NGO Joint Statement on Defamation of Religions

UN Watch has posted a press release revealing the details of the Joint NGO Statement on Danger of U.N. “Defamation of Religions” Campaign and listing its 187 co-endorsers.

The joint statement urges nations to reject the "defamation of religions resolution", the proposed protocol to ICERD and the Durban II conference. The list of signatories includes a few surprises.

• Muslim Council of Canada
• The International Quranic Center (IQC)
• American Islamic Congress

As a lover of liberty, particularly freedom of expression, I visited http://congress.org/ and used their email form to send my personal endorsement of the joint statement and a link to the UN Watch press release to President Obama and my Senators.

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The Censorship Protocol

This is what the IHEU is warning about in their press release, as the second of three listed threats to liberty.

Call upon all governments to resist the efforts of the “Ad Hoc Committee on Complementary Standards” to alter the ICERD;.

This draft complementary international standards in the fight against racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance has been prepared for the implementation of paragraph 199 of the Program of Action(A/CONF.189/12).

199. Recommends that the Commission on Human Rights prepare complementary
international standards to strengthen and update international instruments against racism, racial
discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance in all their aspects;

Article 4 of the proposed protocol to ICERD is titled: Prohibition of Incitement to Racial Hatred.
This article contains several notable provisions.

1. States Parties condemn all propaganda, practice or organization to justify or encourage any form of hatred or discrimination against persons belonging to groups such as religious groups, refugees, asylum seekers, people displaced, stateless persons, migrants and migrant workers, descent-based communities such as people of African descent, indigenous peoples, minorities and people under foreign occupation.
2. States Parties undertake to adopt immediate and positive measures designed to eradicate all incitement to such hatred or discrimination, including:

1. to declare an offense punishable by law all dissemination of ideas to such discrimination or hatred, as well as all acts of violence or incitement to such acts directed against persons belonging to particular groups;
2. to declare illegal and prohibit organizations and propaganda activities organized and any other type of propaganda which incites hatred or discrimination or who encourages, and to declare punishable by law the involvement in such organizations or activities;
3. not permit public authorities, national or local, to incite hatred or discrimination;
4. not to allow political parties to incite hatred or discrimination.
5. to strengthen their laws or take the legal provisions necessary to prohibit and punish racist and xenophobic platforms and discourage by a democratic debate vigilant the integration of political parties promoting these platforms in Government to legitimise their implementation alliances.

This protocol to ICERD would become International law, binding on signatories, and a provision in Article 17 prohibits reservations. We need a definition of terms:

• justify or encourage any form of hatred or discrimination
• incites hatred
• racist and xenophobic

Here is a clue from Article 6.

The fundamental characteristic of all the events to certain religions and descriditer to insult people or groups who share the religion, commonly called "defamation of religions" and all the fear and religious discrimination is inciting racial hatred For religious and address the issue of defamation of religions in a universal, it is essential to bring this discussion to the international instruments on human rights.

According to that, anyone who says or writes anything negative about Islam incites racial hatred. Is that clear yet? Examine what U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said about Geert Wilders' Fitna:.

"There is no justification for hate speech or incitement to violence," Ban said in a statement. "The right of free expression is not at stake here."[Reuters]

Geert Wilders quoted the Qur'an and displayed images of rabble rousing Imams and their followers, along with some of the results of their preaching. Ban Ki-moon says that constitutes hate speech and incitement to violence.

Masood Khan quoted Ban Ki-Moon's representative to the Alliance of Civilizations as declaring Fitna to be " a deliberate incitement to discrimination, violence and hatred on grounds of religion, aimed at provoking and promoting social unrest". [Masood Khan's statement of 04/01/08]

If we accurately describe Islam's doctrines & practices, quoting its canon of scripture, tradition & jurisprudence, we are automatically convicted of hate speech; inciting violence. This is part of an Orwellian campaign to dis-arm us, to render us incapable of warning against Islamic aggression.

This protocol would outlaw two American and two European political parties for their anti-Islam platforms. Muhammad, claimed to be the best and greatest of men, worthy of emulation as a role model was a murderer, pedophile & terrorist. For genuine hate speech and incitement to violence, read the Qur'an, don't stop there, read the next six verses. Is cursing Jews & Christians hateful enough for you? How about genocide? He killed all the men of a Jewish village after they surrendered, then he examined the boys for pubic hair and slaughtered those who had it.

Islam seeks to criminalize its critics because it has no defense against the facts contained in its own canon of scripture, tradition & jurisprudence. Moe had good reason for forbidding his followers to carry the Qur'an into Dar al-Harb: "That is out of fear that the enemy will get hold of it."

Don't just sit there waiting for the noose to be placed on your neck. Send an email to your Senators, and to President Obama. Tell them that the proposed protocol is unacceptable. Tell them that you consider support for it to be tantamount to treason. You can send your email through the Federal Officers link at http://www.congress.org/ . Include a link to this blog post in your email so that your Senators can become informed.

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Urgent Appeal to NGOs

Dear Readers,

Reproducing blog posts written by others is not my usual habit, I usually do so only when the authors explicitly request it. I make an exception in this extremely important case because of the urgency of the issue and the short time line required for an effective response.

If you are an officer or member of any NGO which speaks out on issues of Liberty, I urge you to give careful and rapid attention to the following appeal from the International Humanist and Ethical Union. Please bring this matter to the immediate attention of the leaders of your organization and exhort them to endorse the appeal immediately.

The statement reproduced below brings two new attacks upon liberty to my attention. I intend to make contact with the author in hopes of receiving links to the documents involved so that I can make them the subject of future blog posts.

As a member of the United American Committee, Act! for America and Center for Vigilant Freedom, I exhort the leaders of those organization to add their official endorsement.

An urgent appeal to Humanist organizations: support freedom of expression, oppose "defamation of religions"

Submitted by admin on 22 March, 2009 - 14:19.

• UN Geneva

In conjunction with Freedom House, UN Watch and the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, IHEU is seeking Humanist orgnizations' support for the statement below, urging all states to reject UN resolutions "combating defamation of religion" - a concept which has no validity in international law. The statement is self explanatory. If your organization is in agreement with the statement, please endorse it on behalf of your organization by emailing me personally at . Please indicate in your reply the full name of your organization (which does not need to be accredited to the UN).

We plan to circulate the statement early next week to delegations at the Human Rights Council, prior to the Council vote on the "defamation of religion" resolution. The deadline for replies is 4pm CET (10am EST) on Tuesday 24 March.

Do not delay! Please add your organization's voice to this important statement in defence of human rights.

With kind regards

Roy W Brown
IHEU Main Representative, UN Geneva
Immediate Past President of IHEU

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Joint NGO Statement on Danger of U.N. “Defamation of Religions” Campaign

We, the undersigned non-governmental organizations,

Deeply concerned by the pervasive and mounting campaign by the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) to produce U.N. resolutions, declarations, and world conferences that propagate the concept of “defamation of religions,” a concept having no basis in domestic or international law, and which would alter the very meaning of human rights, which protect individuals from harm, but not beliefs from critical inquiry;

Deeply concerned by the attempt to misuse the U.N. to legitimize anti-blasphemy laws, thereby restricting freedom of religion, freedom of expression, and freedom of the press;

Deeply concerned that “defamation of religions” resolutions may be used in certain countries to silence and intimidate human rights activists, religious dissenters, and other independent voices;

Alarmed by the resolution on “defamation of religions” recently tabled at the current 10th session of the UN Human Rights Council;

Alarmed by the draft resolution on freedom of expression circulated by Egypt, whose amendments seek to restrict, not promote, protections for free speech;

Alarmed by the recently-announced initiative of the U.N. “Ad Hoc Committee on Complementary Standards” to amend the International Convention for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (ICERD) by adding a protocol on “defamation of religions”;

Alarmed by provisions in the latest draft outcome document of the Durban Review Conference that, through coded language and veiled references, endorse and encourage these subversive and anti-democratic initiatives;

1. Call upon all governments to oppose the “defamation of religions” resolution currently tabled at the UN Human Rights Council, and the objectionable provisions of the freedom of expression resolution;
   
2. Call upon all governments to resist the efforts of the “Ad Hoc Committee on Complementary Standards” to alter the ICERD;
   
3. Call upon all governments not to accept or legitimize a Durban Review Conference outcome that directly or indirectly supports the “defamation of religions” campaign at the expense of basic freedoms and individual human rights.

Initial Signatories:

• UN Watch
• International Humanist and Ethical Union
• Freedom House
• The Becket Fund for Religious Liberty

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