JURIST - Paper Chase: UN General Assembly adopts resolution against defamation of religions

[JURIST] The UN General Assembly has passed a resolution [draft text, PDF] against "defamation of religion," expressing concern about laws that have led to religions discrimination and profiling since Sept. 11. The resolution urges all:

States to provide, within their respective legal and constitutional systems, adequate protection against acts of hatred, discrimination, intimidation and coercion resulting from defamation of religions, to take all possible measures to promote tolerance and respect for all religions and their value systems and to complement legal systems with intellectual and moral strategies to combat religious hatred and intolerance.

The resolution, supported by the Organization of the Islamic Conference [official website], passed Tuesday by a vote of 108-51 [press release, see Annex X], with 25 abstentions. Many Western nations and other democracies opposed the resolution.

Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf called for the resolution [JURIST report] in the General Assembly last year, citing feelings in the Muslim world of "desperation and injustice" in the wake of the Danish publication of cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad [JURIST news archive]. The UN Human Rights Council passed a similar resolution [JURIST report] opposing defamation of Islam in March, with many of the same western nations standing in opposition. CNS News has more.

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