Agenda Item 3: “Protection of the existence of and prevention of violence against religious minorities” Delivered by the Delegation of the United States of America Sixth Forum on Minority Issues Geneva, November 26, 2013 Thank you, Madam Chairperson. The United States deplores any act of violence against individuals of all faiths on the basis of religion or belief. We wholeheartedly believe that education and dialogue are some of the most effective tools to help prevent sectarian violence and foster religious tolerance and understanding. We remain deeply concerned with the ongoing violence, persecution, and harassment that members of religious minorities face around the world, particularly in the Middle East and South and Central Asia. In our foreign policy, we use a full range of tools, including public condemnation of abuses, bilateral and multilateral diplomacy, and partnerships with NGOs to administer country-specific programs to promote tolerance and protect members of minorities. The United States supports Human Rights Council resolution 16/18, which focuses on concrete, positive measures that states can take to combat religious bias and intolerance. We as well strongly endorse the Istanbul Process, and we call upon all states to fully implement Resolution 16/18. The United States government actively works to protect all its residents from threats and violence directed at them because of their religion or ethnicity, and to prevent acts of discrimination against them in the workplace, schools, and many other areas. Since the attacks of September 11, 2001, the U.S. Department of Justice has brought scores of federal prosecutions against individuals for committing acts of violence, threats, assaults, and vandalisms targeting Arabs, Muslims, Sikhs, and South Asians, and those perceived to be members of these groups. In the civil law context, the Department of Justice has, for example, brought suits to protect the right of individuals in places of work and study to express their religious beliefs. Examples of such suits involved the ability of a Muslim student to wear a headscarf to school, protecting Muslim and Sikh students from harassment, and