A/HRC/13/57 are considered in various forums and bodies of the United Nations system, as reflected in the report on the subject by the Secretary-General to the sixty-fourth session of the General Assembly,23 to which the Office contributed. A major initiative, relevant for the implementation of the Council’s resolution 10/22, is the declaration of 2010 as the International Year on the Rapprochement of Cultures. 64. As part of its programme against racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance, the Office took, in the course of 2009, a number of initiatives to raise awareness and encourage measures to combat discrimination, intolerance and prejudice. From 29 September to 1 October 2009, the Office organized a seminar for Central Africa on national action plans and other good practices against racism and related intolerance in Yaoundé, during which participants stressed the importance of involving all religious denominations in the development of such national action plans. 65. On 14 October 2009, the Office organized, in collaboration with the European Union, a seminar entitled “Strengthening European Union–United Nation Cooperation in the struggle against all forms of discrimination”. At this seminar, the Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance, Mr. Githu Muigai, was invited by the Office to address the subject of intolerance and discrimination against Arabs and Muslims. 66. From 8 to 10 December 2009, the Office organized a seminar for West Africa on national action plans and other good practices against racism and related intolerance in Lomé. At this seminar, a number of participants identified religious intolerance as a direct source of discrimination. 67. The High Commissioner for Human Rights took up the profiling of Muslim minorities in the aftermath of the tragic events of 11 September 2001 with the CounterTerrorism Committee of the Security Council. In her address to the Committee on 29 October 2009, she expressed concern over profiling based on national or ethnic origin or religion with respect to the right to privacy and the principles of equality and nondiscrimination. She emphasized that the latter were central to human rights law and allowed no derogation. She warned that discriminatory and stigmatizing measures affected the rights of entire communities and might lead to further marginalization. 68. In a press release issued on 1 December 2009, the High Commissioner for Human Rights regretted the ban by Switzerland on the building of minarets which she called “deeply divisive”. Noting that the Government of Switzerland did not support the referendum initiative, the High Commissioner stated that banning an architectural structure associated with one religion was clearly discriminatory. V. Human rights treaty bodies 69. Reference is made to the study of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, submitted to the Human Rights Council at its ninth session and compiling jurisprudence concerning defamation and contempt for religions,24 as well as the chapter on treaty bodies in the report of the Secretary-General to the General Assembly at its sixty-fourth session on combating defamation of religions.25 23 24 25 GE.10-10223 A/64/325. A/HRC/9/25. A/64/209. 15