A/HRC/49/44 laying the groundwork for inclusive transitions from conflict and insecurity towards peace. Consistent with his mandate, the Special Rapporteur has adopted a gender lens in identifying gender-specific abuses and making recommendations. II. Activities of the Special Rapporteur 5. The Special Rapporteur convened a two-day symposium to explore conditions of increasing insecurity that Baha’i communities experience in four States. Participants included representatives of the Baha'i community, civil society, Governments, international organizations, and U.N. experts. The outcome document of this symposium contains recommendations of the Special Rapporteur for various stakeholders.8 6. He collaborated with civil society in a two-day expert consultation9 to survey trends in combating antisemitism including positive developments and enduring challenges faced by Jewish communities in combating antisemitism. Building on this assessment, he will work with various stakeholders to advance the implementation of the recommendations contained in his report to the 74th session of the U.N. General Assembly.10 7. The Special Rapporteur has engaged in follow-up work to his 2021 report on countering Islamophobia/anti-Muslim hatred, 11 including participation in European Commission against Racism and Intolerance’s consultations for their General Policy Recommendation No. 5 on Preventing and Combating Anti-Muslim Racism and Discrimination. 8. He has engaged with Member States, U.N. Office on Genocide Prevention and the Responsibility to Protect, Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights of the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe, and a number of civil society organisations to advance the recommendations contained in his reports. 9. The Special Rapporteur continues to monitor, through engagement with civil society, a number of situations of serious concern raised in his reports and Communications and where requests for a country visit have not been accepted. 10. His report to the General Assembly in September 2022 will examine the obstacles faced by Indigenous peoples in the exercise and enjoyment of their right to freedom of religion or belief. III. Methodology 11. To inform the present report, the Special Rapporteur held 37 consultations and 16 bilateral meetings, online, between November 2021 and January 2022 with stakeholders from all five geographical regions. Participants included victims of rights violations, human rights defenders; faith leaders and influencers; policymakers; academics, lawyers, representatives of U.N. offices, and officials from other intergovernmental and international organizations. In response to his call for submissions, he received and reviewed 64 total submissions from States, civil society, and individuals. He extends his deepest gratitude to all who provided their time and insight. 12. When preparing this report, a critical methodological challenge was the widely acknowledged lack of comprehensive or disaggregated data recording experiences of religious or belief minorities during conflict and insecurity globally, as the Special Rapporteur on minority issues has also highlighted.12 Researchers and rights monitors have cited security risks as a primary challenge for gathering data in conflict zones, along with the reluctance of minorities to engage for fear of ramifications. Moreover, researchers may overlook faith identity or be biased when gathering demographic information. This report 8 9 10 11 12 https://www.ohchr.org/Documents/Issues/Religion/Annex-Bahai-minority.docx. https://www.jbi-humanrights.org/JBI%20SR%20FORB%20Antisemitism%20Consultation.pdf. A/74/358. A/HRC/46/30. A/71/254, para.16 3