E/CN.4/1989/44 page 57 V. CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS 100. The information collected by the Special Rapporteur leads him to note that, on the one hand, incidents and governmental actions inconsistent with the provisions of the Declaration on the Elimination of All Forms of Intolerance and of Discrimination Based on Religion or Belief persist in nearly all regions of the world and in extremely varied forms, and on the other, genuine efforts are beinq made internationally and nationally to introduce and implement appropriate measures to combat this scourge. 101. The conclusion to be drawn from chapter IV is hardly conducive to optimism; durinq the period covered by this report the Special Rapporteur continued to receive complaints of infringements of the rights and freedoms set out in the Declaration in most regions of the world, namely, the right to have the religion or belief of one's choice, and the expression of this right in the exercise of the various freedoms it involves. He was informed of allegations that discriminatory measures are applied for reasons of religion or belief and allegations of infringements of the right of parents to bring up their children in accordance with the religion or belief of their choice. Lastly, he noted the persistence of alarming infringements of rights and fundamental freedoms arising out of attacks on the right to freedom of thought, conscience, religion or belief. 102. On the other hand, the information collected attests to a definite interest in this problem on the part of the international community and efforts to resolve it. As was reported in chapter II, the dialogue already initiated during the previous reporting period between the Special Rapporteur and Governments continued in a spirit of co-operation which he cannot but welcome. In addition, the brief inventory of existing international and national guarantees for freedom of thought, conscience, religion and belief given in chapter III gives a glimpse of the scope and diversity of the legislative provisions and practical measures implemented to restrict intolerance and discrimination in this sphere. 103. This apparent contradiction actually reflects the extreme complexity of this phenomenon of intolerance on the grounds of religion or belief. The data which the Special Rapporteur has been endeavouring to collect for nearly three years on incidents and governmental actions inconsistent with the provisions of the Declaration can only strengthen him in the idea, already developed in the initial report (E/CN.4/1987/35), that the extreme variety and dispersal throughout the world of situations inconsistent with those provisions derives from the complexity of the deep-seated factors and causes of the phenomenon. It is obvious in the circumstances that the promotion and protection of the freedom of religion and belief represent a delicate, long-term undertaking, which must take into account factors as diverse as legislative provisions which do not conform, splits of a political, economic, social and cultural nature, tensions deriving from the interpretation of dogmas, etc. 104. In the light of these observations, the Special Rapporteur considers that although the phenomenon of intolerance with regard to religion or belief has specific features and manifestations, it cannot always be considered in isolation; the best guarantee of a climate conducive to tolerance and understanding in this sphere seems to be the efficient functioning of