A/HRC/40/58/Add.1 cause harm to the public order or public morals.” Article 226(2) also recommends a prison punishment for “any person found guilty of undermining public morals by intentionally disturbing other persons in a way that offends the sense of public decency”. 55. Moreover, Tunisian courts have issued decisions restricting the exercise of freedom of expression based on the above-mentioned articles. On 28 March 2012, a trial court in Mahdia convicted two Internet users for posting writings deemed offensive to the sacred values of Islam and sentenced them to seven-and-a-half years imprisonment. The Court of Appeal and cassation upheld the verdict in 2014. 56. The new press code also criminalizes incitement to religious hatred (art 52) 8 as well as defamation or insult which aims to incite “religious, racial or interpersonal hatred" (Article 69)9. The same code allows NGOs working on human rights to sue the authors of insult that aim to incite religious, racial or interpersonal hatred even if the victim does not lodge a complaint themselves. Moreover, some interlocutors expressed concern that the Constitutional mandate to protect the sacred has not been properly defined. Some officials suggested the protection of the sacred amounted to the protection of places of worship and other places with religious purposes such as burial grounds, and others defended the ongoing application of public morals provisions as being integral to implementing the Government’s mandate to protect the “sacred”. The UN Human Rights Committee has stressed that it would be impermissible for laws “to discriminate in favour of or against one or certain religions or belief systems, or their adherents over another, or religious believers over non-believers”, as well as not permissible “for such prohibitions to be used to prevent or punish criticism of religious leaders or commentary on religious doctrine and tenets of faith.” 10 57. Violent Extremism and Incitement to Violence in the Name of Religion: Tunisia has experienced a number of violent incidents carried out in the name of religion in the postrevolution period. During the first three years of the revolution, intellectuals, artists, human rights activists, journalists and politicians were the target of several attacks carried out by extremist individuals or groups driven by religious motives. The Government, therefore, face legitimate challenges in formulating effective responses that counter violent extremism. The 2015 law 11 on countering terrorism and money laundering criminalizes various types of expression as a tool of counter-terrorism. Such offenses include, “incitement to terrorism” (article 5); takfeer [calling another Muslim an unbeliever]; incitement to takfeer and “incitement to hatred among races, religions and sects” (article 14.8); “glorification of terrorism” and “apology for terrorism” (article 31). Article 14 (8) of the law No. 2015-26 of 7 August 2015 on countering terrorism and money laundering states: "Anyone who incriminates apostasy or calls for the criminalization of apostasy or incitement to hatred between races, religions and religious sects shall be considered guilty of a terrorist offense." 12 58. Many of these measures, such as the ban on incitement to violence among religions and races are clearly fundamental to protecting the space for freedom of religion or belief. However, it is essential for these measures to be applied in strict conformity with the high threshold for prohibiting expression deemed to incite persons to discrimination, hostility and violence, as required by Article 20 of the ICCPR. They must also meet the test of necessity, legitimacy and proportionality, as stipulated under Article 19 of the ICCPR. Equally, there is also concern that in the context of countering violent extremism, certain forms of peaceful practices promoted by religion are being identified as extremist and that people may be 8 9 10 11 12 Article 52 provides: ���shall be punished by imprisonment from one to three years and a fine of one thousand to two thousand dinars, anyone who directly calls for hatred between races, religions, or populations, by incitement to discrimination and use of hostile means, violence, or propaganda for ideas based on racial discrimination, using one of the means indicated in Article 50 of this decree Law. " Article 69 states: "Defamation or insult refers to a type of person belonging to a particular ethnic group, race or religion and its purpose is incitement to hatred between races, religions or populations, using acts of war, violence or the publication of ideas based on racial discrimination ". Human Rights Committee general comment no. 34, CCPC/C/GC/34, para. 48. Law No. 2015-26 of 7 August 2015. After the visit, the Special Rapporteur has been informed about the organic law n°2019¬9 of 23 January 2019 on the fight against terrorism and money laundering, which modified law n °2015-26 of 7 August 2015. 11