A/HRC/58/34 57. In July, the High Commissioner noted, in his report, that linguistic and cultural barriers could limit access to and engagement with digital education by Indigenous young people and minorities. He called for linguistically accessible, culturally responsive and relevant digital education content and platforms to be developed in partnership with Indigenous and minority representatives to preserve and promote their cultural and linguistic identities.42 58. In September, in its concluding observations on the fourth periodic report of Kyrgyzstan, the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights raised concern over the decrease in the number of public schools teaching a minority language other than Russian, in particular the significant underrepresentation of Uzbek in education. The Committee urged Kyrgyzstan to take all measures necessary to enable all minorities to preserve, develop, express themselves in and disseminate their languages, ensure the availability of education in all national minority languages by allocating sufficient human, technical and financial resources thereto and guarantee minorities their right to enjoy fully their own cultural identity and practice their religion and culture without undue restrictions.43 J. Religious or belief minorities and faith actors 59. In March, OHCHR supported the Human Rights Council in convening a panel of experts, pursuant to Council resolution 53/1, to explore the drivers, root causes and human rights impacts of the desecration of sacred books, places of worship and religious symbols. 44 The High Commissioner stated that expressions of religious hatred against people wearing religious symbols often disproportionately targeted women and girls. He strongly encouraged all Member States to adopt comprehensive anti-discrimination legislation, based on the Practical Guide.45 60. On 15 March, on the International Day to Combat Islamophobia, United Nations independent experts warned that acts of harassment, intimidation, violence and incitement based on religion or belief had risen to alarming levels across the world, including against Muslims.46 The experts denounced the fact that in many countries in the lead-up to elections, State and non-State actors fed religious tensions and promoted discriminatory laws and policies against Muslim minorities to gain political advantage. The experts urged States to ground their responses to all forms of religious hatred, including Islamophobia, in the universal values, principles and legal framework of international human rights. They also recalled that States and faith-based actors had human rights responsibilities and had to step in to counter such violations, in line with the Rabat Plan of Action and the implementation guidance provided by the Faith for Rights framework and toolkit.47 61. In March, the High Commissioner expressed his profound concern that the shocking surge in Islamophobia was occurring as part of a broader trend of the continuing rise of antisemitism, Christianophobia and prejudices against people of other religions or beliefs; of hatred that is directed at migrants, refugees and minorities, including Roma; of deep-seated racism against people of African descent and Indigenous Peoples; and of many other forms of discrimination and xenophobia. He urged States to urgently step up efforts to combat intolerance against people based on religion or belief, within the parameters of international human rights law, using the many tools they had at their disposal, including Human Rights Council resolution 16/18, the Rabat Plan of Action and the Beirut Declaration on Faith for 42 43 44 45 46 47 GE.25-00006 A/HRC/57/28, paras. 43 and 68. E/C.12/KGZ/CO/4, paras. 62–65. See www.ohchr.org/sites/default/files/documents/hrbodies/hrcouncil/sessions-regular/session55/cnpanel-53-1-hrc55.docx. See www.ohchr.org/en/statements-and-speeches/2024/03/turk-calls-measures-address-religioushatred. See www.ohchr.org/en/statements/2024/03/un-experts-warn-islamophobia-rising-alarming-levels. See www.ohchr.org/en/faith-for-rights. 13