A/HRC/58/34 Rights. The High Commissioner referred to the Practical Guide, as a crucial tool to support States in protecting minority rights and addressing the root causes of religious hatred.48 62. In March, in its concluding observations on the initial report of Somalia, the Human Rights Committee noted with concern that the Provisional Constitution prohibited the propagation of any religion other than Islam. It also expressed concern about reports of judicial harassment of religious minorities, impunity for perpetrators of violence and killing committed as a punishment for religious conversion, and cases of discrimination against non-Muslims, including in school settings and as regards manifestation of their religion. The Committee urged Somalia to ensure legal protection and effective exercise of freedom of religion and belief, to take specific measures to guarantee that manifestation of one’s religion or belief does not incur penalization, to decriminalize blasphemy and the propagation of religions other than Islam by repealing or amending the Provisional Constitution and the Penal Code, and to release and compensate those imprisoned for exercising their right to freedom of religion or belief.49 63. As a result of meetings in 2024 in Paris and Cambridge, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, co-organized by OHCHR, several academics and civil society actors from Australia, Brazil, Chile, Costa Rica, France, Lebanon, Maldives, Nigeria, Norway, Tunisia, the United Kingdom and the United States created an inter-university Faith for Rights platform.50 This new partnership provides academic support for OHCHR work on religion and human rights, discrimination on the basis of religion or belief and incitement to hatred, as well as gender equality as it intersects with freedom of religion or belief. The Faith for Rights commUNity of practices elaborated the rules of procedure for the platform and appointed a tetrarchy, chaired by a civil society coordinator and composed of the focal points on programmes, faith leaders and education.51 64. In October, the International Association for the Defence of Religious Liberty and OHCHR co-organized the Faith for Rights Peer-Learning Experience in Portugal. 52 Interactive workshops in Coimbra and Lisbon created a space for encountering, sharing, learning and training for faith-based actors, based on the Faith for Rights framework. 53 Participants concluded that interfaith engagement should not remain mere dialogues but should include development of actions on the ground, which in turn would require well-prepared facilitators who could ensure that peer-to-peer learning sessions would be spaces for constructive dialogue leading to sustainable impact. 65. In November, OHCHR organized the fifth annual meeting of the Faith for Rights commUNity of practices.54 This hybrid meeting with more than 200 participants facilitated ongoing dialogue and exchange of information with faith-based organizations, parliamentarians and academic communities, in line with action 55 of the Pact for the Future. The participants discussed the peer-to-peer learning methodology used by various academic institutions to enhance skills and optimize the outcomes of relevant treaty bodies and special rapporteurs. One thematic focus of the meeting was on promoting gender equality and freedom of religion or belief, including through the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women Knowledge Hub and activities with the Gandhi-King Global Academy and the ACT Alliance – Action by Churches Together.55 A round table was held focusing on countering the instrumentalization of religions, beliefs or their followers to incite hatred and violence, in line with commitments on Faith for Rights 56 and Human Rights 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 14 See www.ohchr.org/en/statements-and-speeches/2024/03/international-day-combat-islamophobiahigh-commissioner-urges. CCPR/C/SOM/CO/1, paras. 41 and 42. See www.aup.edu/news-events/event/2024-05-02/faith-human-rights-co-existence. See https://indico.un.org/event/1014629/attachments/19120/57491/faith4rights-annual-meeting2024.pdf. See www.aidlr.org/news103.php. See www.ohchr.org/en/faith-for-rights/framework-action. See www.ohchr.org/sites/default/files/documents/issues/religion/faithforrights/faith4rights-cop2024.pdf. See www.ohchr.org/en/statements-and-speeches/2024/10/high-commissioner-statement-act-alliancegeneral-assembly. A/HRC/40/58, annex II, commitment X. GE.25-00006