Assahafa.com
Morocco’s Ambassador and Permanent Representative to the United Nations Office in Geneva, Omar Zniber, highlighted on Thursday the Moroccan model of interfaith coexistence and the Kingdom’s efforts to promote tolerance, mutual respect, and dialogue between religions.
Speaking at the opening of a panel organized by the permanent missions of Morocco and the Netherlands on the sidelines of the 58th session of the Human Rights Council, the diplomat stressed that Morocco is a land of diversity and tolerance, distinguished by the harmonious coexistence of monotheistic religions, where Muslims, Jews, and Christians have lived in peace for centuries.
This diversity is rooted in the Kingdom’s history and national identity, and several cities bear witness to interfaith coexistence to the extent that places of worship belonging to two, or even three, religions are built side by side, he said.
The diplomat recalled that Morocco is home to one of the oldest Jewish communities in the Arab world, noting that cities such as Fez, Marrakech, Essaouira, and Casablanca have preserved Jewish quarters, known as mellahs, which bear witness to this coexistence.
In this context, the ambassador highlighted the importance of the institution of the Commander of the Faithful, a symbol of the nation’s unity and guarantor of the free exercise of religion, recalling the role of the late HM Mohammed V in protecting Jews from deportation during the Second World War.
Zniber also reviewed national achievements at a multilateral level in the fight against hate speech, pointing out that the Kingdom had introduced three historic resolutions at the General Assembly, all of which were adopted unanimously.
These were resolution 73/328 of July 25, 2019, on the promotion of interreligious and intercultural dialogue and tolerance in the fight against hate speech; resolution 75/309 of July 21, 2021, which proclaimed June 18 International Day against Hate Speech; and resolution 77/318 of July 25, 2023, on the promotion of interreligious and intercultural dialogue and tolerance in the fight against hate speech.
The ambassador mentioned other multilateral initiatives launched in Morocco, such as the Rabat Action Plan (2012) on “the prohibition of advocacy of national, racial, or religious hatred that constitutes incitement to hostility, discrimination, or violence,” drawn up by international experts with the support of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), as well as the Plan of Action for religious leaders and actors to prevent incitement to violence that could lead to criminal atrocities—the Fez Process (2017).
Morocco has always been a fervent advocate of tolerance and inter-religious and intercultural dialogue, he added, noting that the Kingdom fully endorses these principles and remains committed to strengthening international cooperation to promote a world where diversity is an asset and tolerance a shared value.
The diplomat recalled other highlights, such as Pope Francis’s historic visit to Morocco in 2019, under the banner of interfaith dialogue and peaceful coexistence, and the inauguration in 2020 in Essaouira of Bayt Dakira, a center dedicated to the preservation of Moroccan Jewish-Muslim heritage.
Bringing together numerous diplomats and members of civil society, the panel, which took place at Geneva’s Palais des Nations, aimed to review Moroccan and Dutch best practices and positive examples of how leaders/organizations play a vital role in combating religious hatred.
Source: map
