E/CN.4/2005/18/Add.3 page 16 D. Ethnic isolationism 51. The extent of this dynamic of xenophobia is reflected, in the Special Rapporteur’s view, in a process of a withdrawal into ethnic isolationism, which he noted in meetings with community leaders and with Ivorian and foreign victims. This tendency makes itself felt in the life in the interpretation given to cultural signs such as ethnic names, styles of dress or jokes, all symbols and expressions of the rich cultural diversity of a multi-ethnic society in times of peaceful coexistence, but stigmata of a hostile identity in times of war. Checkpoints along the roads, commonly the scene of xenophobic violence, have come to epitomize such group scapegoating at the everyday level. Thus the shift in perceptions within Ivorian society has wrought a change in the meaning of long-established cultural practices that had always been a part of the inter-ethnic weave. Feelings of insecurity or fear and particularly the perception that those responsible for acts of violence, such as the members of the security services, go unpunished, foster such ethnic isolationism and the dynamic of xenophobia. E. The conflation of ethnicity, culture and religion 52. Côte d’Ivoire is a multireligious country made up principally of animists, Christians and Muslims. Although the north is usually portrayed as mainly Muslim and the south as Christian, Côte d’Ivoire has for a great many years benefited from a rich mix of coexisting faiths. Thus while the majority in the north are indeed the mainly Muslim northern Mande, there are also Gur, who are basically Christians or animists. To the west live the southern Mande, who include Christians (some of them Yacouba and some Gouro), animists (Yacouba, Gouro and Krou) and Muslims (chiefly Yacouba). The east of the country is inhabited mainly by Akan, for the most part animists or Christians, while to the south live Krou, Lagunaires and Akan, again mainly animists or Christians. 53. However, during his visit, the Special Rapporteur found that withdrawal into a core identity had given rise to a tendency to conflate ethnicity and religion, a particularly dangerous shift. Thus it emerges from reports received that northerners, foreigners and those who oppose the President are being termed Muslims. Some of the media have fanned the hatred of certain sections of the population for Muslim communities, who have apparently been accused of wishing to “incinerate Côte d’Ivoire”. The Special Rapporteur has received reports of a proliferation of Islamophobic acts such as damage to places of worship, the destruction of Muslims’ property, as well as violence and torture and even summary executions of members of the Muslim faith. Several imams have allegedly been murdered. 54. At the same time the Special Rapporteur has noted, particularly in his meetings with religious leaders, whether singly or in groups, an incipient awareness of the extreme sensitivity of religious factors and their crucial role in the rebuilding of coexistence in Côte d’Ivoire. V. RECOMMENDATIONS 55. In view of the extent of the split in the inter-ethnic fabric, the ethnic isolationism it is generating and its central role in the political crisis in Côte d’Ivoire, the Special Rapporteur recommends that the authorities at the highest level broadcast a clear message reaffirming the values of tolerance, coexistence and interaction in the collective effort to build a multi-ethnic, multicultural and multireligious society in Côte d’Ivoire, and the