14/03/2024 Equality and Non-Discrimination
On the eve of the International Day to Combat Islamophobia (15 March 2024), Petra Bayr (Austria, SOC), PACE’s General Rapporteur on combating racism and intolerance, made the following statement:
“In a time of division and intolerance, Muslim people face increasing discrimination in Europe. In addition to the challenges they face in access to education, employment and other areas, recent data on hate speech and hate crimes targeting Muslims are alarming: against the backdrop of the on-going violence in the Middle East, these phenomena - like those motivated by Antisemitism - have spiked in the last months.
Awareness of anti-Muslim racism is growing among decision-makers across our continent: action to counter it should be strengthened accordingly. Closer co-operation between the actors involved, within Council of Europe member states and internationally, is crucial.
A co-ordination meeting is now taking place in Strasbourg, precisely with the aim of kickstarting new and more effective forms of co-operation to combat anti-Muslim racism. It involves the Council of Europe and the European Commission, as well as a wide range of public authorities and civil society actors.
I can only welcome this initiative, a timely and necessary step in the right direction which needs to be followed by further action. I call on fellow politicians who believe in equality and inclusion, within the Parliamentary Assembly and beyond, to provide their full support to this process.”