A/HRC/12/38 page 2 Summary The present report is submitted pursuant to Human Rights Council resolution 10/22 of 26 March 2009 entitled “Combating defamation of religions”, in which the Council requested the Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance, Githu Muigai, to “report on all manifestations of defamation of religions, and in particular on the serious implications of Islamophobia, on the enjoyment of all rights by their followers, to the Council at its twelfth session”. In view of the important developments that have taken place during the reporting period, the present report takes stock of the ongoing conceptual debate on the issue of “defamation of religions” and incitement to religious hatred. In this regard, the Special Rapporteur refers to the last report of his predecessor, the expert seminar on the links between articles 19 and 20 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, as well as the outcome document of the Durban Review Conference. In the second chapter, the Special Rapporteur addresses the issue of religious discrimination and incitement to religious hatred. Following an overview of the information received, since taking up his mandate, on serious implications of Islamophobia on the enjoyment of all human rights of their followers, he distinguishes between intolerant mentalities, incitement to religious hatred, religious discrimination, and violence perpetrated against members of religious or belief communities. The Special Rapporteur then highlights the interrelatedness of the applicable international human rights standards. Lastly, he presents a number of conclusions and recommendations, proposing a way forward in international efforts to combat incitement to racial or religious hatred. In this regard, he reiterates the recommendation of his predecessor to encourage a shift away from the sociological concept of the defamation of religions towards the legal norm of non-incitement to national, racial or religious hatred. He also welcomes the consensus reached at the Durban Review Conference and recommends that policymakers rely on the robust and adequate language of the outcome document and implement it domestically. Finally, he recommends that strong emphasis be put on the implementation of the core obligations of States relating to the protection of individuals and groups of individuals against violations of their rights incurred by hate speech, and stresses the need to protect members of religious or belief communities from violation of their right to freedom of religion or belief.