A/HRC/6/6 page 17 society is the promotion of “the living together” (vivre ensemble), based on the balance between freedom of expression and freedom of religion and, consequently, the non-incitement of racial or religious hatred. 60. On the other hand, the ethical challenge inherent to the tension between the singularity of each phobia and the universality of their cause is related to the fundamental and difficult choice faced by individual and group victims: ghetto-identity or solidarity with all victims. Ghetto-identity is the expression of the priority given by a target of discrimination, including defamation, to the singularity or uniqueness of its own experience. It leads not only to a lack of sensitivity to the suffering of other communities and respect of their memory, but also to the temptation to create a hierarchy of phobias. 61. The ideologues and theoreticians of the clash of civilizations and religions exploit and derive their legitimacy from the lack of solidarity between victims of Islamophobia, anti-Semitism, Christianophobia and other forms of defamation of religions and discrimination. This process, instrumentalized by political parties, is the most serious obstacle to the universal and efficient combat against discrimination in general and defamation of religions in particular. The alternative challenge - individually and collectively more difficult - is the conquest of the universality of all forms of discrimination: a process that transforms the singularity of one’s experience into solidarity with the cultural, ethnic and religious experience of other communities. This process is ethically individualist and politically collectivist. Its instruments are: (a) on the legal realm, the equal treatment of all religions; (b) on the political realm, a vigilant balance between freedom of expression and freedom of religion; (c) on the cultural realm, a multicultural approach to education in general and the drafting and teaching of history in particular; and (d) on the social realm, the construction of “the living together” in all spheres of multicultural interactions (housing, urban planning ,workplace, etc.). 62. The universal element of the fight against different types of discrimination can be seen in the common denunciation by Muslim, Christian and Jewish communities to policies of militant secularism put in place in some regions. The view that religion must be restricted to the private sphere and the religious neutrality of the State is in several countries interpreted as legitimizing opposition to the right of citizens, believers or practitioners to participate in public life, or to adopt stances in accordance with their spiritual values on ethical questions such as family, marriage and scientific progress. IV. INITIATIVES FOR THE PROMOTION OF TOLERANCE 63. In recent years there has been a growing conscience of the problem of defamation of religions, which has been reflected at the highest political level, particularly in Europe and in the Arab-Muslim world. Apart from the fundamental role played by countless grassroots organizations around the world, several intergovernmental organizations, including the United Nations, the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC), the European Union (EU) or the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) have developed significant actions on the issue and elaborated relevant proposals in order to combat such phenomena through the promotion of dialogue and tolerance. The paragraphs below provide a brief summary of important initiatives carried out at the intergovernmental level in order to combat the phenomenon of defamation of religions.