A/HRC/16/53 36. Even though public schools, when informing about religions and beliefs, have no authority to decide on controversial theological issues, it is important that textbooks and other materials draw a sufficiently complex picture of the various religions or beliefs and their internal pluralism. Furthermore, existing alternative voices within religious traditions, including voices of women, should always have their appropriate and fair share of attention.20 In general, respect for difference should not be confined to differences between various religions but should always include an awareness of internal differences as they may exist within various religious or belief communities. Only by overcoming monolithic perceptions can we become aware of the real diversity among human beings who are the rights holders in the context of human rights. 37. Not less significant than the dissemination of fair and accurate information on religions is the day-to-day interaction of students of different religious or belief backgrounds. This is the second avenue available for dispelling adverse stereotypes and prejudices. Teachers and the school administration bear a particular responsibility to ensure that students’ interaction can take place in a spirit of open-mindedness, respect and fairness. Through voluntary meetings and school exchanges, teachers and students may have the opportunity to meet with counterparts of different religions or beliefs, either at a domestic level or abroad. The goal should be to promote behaviour patterns which recognize difference, including differences in questions of religion or belief, as something “normal” in modern pluralistic societies. 38. Diversity in questions of religion and belief should be taken up in the school context in a spirit of respect and fairness. Against a typical misunderstanding, the Special Rapporteur would also like to emphasize that a respectful attitude does not require avoiding sensitive issues – for instance the situation of women – or even putting a taboo around such issues. It can be more respectful, as long as this is done in a spirit of fairness, to frankly speak about sensitive religious or belief issues, to raise questions, to open up a debate and possibly to agree to disagree. In this regard, the concepts of respect and fairness are closely intertwined. 39. With regard to the treatment of religious or belief diversity in school it is worth reiterating that from the perspective of freedom of religion or belief, the starting point must always be the self-understanding of human beings, who are the only rights holders in the context of human rights. Furthermore, freedom of religion or belief has a “positive” as well as a “negative” component, both of which equally derive from due respect for the dignity of all human beings as it is enshrined as an axiomatic principle in all basic human rights documents. The first component of freedom of religion or belief is freedom to positively express and manifest one’s own religion or belief, while its (negative) flip side is freedom not to be exposed to any pressure, especially from the State or in State institutions, to perform religious or belief activities against one’s own will. Given the ambivalence of the school as both a place of communication and social encounter as well as a place in which situations of particular vulnerability can occur, the positive and the negative components within freedom of religion or belief should always be considered in conjunction. Neglecting one of the two interrelated components would ultimately undermine the human right of freedom of religion or belief in its entirety. 40. Thus from a human rights perspective, it should be left primarily to pupils (or their parents or guardians, respectively) to express their religious or non-religious conviction in the school context in such a way which they themselves see fit, provided this does not conflict with the rights of others, etc. Teachers should neither play down existing religious diversity nor place undue emphasis on religious differences. Just as it would be wrong to 20 12 See also E/CN.4/2002/73, annex, appendix, para. 5.