OPINION - SEVENTY-TWO YEARS ago, in order to establish a common standard of achievement for all people and all nations, the UN proclaimed a document entitled “The Universal Declaration of Human Rights”.
Recognising the importance of religion, perhaps as a life breath for the majority of all people the world over, six articles of the declaration speak about religion.
The focus will be on two: Article 18: “Everyone has the right to freedom of religion”; and Article 26 (2): “Education shall promote understanding, tolerance and friendship among religious groups”.
With this as a point of departure, the very first question that lingers at the top of the mind is: why should any person’s freedom to observe any religion they choose have any effect on another person when that religious observation has zero effect on any person?
The second question is: how can any educated person (a certain level of education must be present in order to be literate on social media) abandon his/her intellect and conscious mind to refuse to tolerate or understand another religion, while having a warped and misplaced perception that all other religions are inferior to their own?
No religion is superior to any other religion.
Also, how can an educated person, who surely knows that when anyone lives in isolation they become obsolete, turn down the hand of friendship among religion when, of South Africa’s 58.78 million population, 43.42 million people belong to the Christian faith; 2.45 million people belong to Traditional African religion; 892 685 belong to the Islam faith; 561 268 are affiliated to Hinduism; 24 808 identify themselves as Buddhists; 6 881 to Bahaism and 49 470 to Judaism?
If followers of religions were to shut the door of friendship to other religions, what would happen, for example, to the approximately 15 million South Africans who are non-Christian?
In 1981, 33 years after establishing the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the UN proclaimed the Declaration on the Elimination of All Forms of Intolerance and of Discrimination Based on Religion or Belief. Article 2 (1) states that: “No one shall be subject to discrimination by any group of persons or person on the grounds of religion”; and Article 3 states: “Discrimination between human beings on the grounds of religion constitutes an affront to human dignity.”
On a continental level, in the same year, the then Organisation of African Unity, now known as the AU, adopted the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights, where Article 8 states that “Freedom of the free practice of religion shall be guaranteed.”
Why is it that certain South Africans choose to disrespect and bash other religions when the South African government has always promoted mutual respect for all religions?
In this regard in 1995 – concurring with the views as set out in the two above-mentioned declarations of 1981 – a panel of constitutional experts wrote to the chairpersons and executive director of the constitutional assembly that, “people who feel strongly about their religion and other values and beliefs should use their fundamental rights (such as their freedom of expression) to advance and promote their cause in a spirit of respect for the rights of others”.
The Bill of Rights further promulgated the freedom of religion and opinion, while categorically stating that freedom of expression did not extend to the advocacy of hatred based on religion. All South Africans must subscribe to the principles and dictates of the Bill of Rights.
In view of these firm foundations of the AU, UN and the South African government detailing the extent to which religious intolerance, blasphemy and bigotry is an insult to human dignity, the Facebook group “SA Hindu’s AGAINST CONversion” (sic) is rejected, denounced and condemned in every sense of the words.
The actions of any grouping or movement which demean, degrade and discriminate, and act hurtfully, harmfully and hatefully against another group – in this case, a grouping of supposed Hindu fanatics against Christianity and Islam – is nullified as false, fake and fictitious and is therefore not the beliefs, thoughts, narrative, opinion or posture of the mainstream within the religion.
Daily News
Singh is a South African representative to the Intercontinental Interfaith Youth Forum – AU and Regional Youth Peace Forum – UN. Singh is also the national chairperson of the SA Hindu Youth Movement