ISLAMABAD – Pakistan will host the 8th meeting of the Istanbul Process nextyear with a focus to evolve responses to growing religious intolerance anddiscrimination based on religion or belief.
The announcement has been made by Minister for Education Shafqat Mahmoodwhile addressing 7th Istanbul Process meeting at The Hague, Netherlands.
The Minister drew attention to the alarming levels of Islamophobia in manyparts of the world due to growing incidents of hate crimes, negativeprofiling, assaults on hijab wearing Muslim women, denigration of veneratedMuslim personalities and symbols.
He also expressed deep concerns over the growing incidents of systematicdiscrimination and state violence against Muslims in India.
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He called for eschewing ambivalence and double standards by flag-bearers ofhuman rights in the face of grave human rights violations including in theIndian Occupied Jammu and Kashmir.
Referring to the importance of upholding fundamental freedoms, the Ministerunderscored that the freedom of expression must be exercised withresponsibility and the international community should consider reasonablerestrictions in this regard.
