UN General Assembly president calls for measures to fight discrimination

UNITED NATIONS March 18 — The president of the 75th session of the UN General Assembly, Volkan Bozkir, on Wednesday called for measures to fight discrimination.
“We must take all measures necessary to combat direct and indirect forms of discrimination and attacks against places of worship, and persons on the basis of their religion or belief,” he told a high-level event in commemoration of the International Day to Combat Islamophobia designated by the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC).
“Today our conversation is focused on Islamophobia, but the source of this scourge is a source that imperils us all. The answer is solidarity, equality, and respect for the equal dignity and entitlement to fundamental human rights of every individual,” he said.
Keeping people safe from extremism requires a global strategy that includes defeating all forms of violent ideologies. Therefore, there is a need to build resilience to discriminatory, exclusionary, and intolerant teachings, and develop respect for the religious and cultural practices of others, he said.
People are not hard-wired to hate another. Fears are exploited, prejudices are re-enforced, and disinformation perpetuated, until “othering” of minorities becomes accepted, he said.
“Each of us has an individual responsibility to: be vigilant; call out any injustice we witness and defend democracy; and condemn intolerance, incitement, harassment based on ethnic origin or religious belief. Inertia is not an option.”
Bozkir stressed the need to teach young people that every individual is entitled to equal dignity and inalienable human rights. “Beyond formal education, we must instill within them a moral compass to help them navigate difficult situations,” he said.
The OIC last year designated March 15, the date of the Christchurch, New Zealand, terrorist attack, as the International Day to Combat Islamophobia. A high-level event was held virtually in New York on Wednesday after the OIC observed the first International Day to Combat Islamophobia on Monday. (Xinhua)