A/HRC/23/19 and coordination could result in the sharing of experiences in areas such as legislation, transposition into national laws, juridical practices and public policies. 77. The Director of the European Network against Racism, Catherine Lynch, presented the work of the network, which had been created in 2000 as a result of the European Year against Racism. She warned that racism within the European Union was on the rise, and emphasized the importance of developing a positive narrative on anti-racism and migration. She highlighted the need for adequate financial support for non-governmental organizations if they were to produce credible data for Governments. 78. During the ensuing discussion, the representative of Senegal enquired about the reasons for racism in places where there was adequate legislation and political will. He asked whether this was due to a lack of understanding of the laws or a lack of capacity. He also requested information on the network’s capacity-building activities. 79. The representative of the European Union informed participants on the work of the Fundamental Rights Agency, which collected information and data, gave advice to Member States and organized expert consultations with other international organizations. She enquired about concrete human rights projects on the ground that OIC was undertaking or funding in its region. 80. The representative of South Africa enquired about the progress that the network has made in elaborating a positive narrative on anti-racism and migration, and whether such a narrative would be a viable means to counter racism. She asked whether the Independent Permanent Human Rights Commission had, or could have in the future, recourse to special procedure mechanisms to address human rights violations related to racial discrimination. 81. The representative of the Czech Republic questioned Mr. Sheikh’s opinion on the need to arrive at an integrated framework for combatting religious intolerance, arguing that such a framework already existed in Human Rights Council resolution 16/18, which had been adopted by consensus. She also asked how the Independent Permanent Human Rights Commission tackled challenges relating to migration within the OIC constituency, and about any other challenges in the OIC constituency. 82. The representative of Egypt explained that OIC focused on non-discrimination based on religion and belief, and did not support the rise of religion above human rights. The debate on combating religious intolerance was particularly relevant to the current discussion. He asked whether Council resolution 16/18 was sufficient to deal with the rise of contemporary forms of racial discrimination, such as Arabophobia and Islamophopbia, and whether another resolution was needed to address these issues. He also asked whether the rise of racism in Europe could be attributed mainly to the economic crises, and suggested that impunity for racist and discriminatory acts might instead be the main reason. In his opinion, freedom of opinion seemed to be more safeguarded than the right to be protected against hate speech. 83. The representative of Morocco highlighted the fact that there was a need to reflect more in depth on the reasons for the sudden rise of xenophobia and the issue of impunity, and on whether the current legal frameworks relating to discrimination were sufficient. He suggested that the relationship between freedom of religion, freedom of expression and impunity should be discussed at – the national, regional and international levels. 84. The representative of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela expressed appreciation for the presentation on the Independent Permanent Human Rights Commission, which had clarified that OIC made great efforts in the area of cooperation in combating racism. Referring to the contemporary unprecedented levels of racism, he noted that discriminatory practices could be found in the European Union as anywhere else. He asked Ms. Lynch 12