A/79/182 cancellation of the legal personality of some 310 not-for-profit organizations associated with a religious community, in a context in which the leadership of the community was accused of “encouraging terrorists”. 71 The mandate has also raised concerns in relation to legislative initiatives that allow authorities to refuse the re-registration of a religious organization on the basis of, inter alia, national security concerns. 72 The mandate has further raised concerns where religious organizations are required to complete burdensome applications to operate legally, and where the authorities exercise overbroad discretion when denying applications and de-registering religious or belief communities. 73 47. As has been highlighted on numerous occasions by mandate holders, the broader context of counter-terrorist, anti-separatist or anti-violent extremism policy, as well as overbroad prohibitions of “incitement” and “hate-speech”, can give rise to restrictions on manifestation that are incompatible with international human rights law. The mandate has repeatedly expressed concern about the potential for expansive counter-terrorism and counter-violent extremism law and policy to “securitize” religious or belief minorities: a process whereby religious or belief minorities are perceived as a threat requiring extraordinary punitive legal and policy measures. 74 This results in a wide range of restrictions on manifestation of religion or belief, many of which are highlighted in recent mandate-holder communications, such as prohibiting essential religious practices, such as adherence to a particular diet, or framing them an indicator of threat; 75 criminalizing the dissemination of religious materials; 76 or criticizing of religions, beliefs or practices. 77 The mandate has even observed contexts in which the closure of places of worship and restrictions on access to places to gather for worship for religious or belief communities put the manifestation of religion or belief out of reach for the vast majority of the population. 78 Banning religious leaders from exchanges with or training in different countries in order to allegedly uphold “religious calm” can have a disproportionate impact on minority religions and lead to extreme discrimination 79 and have even restricted further study. 48. Communications of the mandate have also highlighted the disproportionate suspicion, targeting and judicial harassment of adherents to minority faiths who are accused of being sympathetic to terrorism, or to be violent “extremists”, “separatists” or threats to “national security”. In these contexts, the mandate has raised cases of arrest, detention and sentencing of religious leaders and adherents to minority faiths, including application of the death penalty, on charges relating to terrorism, separatism or “acting against national security”. 80 Bias and stereotyping in relation to terrorism and security issues can also facilitate administrative restrictions on the receipt of funding for non-profit organizations that defend the rights of religious or belief __________________ 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80 12/22 OHCHR, communication AL NIC 2/2023 sent to the Government of Nicaragua. OHCHR, communications sent to the following Governments: Kyrgyzstan ( OL KGZ 6/2023) and Belarus (OL BLR 7/2023). A/HRC/55/47/Add.1 (mission to Tajikistan), paras. 34 and 35. A/73/362, para. 10. See also ibid., paras. 21, 49 and 57; and A/HRC/46/30, paras. 23–25. OHCHR, communications sent to the Government of China: AL CHN 18/2019 and AL CHN 12/2022 (government responses received 16 December 2019 and 7 March 2023 , respectively). OHCHR, communications sent to the following Governments: Kyrgyzstan ( AL KGZ 4/2021) and Russian Federation (AL RUS 19/2018). OHCHR, communication sent to the Government of Sri Lanka ( AL LKA 3/2023). A/HRC/55/47/Add.1, para. 24. Ibid., para. 31. OHCHR, communications sent to the following Governments: Egypt ( AL EGY 14/2021); Sri Lanka (AL LKA 2/2021 (government response received 7 September 2021)); Saudi Arabia (AL SAU 5/2022 (government response received 25 May 2022 )); Iran (Islamic Republic of) (AL IRN 27/2022 (government response received 25 May 2023)); and China (AL CHN 8/2023 (government response received 31 August 2023)). 24-13239