Rise in discrimination threatens peace-building: UN

Issues of intolerance, prejudice and discrimination worldwide are now so profound that they are threatening to disrupt collective efforts to promote peace and development in the new century, the United Nations chief information and communication official said today.

Moderating the first briefing in 2004 for members of UN non-governmental organizations (NGOs), Under-Secretary-General Shashi Tharoor said that there had been an "alarming resurgence" of anti-Semitism, Islamophobia and racism in many parts of the world.

He added: "They are distinct phenomena with many different manifestations, but they also share common roots that grow out of ignorance, poverty, violence and the irrational fear of The Other."

Hate crimes are also on the rise in urban areas in an "atmosphere of intolerance and violence wilfully exacerbated by fundamentalist rhetoric and the backlash of xenophobia in both North and South", Mr Tharoor said.

The UN is and must continue to be a leading force in combating intolerance worldwide, he said.

He referred to the words of Secretary-General Kofi Annan, who earlier this month said: "The United Nations, for its part, must reject all forms of racism and discrimination. Only in so doing, clearly and consistently, will it be true to its Charter and to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and to people of all creeds and colours striving for their dignity."

In addition, Mr Tharoor said, everyone had the responsibility to recognize and systematically fight "these insidious and corrosive forces" and prevent their spread.

(gmcg)