OSCE's human rights office concerned about anti-Muslim violence

WARSAW, 19 September 2001 (OSCE) - The OSCE's human rights office today expressed concern about the recent wave of anti-Muslim incidents and violence in several OSCE countries following last week's terror attacks in the United States.

"While we all understand and share the outrage that followed the terror attacks all over the world, we deplore any act of vengeance directed against certain religious or ethnic groups", said Ambassador Gerard Stoudmann, the OSCE's top human rights official, at the OSCE's annual human rights conference in Warsaw.

"The loathing for terrorists must not be extended to whole religious or ethnic groups with which the suspected terrorists possibly happen to share the same faith or origin", he stressed. "Last week's terror attacks do not reflect a clash between religions or cultures, but a clash between the values of the civilized world on the one hand, and those of a small number of fanatics who have no respect human life on the other."

Addressing the conference's session on tolerance and non-discrimination, Mr. Stoudmann condemned last week's terror attacks and expressed hope that those responsible will be swiftly brought to justice.

On behalf of the participants in the conference, he asked for the issue of anti-Muslim violence to be addressed by the Permanent Council, the OSCE's main decision-making body.

The annual OSCE Human Dimension Implementation Meeting is currently taking place in the Polish capital, Warsaw. Over 500 participants from 55 OSCE countries are meeting in Warsaw for the largest all-European meeting of its kind to scrutinize the OSCE states' human rights record. The conference is organized by the OSCE's human rights institution, the Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR).

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For further information please contact Jens-Hagen Eschenbaecher, OSCE/ODIHR Spokesperson, +48-22-5200 600-4162, or +48-603 683 122.