A/HRC/16/53 United Nations General Assembly Distr.: General 15 December 2010 Original: English Human Rights Council Sixteenth session Agenda item 3 Promotion and protection of all human rights, civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights, including the right to development Report of the Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief, Heiner Bielefeldt Summary In the present report, the Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief gives an overview of the mandate activities since the submission of the previous report to the Human Rights Council (A/HRC/13/40). The Special Rapporteur then focuses on the theme of freedom of religion or belief and school education. In this regard he refers to relevant international human rights documents, the elimination of stereotypes and prejudices, the issue of religious symbols in the school context and religious instruction in schools. In his conclusions, the Special Rapporteur notes that freedom of religion or belief and school education is a multifaceted issue that entails significant opportunities as well as far-reaching challenges. He recommends that States should favourably consider a number of principles in this regard and explicitly refers to the final document adopted at the International Consultative Conference on School Education in relation to Freedom of Religion or Belief, Tolerance and Non-discrimination and to the Toledo Guiding Principles on Teaching about Religions and Beliefs in Public Schools. GE.10-17793