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EXPLANATION OF VOTE BY

MR. NIZHAN FARAZ RIZAL

SECOND SECRETARY

PERMANENT MISSION OF MALAYSIA TO THE UNITED NATIONS

 

FOLLOWING THE ADOPTION OF THE DRAFT RESOLUTION ON

“PROMOTING INTERRELIGIOUS AND INTERCULTURAL DIALOGUE AND TOLERANCE IN COUNTERING HATE SPEECH” (A/77/L.89)

 

 

Mr. President,

 

At the outset, my delegation wishes to extend our utmost appreciation to the Kingdom of Morocco for presenting this important resolution once again to the General Assembly. We appreciate the focused conduct of the negotiations of the text, and the willingness of the facilitator to take into consideration recent developments that are pertinent to the resolution.

 

Mr. President,

 

2.         It is unfortunate that an amendment was introduced to Preambular Paragraph 13. My delegation recalls very vividly the calls made by a number of delegations for stronger human rights language during the negotiations of the resolution. Yet, on violations of holy books, which is an integral component of the right to freedom of religion and belief, the desire for stronger language on human rights is somewhat subdued.

 

3.         While acknowledging that the exercise of freedom of speech and expression is a fundamental human right, we strongly disagree with the notion that the defamation of religion is not an infringement of human rights. The defamation of any religion constitutes a derogation of the right to freedom of religion or belief, and is intimately linked to the incitement of racial and religious hatred. My delegation has consistently stressed that rights should not be in competition with one another, nor should one right be seen as superior to another. The exercise of the freedom of speech and expression entails responsibility and accountability, which are critical components in countering hate speech. It is imperative that we uphold all human rights on an equal footing, and address all human rights issues in an impartial, non-discriminative and objective manner. It is based on these considerations that we advocated for and supported the insertion of “holy books” in this resolution, and voted against the amendment presented.

 

Mr. President,

 

4.         My delegation firmly believes in the principles of tolerance and mutual understanding, and the importance of addressing acts that clearly seek to provoke and incite racial and religious hatred. It is our hope that we will be able to make progress within the UN fora in countering hate speech, especially on the basis of religion and belief, towards achieving a true advancement of human rights.

 

I thank you.