E/CN.4/1998/6/Add.1 page 23 tending increasingly to lose its belief altogether. In fact, religion is not an essential factor for the majority of the Australian population, which is a product of modern secularism. 113. There is nevertheless a great degree of religious tolerance, linked to a tradition of tolerance, or even indifference on the part of Australians in general towards religion. This predominantly indifferent attitude towards religion coexists alongside the development of minorities and many religious movements, which are said to cost the public finances dearly (through tax relief, public subsidies, etc.). 114. There are some exceptions, however, to a generally positive situation, which should be taken into consideration and remedied; these exceptions concern minorities and especially Aboriginals. 115. With regard to minorities, obstacles to the construction of places of worship or religious training centres for Muslim, Hindu and Buddhist minorities have at times been observed; this is mostly due to opposition by one sector of the population founded on ignorance, which encourages manifestations of racism. For instance, in the case of Muslims, the Gulf war led to incidents involving Muslim women wearing the headscarf (see para. 44) and more generally to the expression of opinions where Islam was associated with Saddam Hussein and terrorism with Arabs and Muslims. Such bouts of racism can affect a whole community, in that particular case, Asian and Muslim. There have also been outbreaks of anti-Semitism, in the form of acts of vandalism against synagogues and Jewish cemeteries, and verbal attacks. 116. The intolerance which is manifested is not religious, however, but racial, founded on ignorance and encouraged by extremist political speeches, such as those of MP Pauline Hanson. Such manifestations of racism towards minorities, as well as Aboriginals, are nevertheless a minor phenomenon, which is rejected by a majority of the population (in a survey, 70 per cent of respondents recognized the benefits of the multicultural policy). They are to some extent neutralized through inter-faith dialogue and cleverly combated by the authorities on the whole through institutions applying a clear policy of multiculturalism and through the launch of an educational campaign to combat racism. 117. In this respect, the Special Rapporteur would like to recall that education can play a prime role in preventing intolerance, including racial and religious intolerance, by disseminating a culture of tolerance among the masses. It can contribute decisively to the internalization of values based on human rights. The State is therefore encouraged to develop a national education policy, coordinated at the Federal, State and Territory levels. This policy should of course be directed at schools, teachers and students alike. In this connection, the Special Rapporteur welcomes the educational activities of the National Children's and Youth Law Centre and especially their excellent brochure entitled “Know your rights at school”, which includes instructive cards on a number of basic topics, including discrimination and religion at school. Such experiments should be given careful consideration by the States in their education policies in order to promote a real culture of tolerance.