E/CN.4/2005/61/Add.1 Page 77 firmly punished. The Department of Justice is committed to fighting hate and intolerance, as they tear at the very fabric of our great nation.” Follow-up to previously transmitted communication 306. By letter dated 25 March 2004, the Government of the United States of America provided the following information in response to a communication sent by the Special Rapporteur on 2 June 2003. 307. The Government first underlined that Americans have long cherished their own religious freedom, which holds an integral place in America's history and identity. The United States Government continues to be greatly concerned by discrimination and violence against persons of all faiths and ethnic groups. Discrimination against any person based on his or her religious faith is unlawful in the United States and acts of violence against people on this basis are criminal offences. The Government then recalled that, on 30 April 2002, President George W. Bush had affirmed the commitment of the United States to religious tolerance as follows: “America rejects bigotry. We reject every act of hatred against people of Arab background or Muslim faith. America values and welcomes peaceful people of all faiths -- Christian, Jewish, Muslim, Sikh, Hindu and many others. Every faith is practised and protected here, because we are one country.” 308. The Government stated that the Special Rapporteur did not provide the source of the information or, in some cases, sufficient details about the allegations, to allow the United States to comment directly upon the specific claims. It also noted that a very high number of incidents motivated by hate were investigated and prosecuted by state and local governments, without any involvement by the federal Government. 309. With regard to the allegations of assault, the Department of Justice reported that following the terrorist attacks of 11 September 2001, there was a surge in hate crimes by private individuals against Arabs, Muslims, and Sikhs (mistaken for Muslims) residing in the United States. The rate of those offences then dropped precipitously within a few weeks until, as of mid-January 2002, the rate had nearly returned to the low rate prevailing prior to 11 September. In 2001, 9,726 incidents of hate and bias crime were reported to the Federal Bureau of Investigation. This number fell to 7,462 reported incidents in 2002, the latest year for which figures had been released. United States law has long provided criminal penalties for certain violations of civil rights. The United States Government has made clear that any act of violence or discrimination against a person based on the perceived race, religion, or national origin of that person is contrary to the fundamental principles and the laws of the United States. Any threats of violence against Arab or Muslim Americans or Americans of South Asian descent are unlawful and would be treated as such. Such acts of hatred violate federal law and, more particularly, ran counter to the very principles of equality and freedom upon which the United States was founded. The Department of Justice and the Federal Bureau of Investigation indicated that they were committed to investigating and prosecuting aggressively violations of federal hate crime statutes. In this connection, the Department of Justice has increased the level of staffing for its Civil Rights Division by 10 per cent since January 2001. There