A/HRC/26/49 recommended that Internet and social media service providers ensure self-regulation and compliance with codes of ethics, as had been underlined previously in the Durban Declaration and Programme of Action. 26. The Durban Declaration and Programme of Action, adopted at the World Conference against Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia and Related Intolerance in 2001, highlighted several important areas of action, in particular, the positive contribution made by the new information and communications technologies, including the Internet, in combating racism through rapid and wide-reaching communication. The progression of racism, discrimination, xenophobia and intolerance through the new information and communications technologies, including the Internet, was however a cause for concern for relevant stakeholders. As such, States were encouraged to implement legal sanctions, in accordance with relevant international human rights law, with regard to incitement to racial hatred on the Internet and social media. Furthermore, the Durban Declaration and Programme of Action called upon States to encourage Internet service providers to establish and disseminate specific voluntary codes of conduct and self-regulatory measures against the dissemination of racist messages, to set up mediating bodies at the national and international levels, also involving civil society, and to adopt appropriate legislation for the prosecution of those responsible for incitement to racial hatred or violence through the Internet and social media. 27. The Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression addressed the issue of the right of all individuals to seek, receive and impart information and ideas of all kinds through the Internet in 2011, when he underscored the unique and transformative nature of the Internet not only in enabling individuals to exercise their right to freedom of opinion and expression, but also a wide range of other human rights, and to promote the progress of society as a whole. 4 The Special Rapporteur also addressed the circumstances under which the dissemination of certain types of information could be restricted, the issues of arbitrary blocking or filtering of content, the criminalization of legitimate expression and the imposition of intermediary liability. 28. The Rabat Plan of Action on the prohibition of advocacy on national, racial or religious hatred that constitutes incitement to discrimination, hostility or violence, adopted in 2012, reiterated that all human rights are universal, indivisible and interdependent and interrelated, and recalled the interdependence between freedom of expression and other human rights. The realization of freedom of expression enabled public debate, giving voice to different perspectives and viewpoints and playing a crucial role in ensuring democracy and international peace and security. The Rabat Plan of Action also stressed the importance of the role that the media and other means of public communication, such as the Internet and social media, play in enabling free expression and the realization of equality, and reiterated that freedom of expression and freedom of religion or belief are mutually dependent and reinforcing. 29. The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) developed an integrated strategy to combat racism, discrimination, xenophobia and intolerance based on a series of studies and consultations on different aspects and forms of racism, xenophobia and discrimination, including the issue of combating racist propaganda in the media, in particular in cyberspace. The strategy includes a set of measures to be taken by the Organization in response to the potential use of new information and communications technologies, in particular the Internet, to spread racist, intolerant or discriminatory ideas. In 2013, UNESCO also developed the Teaching Respect for All 4 8 See A/HRC/17/27.