A/HRC/13/57 Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) 54. The Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) did not provide information on defamation of religions or measures adopted to address this problem in the geographical region covered by the organization. However, in its Second OIC Observatory Report on Islamophobia, issued at the thirty-sixth Council of Foreign Ministers in May 2009 submitted to the Secretariat,20 the OIC provides an account of manifestations and incidents of Islamophobia in Western societies, as monitored by the Observatory from June 2008 to April 2009, including incidents related to mosques, desecration of Muslim graves, incidents related to the Hijab (headscarf), political and social campaigns against Islam and Muslims, intolerance against sacred symbols of Islam, and discrimination against Muslims in education, the workplace and airports. In addition, the report cites good practices to combat Islamophobia. 55. In the report, it is stressed that, despite some encouraging developments, racial hatred and intolerance against Islam and Muslims continue to be issues of major concern to the Muslim world. According to the report, anti-Islam rhetoric, negative stereotyping and discrimination against Muslims have continued unabated. The report proceeds to provide a list of detailed recommendations to stem Islamophobia. 56. The report also elaborates on the importance of the human rights framework as a concrete basis for engagement between the Muslim world and the West aimed at countering incitement to religious hatred. In this context, the OIC position on United Nations resolutions on combating defamation of religions is explained in detail. 57. An overview is also given of activities undertaken by the OIC General Secretariat, including visits to some Western countries and its convening, co-sponsoring or participation in international conferences to raise awareness about the adverse implications of Islamophobia. For example, the OIC Secretary General attended the Third International Conference on the Muslim World and the West in Kuala Lumpur in June 2008, a forum aimed at closing the gap between the Muslim world and the West. The OIC General Secretariat also participated in the Astana Forum on Progress through Diversity in October 2008 which culminated in the adoption of the Astana Declaration and three World Conferences on Dialogue among Religions in Makkah, Madrid and New York. In the same year, the OIC Secretary General attended the Rabat Follow-up Conference on Fostering Dialogue among Cultures and Civilizations in Denmark dedicated to the theme of “Education for Intercultural Understanding and Dialogue”. Also in 2008, the OIC cosponsored an NGO round table on intolerance and discrimination against Muslims with the Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe. In April 2009, a Memorandum of Understanding was signed between the OIC and the Alliance of Civilizations. IV. The United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia 58. In its report on the implementation of Human Rights Council resolution 10/22, the Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (“the Commission”) focused on a pilot study undertaken between December 2008 and January 2009 to shed light on ethnosectarian coexistence, ethno-sectarian tensions and manifestations of incitement, 20 GE.10-10223 Available at http://www.oic-un.org/document_report/Islamophobia_rep_May_23_25_2009.pdf. 13