limon, Executive Director of the Universal Rights Group, Nazila Ghanea and the URG team Blog BORRAR, In Focus: Human rights and religion BORRAR, Religion, Religious intolerance BORRAR, Resolution 16/18 BORRAR, Thematic human rights issues

According to a recent report by the  Pew Research Center , violence and discrimination against religious groups by governments, as well as social hostilities by a variety of actors, have reached new heights in all regions except the Americas. This bleak picture is supported by the findings of the latest  report on religious freedom  by the US State Department, which concluded that 2013 saw “the largest displacement …