A/HRC/52/38 agreements.79 Attention needs to be given so that financial instruments with conditionality based on religion or belief do not lead to violations of other human rights. 7. Freedom of religion or belief actors 67. The Special Rapporteur cooperates with other actors in advancing the mandate’s objectives, when appropriate. 68. Groups, such as the International Contact Group (active since 2015) 80 and the International Religious Freedom or Belief Alliance (active since 2020), 81 are multilateral networks consisting of several dozen State members affiliated in their commitment to advance freedom of religion or belief internationally. Such multilateral groups take action, such as the coordination of approaches and information regarding freedom of religion or belief, collaborating in joint action at capitals, advocating for religious or belief prisoners of conscience, signing joint communications regarding freedom of religion or belief concerns and keeping informed of freedom of religion or belief developments, activities and debates. They contribute to advancing freedom of religion or belief, its understanding and the need to embed it in foreign policy. 69. The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe is a multilateral institution of 57 participating States concerned with freedom of religion or belief within the human security dimension of comprehensive security. It does so through the political, rather than legal, commitments that participating States have adopted, although the political commitments themselves may relate to existing legal obligations. This work is pursued by its Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights and is supported by its Panel of Experts on Freedom of Religion or Belief.82 It regularly collaborates with the European Commission for Democracy through Law. 70. Parliamentarians have also come together 83 in initiatives to advance freedom of religion or belief, gathering for trainings on freedom of religion or belief and related human rights concerns, widening the circle of parliamentarians committed to promote freedom of religion or belief and establishing a global network of parliamentarians and legislators from around the world committed to combatting religious persecution and advancing freedom of religion or belief, as defined by article 18 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. 84 The continued turnover of parliamentarians around the world means that the work is ongoing; nevertheless, the reach of this experience can also be widened in collaboration with more broad-based parliamentary networks in areas of mutual human rights interest. 85 71. States are increasingly appointing ambassadors, special envoys or special representatives with freedom of religion or belief or related mandates. 86 The United States of America has the longest standing freedom of religion or belief body, which is composed of 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 14 European Union, “Guidelines on the promotion and protection of freedom of religion or belief”, sect. III.C, para. 57. See https://www.international.gc.ca/world-monde/issues_developmentenjeux_developpement/human_rights-droits_homme/freedom-religion-libertegroup_groupe.aspx?lang=eng. See https://www.state.gov/international-religious-freedom-or-belief-alliance/; and https://www.state.gov/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/April-2022-IRFBA-Information-Sheet.pdf. See https://www.osce.org/odihr/FoRB-panel. See https://www.ippforb.com/about/oslo-charter. See https://www.ippforb.com/about; and https://www.ippforb.com/our-strategy. See https://www.ipu.org/news/case-studies/2022-02/ipu-encourages-dialogue-among-mps-in-sierraleone-with-view-ending-fgm; and https://www.ippforb.com/events-1/2021/9/15gender-and-forbopportunities-for-synergies-and-learning-nyptb-paypf. Examples include the Special Representatives of Denmark, the Netherlands, Norway and Poland, the Plenipotentiary of Slovakia and the Prime Minister’s Special Envoy of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, the Special Envoys of Estonia and Germany, the Ambassadors-at-Large for Religious Freedom of Mongolia and the United States of America. Overlapping mandates include the Special Envoy for Holocaust, Interfaith Dialogue and Freedom of Religion or Belief of Czechia, the Special Envoy on freedom of religion or belief and interreligious dialogue of Italy and the Special Envoy against Antisemitism and Islamophobia of Sweden. GE.23-00741