A/HRC/19/60/Add.1 privileges and having legal personality status, actually rely on official registration, which does have a practical impact on the rights of religious communities. Even those interlocutors who voiced criticism of the requirement of annual re-registration, however, did not suspect the State of pursuing an authoritarian control agenda in this regard. At the same time, some expressed their fear that, under different political auspices, the mandatory registration procedure could possibly be turned into an instrument of control. 35. The Special Rapporteur would like to reiterate the fact that registration with State agencies does not constitute a precondition for practicing one’s religion or belief individually or in community with others. 6 Moreover, any registration procedure concerning religious associations should be transparent, including with regard to the time frame of the process. Such registration procedures should be simple, quick and not depend on reviews of the substantive content of the belief. Furthermore, they should not discriminate against certain religions or beliefs, and provisions that are vague and grant excessive governmental discretion in giving registration approvals should not be allowed. 36. The Special Rapporteur observed that, in debates about the secular nature of the State of Paraguay, not surprisingly, very different concepts of secularity came to the fore. Some interlocutors expressed the opinion that, in the face of the continuing predominance of Catholicism in public and political life, the State is only nominally secular. Others in turn expressed their fear that the secular State could pursue an anti-religious agenda advocating for so-called “secular values”, especially in the sensitive field of education. A third position appreciated the existing constitutional arrangements and pointed to the need for the State to be secular in order to be fair and inclusive to people across different religions or beliefs. The Special Rapporteur shares the third position. He appreciates the secularity of the State as a normative principle aiming at a non-discriminatory implementation of freedom of religion or belief for all citizens and residents, whatever their convictions. D. Freedom of religion or belief and the school system 37. According to information received from various stakeholders, the public school curriculum in Paraguay no longer includes mandatory religious instruction, which was abolished in 2008. Instead, public school education provides general information about different religious traditions with the aim of broadening pupils’ understanding. This sort of information is, however, no longer intended to instruct pupils on the tenets of one particular faith. While some members of religious communities regretted this recent development, in which they saw as a sign of the decline of religion in public life, other interlocutors believed that public education de facto continues to be largely based on Catholicism owing to its traditional predominance in society. Representatives of religious minorities expressed their wish that the teaching material used in schools should become more inclusive by also giving fair and substantive information on religious groups outside Christian mainstream churches. 38. The Special Rapporteur emphasizes that school education has a crucial role to play in the continuous efforts to eliminate the stereotypes and prejudices that often hamper the flourishing of an open and pluralistic society. Taking the self-understanding of different religions and beliefs into account by inviting representatives of respective groups to participate in the processes of drafting curricula and establishing teaching material could be one way to overcome stereotypical ascriptions. Training programmes for teachers could also help to improve interreligious understanding. If school education includes religious instruction on the basis of one particular religious tradition – which is currently not the case 6 See E/CN.4/2005/61, paras. 56-58, and A/65/207, paras. 21-23. 11