General Assembly

Distr. GENERAL  

7 December l987

ORIGINAL:
ENGLISH

                                                        A/RES/42/97
                                                        93rd plenary meeting
                                                        7 December l987
 
                   Elimination of all forms of religious intolerance
 
      The General Assembly,
 
      Conscious of the need to promote universal respect for, and observance
 of, human rights and fundamental freedoms for all without distinction as to
 race, sex, language or religion,
 
      Reaffirming its resolution 36/55 of 25 November 1981, by which it
 proclaimed the Declaration on the Elimination of All Forms of Intolerance and
 of Discrimination Based on Religion or Belief,
 
      Recalling its resolution 41/112 of 4 December 1986, in which it requested
 the Commission on Human Rights to continue its consideration of measures to
 implement the Declaration,
 
      Encouraged by the efforts being made by the Commission on Human Rights
 and by the Sub-Commission on Prevention of Discrimination and Protection of
 Minorities to study relevant developments affecting the implementation of the
 Declaration,
 
      Taking note of Commission on Human Rights resolution 1987/15 of
 4 March 1987 and Economic and Social Council decision 1987/143 of
 29 May 1987, whereby the mandate of the Special Rapporteur appointed to
 examine incidents and governmental actions in all parts of the world that are
 incompatible with the provisions of the Declaration and to recommend remedial
 measures as appropriate, was extended for one year,
 
      Noting with satisfaction that the Sub-Commission on Prevention of
 Discrimination and Protection of Minorities examined at its thirty-ninth
 session the study concluded by the Special Rapporteur, in accordance with
 Sub-Commission resolution 1983/31 of 6 September 1983, on the current
 dimensions of the problems of intolerance and of discrimination on the grounds
 of religion or belief and laid the foundation in its resolution 1987/33 of 4
 September l987 for future in-depth study of aspects of the issues raised in
 the study,
 
      Emphasizing that non-governmental organizations and religious bodies and
 groups at every level have an important role to play in the promotion of
 tolerance and the protection of freedom of religion or belief,
 
      Seriously concerned that intolerance and discrimination on the grounds of
 religion or belief continue to exist in many parts of the world,
 
      Believing that further efforts are therefore required to promote and
 protect the right to freedom of thought, conscience, religion and belief and
 to eliminate all forms of intolerance and discrimination based on religion or
 belief, 
 
      1.   Reaffirms that freedom of thought, conscience, religion and belief
 is a right guaranteed to all without discrimination;
 
      2.   Urges States, therefore, in accordance with their respective
 constitutional systems and with such internationally accepted instruments as
 the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the International Covenant on
 Civil and Political Rights and the Declaration on the Elimination of All
 Forms of Intolerance and of Discrimination Based on Religion or Belief to
 provide, where they have not already done so, adequate constitutional and
 legal guarantees of freedom of thought, conscience, religion and belief,
 including the provision of effective remedies where there is intolerance or
 discrimination based on religion or belief;
 
      3.   Stresses, in this connection, the value of the work in progress in
 the Commission on Human Rights on the preparation of a compendium of national
 legislation and regulations on the question of freedom of religion or belief
 and invites States to provide the necessary information to the
 Secretary-General, with particular regard to the measures taken to combat
 intolerance or discrimination in this field;
 
      4.   Urges all States to take all appropriate measures to combat
 intolerance and to encourage understanding, tolerance and respect in matters
 relating to freedom of religion or belief and, in this context, to examine
 where necessary the supervision and training of their civil servants,
 educators and other public officials to ensure that, in the course of their
 official duties, they respect different religions and beliefs and do not
 discriminate against persons professing other religions or beliefs;
 
      5.   Invites the United Nations University and other academic and
 research institutions to undertake programmes and studies on the encouragement
 of understanding, tolerance and respect in matters relating to freedom of
 religion or belief;
 
      6.   Considers it desirable to enhance the promotional and public
 information activities of the United Nations in matters relating to freedom of
 religion or belief;
 
      7.   Invites the Secretary-General to continue to give high priority to
 the dissemination of the text of the Declaration on the Elimination of All
 Forms of Intolerance and of Discrimination Based on Religion or Belief, in all
 the official languages of the United Nations, and to take all appropriate
 measures to make the text available for use by United Nations information
 centres, as well as by other interested bodies;
 
      8.   Requests the Secretary-General in this context to invite interested
 non-governmental organizations to consider what further role they could
 envisage playing in the implementation of the Declaration and in its
 dissemination in national and local languages;
 
      9.   Urges all States to consider disseminating the text of the
 Declaration in their respective national languages and to facilitate its
 dissemination in national and local languages;
 
     10.   Welcomes the renewal of the mandate of the Special Rapporteur
 appointed by the Commission on Human Rights to examine incidents and
 governmental actions in all parts of the world that are incompatible with the
 provisions of the Declaration and to recommend remedial measures as
 appropriate;
 
     11.   Requests the Commission on Human Rights at its forty-fourth session
 to consider the study of the current dimensions of the problems of intolerance
 and discrimination on the grounds of religion or belief in the light of the
 observations transmitted to it by the Sub-Commission on Prevention of
 Discrimination and Protection of Minorities;
 
     12.   Notes that the Commission on Human Rights intends to consider also
 at its forty-fourth session the question of a binding international instrument
 in this field and emphasizes, in this connection, the relevance of General
 Assembly resolution 41/120 of 4 December 1986 entitled "Setting international
 standards in the field of human rights";
 
     13.   Requests the Commission on Human Rights to continue its
 consideration of measures to implement the Declaration and to report, through
 the Economic and Social Council, to the General Assembly at its forty-third
 session;
 
     14.   Decides to include in the provisional agenda of its forty-third
 session the item entitled "Elimination of all forms of religious intolerance"
 and to consider the report of the Commission on Human Rights under that item.