Freedom of religion or Belief- A forgotten pillar of social integration?
Freedom of Religion or Belief - A forgotten pillar of social integration?
The NGO Committee on Freedom of Religion or Belief and the NGO Committee on Social Development hosted a panel discussion February 5 with the main presenter Dr. Brian Grim, Senior Researcher at the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life. Also participating was Assa Karam, Senior Adviser at UNFPA and representatives from the Permanent Missions of India and Kenya, Mr Anupan Ray and Mr. John Mosoti, respectively.
The research for this presentation, entitled Global Restrictions on Religion, was documenting the number of restrictions to policy or advocacy in regards to religion in a country. It was stated that the more restrictions to religion in a country, the more social hostilities increased.
Additionally most restrictions were felt by minorities in those countries and that 70% of the global community lived under ‘very high’ restrictions.
Assa Karam commented that there might be differences between religious groups in a country but there is also a long history of co-existence in most of the ‘restrictive’ countries.
A comment from the floor elicited the response that the questions were based on western questions and might not capture the religious methods of the East.
The Brahma Kumaris WSU is member of the NGO Committee of Freedom of Religion or Belief and participates in the open discussions for religious practice and belief.
Erik