Fourth Session: October 8 th th 9, 2016 Campion School Model United Nations Special Conference on Faith and Freedom The OIC, the UN and apostaphobia. Chair: Nick Hagis Co-Chair: Tsitsiridakis Evangelos
Campion School Model United Nations 4 Introduction The phenomenon of apostophobia is not a recent one although it has recently made its appearance into the public eye. Being afraid of the consequences of apostating from a party religion, group etc. dates back to the very first appearance of the human communities. Unfortunately most of the people in the western world are completely unaware of the existence of this phenomenon as it receives minor or even none promotion from the social media let alone the fact that the taboo of apostating- conquers the world as being an atheist or not following the dominant religion of your country marginalizes you almost instantly from your community even in the More Economically Developed Countries (MEDCs). The United Nations could not be missing from the fight for proving that apostasy is not a crime and as everybody should have the right to choose to believe, equally should have the right not to do so. The UN has intensively cooperated with the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (in which the delegates can be referred to as OIC due to obvious reasons). Although most of the two organizations actions have to do with fighting islamophobia 1
2 Campion School Model United Nations there are also attempts to solve the matter of apostophobia. Although the resolutions 16/18 and 2005/03 are being hailed in the West as a victory of the United Nations in the fight for freedom of speech, many argue that these resolutions sole purpose is to serve the initial goal of the OIC, in order to advance the criticism against Islam into crime and a new form of racism as referred to in both resolutions. Accordingly, in March 2011, the OIC introduced the now infamous Resolution 16/18 to combat intolerance based on religion or belief, purportedly proposed as a replacement for the defamation of religions resolution. Over time it became clear that the OIC retained its long term goal to criminalize all speech that shed a negative light on Islam or Muslims. Resolution 16/18 turned out to be a tactical move by the OIC to bring the West one step closer toward realizing its goal of achieving global blasphemy laws, by using language more palatable to the West. Last but not least the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) have conquered the Middle East executing everybody that does not leave according to the will of the ISLAM. 2
Campion School Model United Nations 4 World map of Muslims supporting death for Apostasy Definition of key terms 3
2 Campion School Model United Nations Apostophobia/ apostaphobia: Although there is not a certain definition for this term, apostaphobia or apostophobia is a word that emerges from the word to apostate < Greek apostates > which means to forsake one s religion, party, group etc. Thus, apostatophobia or apostophobia is once phobia/fear to apostate and reject a belief, a religion or an idea which is common amongst once community as a result of the fear of the consequences. Organization of Islamic Cooperation (O.I.C): O.I.C is an international organization founded in 1969 which purpose as highlighted by its members is to protect the interests of the Muslim world and achieve international peace and security around the globe protecting the Muslim community. Venn diagram which shows members of the OIC and the organizations they belong 4
Campion School Model United Nations 4 Timeline 25 September 1969 On 5 August 1990, June 2008 28 June 2011 16 May 2014 April 10-15, 2016 The leaders of Muslim nations met in Rabat to establish the Council of Foreign Ministers meeting (CFM) the prior form of the OIC 45 foreign ministers of the OIC adopted the Cairo Declaration on Human Rights in Islam to serve as a guidance for the member states in the matters of human rights in as much as they are compatible with the Sharia, or Quranic Law. The OIC conducted a formal revision of its charter and now the revised charter set out to promote human rights, fundamental freedoms, and good governance in all member states furthermore the OIC has chosen to support the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and international law The name and the logo of the organization changed into OIC The human rights office of the United Nations voiced deep concern about the situation of Meriam Ibrahim where a pregnant woman named Christian Sudanese was sentenced to 100 lashes and to death by a for apostasy and adultery. -13th Islamic Summit Conference of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation Unity and Solidarity for Justice and Peace Saturday 27 February 2016 A court in Saudi Arabia sentenced a man to 10 years in prison and 2,000 lashes for expressing his atheism on social media 5
2 Campion School Model United Nations Causes Ø Supremacy of the religion over the state The first and most important reason so as to why apostophobia has been one of the most imperative upcoming issues of humanity as a whole around the globe couldn t be other than that most of the countries in the Middle East are not actually governed by the state but solely by the religious authorities of the region. For instance countries that the religion of Islam is the most widely spread, nobody is allowed to follow any other religion except from Islam. The government acts under the will of the ultimate God, and according to the holy texts of the Quran, which is the central religious text of Islam and believed to be a revelation from God by the Muslims. Thus no matter your position or political or economic status, you are not allowed to question the will of Islam. The Quran, the central religious text of Islam 6
Campion School Model United Nations 4 Ø Rising power or I.S.I.L / Unlimited executions Unfortunately although the United Nation s Security Council has passed Several resolutions unanimously clearly targeting I.S.I.L and its finances, yet none of them has proved to be enough to counter the issue as the increasing power of the terrorist group has managed to spread all over the Middle East and being a global threat now more than ever. But nothing has been done in order to preserve the right of the people in Middle East to follow the religion of their preference. Although there are not a lot that can be done if the nations that follow Islam are not willing to sit in the negotiations table and try to find a solution. There is an immediate need to stop the executions due to charges apostasy. The emblem of I.S.I.L as presented in the propagandistic videos of the terrorist group 7
2 Campion School Model United Nations Security Council during voting procedures on a resolution concerning the finances of I.S.I.L Possible solutions Although the main problem that our delegates have to deal with, as far as the issue of our committee is concerned, is the rising power of extremist movements and terrorist groups such as I.S.I.L, the special conference committee cannot deal with this 8
Campion School Model United Nations 4 problem directly due to lack of authorization from the United Nations; it s not our job to find ways to combat I.S.I.L as the role of our committee is more consultative rather than to take action with military or peacekeeping operations. But don t be misguided; there are more things that we can than we cannot do as a committee. First of all, although we cannot combat I.S.I.L directly, as the Security Council may wish to do, it doesn t mean that we cannot stop executions conducted by citizens due to charges of apostasy. We expect all delegates to be ready to discuss the policy of their country and to be ready to introduce solutions that are expected to present in the committee not only during the debate but during the lobbying time as well. We urge each delegate to come up with motions and clauses that will promote dialogue and will pave the way towards finding a solution to this imperative matter. Although we understand that some countries may be on the same page plagiarism will not be accepted. 9
2 Campion School Model United Nations Topic discussion Although the topic of our committee may seem complex and to be consisted of more than two dimensions it is actually not, as the different aspects of it are acutely interwoven? Firstly we have the contradictory beliefs about the resolutions that OIC managed to pass and the leading role of the U.S.A as far as the attempts against OIC s initial goals. Secondly we have a new widespread phenomenon almost unheard in the Western World called apostophobia and no one yet seems to be willing to sit at the table of negotiations in order to help people in the Middle East acquire the right in freedom of speech and religion. Last but not least delegates in the special conference need to find a way to deal with the rising power of I.S.I.L and the unlimited executes that take place nearly every day due to charges of apostasy. Delegates will be asked to form alliances not only according to their countries policy as far as the Organization of Islamic Cooperation is concerned, but also their countries beliefs of apostasy. Most importantly delegates are expected to find peaceful ways to deal with the global problem of I.S.I.L in order to combat the phenomenon of apostophobia in the Middle East. 10
Campion School Model United Nations 4 The United Nations General Assembly on the 69 th session of the institution Major countries and organizations involved There are still countries that outlaw and penalize apostasy and thus there is a great amount of people facing apostophobia in the community, such as Afghanistan, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Lebanon, Libya, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Syria, Tunisia, United Arab Emirates, Yemen. There is some information for some countries that have a delegation in our committee for the delegates to refer to during their research; 11
2 Campion School Model United Nations Afghanistan Apostasy is considered a serious offense in Afghanistan and persons so charged may even face death by stoning, deprivation of all property. However, it appears that prosecutions are extremely rare and there are only few records of such events. Iraq Any individual who insults the official religion of the state, or publicly insults a symbol of religion, may be punished with imprisonment which in most cases does not exceed three years. Sudan In Sudan any Muslim who declares publicly that he has adopted any religion other than Islam commits the crime of apostasy and is immediately punishable with the death penalty. Syria Syria s Penal Code provides that any individual who publicly defames religious proceedings is punishable with a term of two years of imprisonment. But most importantly, Islamist extremist groups in Syria have applied extrajudicial penalties against individuals who are accused of apostasy. For instance, in 2013, an al Qaeda-linked group executed a man after accusing him of apostasy. Pakistan Although there are records of people being persecuted with the charge of apostasy in Pakistan, Pakistani people face difficulties 12
Campion School Model United Nations 4 as they are not allowed to choose their own religious path. Converts from Islam and atheists may also be vulnerable to Pakistan s blasphemy law, which prescribes life imprisonment or death sentence. Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) The Organization of Islamic Cooperation consists of 57 members, 56 of which are also member states of the United Nations. OIC is the largest organization worldwide after the United Nations. Countries such as the Russian Federation and Thailand are Observer States due to the high number of their Muslim population but do not actively participate in the resolutions formed by the organization. Member states Observer states Banned states Suspended states Conference of the OIC in Istanbul Saudi Arabia In Saudi Arabia, individuals can be sentenced to death and executed for apostasy. Traditionally, apostates have the right to be afforded a period of time to turn back to Islam, an individual who insists on his opinion will be executed. Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) The Islamic State of Iraq was a militant Islamist group that aimed to establish an Islamic state it was formed on 15 13
2 Campion School Model United Nations October 2006 when a number of Iraqi insurgent groups emerged into one group. At their most height in 2006 2008, they claimed Baquabah as their capital (Baquabah is a city in the Northeast of the capital of the State of Iraq Baghdad). In April 2013, ISIS transformed itself into the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) which is still active today and constitutes one of the most urgent global issues. There have been several executions conducted by ISIS in the regions of its claim due to charges of apostasy. The zenith of these events was the public execution of a 14 year old Syrian boy on the charge of apostasy due to missing Friday pays. ISIS beheads Syrian teenager on charges of apostasy, United States of America (U.S.A) The US held the first conference to implement the Resolution 16/18, this conference is known as the Istanbul Process. This conference had as its purpose to highlight the initial goals of the OIC and to combat its attempts. Unfortunately, the United States concern for the protection of free speech was lost as its focus moved closer to the OIC s positions; the emphasis was placed on protecting Muslims from Islamophobia especially in the West. Thus the US failed to alarm the Westerner world about the OIC s attempts. 14
Campion School Model United Nations 4 UN involvement: Relevant resolutions and treaties Although the United Nations organs have not yet passed any resolution upon the matter of apostophobia there are several resolutions that have to do with similar topics that the delegates can refer to during their research. The most important articles of the United Nations attributed to freedom and faith and apostophobia in accordance with the OIC are the ones that have caused great deal of controversy amongst the countries in the globe and are typed in bold letters in the following list. 1948 Article 18. Of the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights. 25 November 1981 A/RES/36/5 Declaration on the Elimination of All Forms of Intolerance and of Discrimination Based on Religion or Belief 85th plenary meeting of the General Assembly on 20 December 1993 A/RES/48/128 Elimination of all forms of religious intolerance 15
2 Campion School Model United Nations 6 March 1996 A/RES/50/183 Elimination of all forms of religious intolerance On 12 April 2005. HR Resolution 2005/3, United Nations Human "Combating Defamation of Religions" 31 Rights Commission for, 16 against and 5 abstentions (UNHRC), meeting for its 61st session in Geneva 21 March 2011 Resolution 16/18 Pakistan (on behalf of Combating intolerance, negative the Organization of the stereotyping and stigmatization of, and Islamic Conference) discrimination, incitement to violence, and violence against persons based on religion or belief 16
Campion School Model United Nations 4 Resolution 16/18 which has sparked great controversy amongst nations and was the turning point in the UN-OIC cooperation Research questions 17
2 Campion School Model United Nations Here some questions which I hope will help you during your research; Which are the causes of apostophobia in your country? What dangers do the apostates run in countries where the problem is acutely increasing? What has the UN done to prevent or solve this phenomenon? What is the policy of your country as far as apostophobia is concerned? What has your country done to ensure freedom of speech? What s your country policy as far as resolution 16/18 is concerned? What is your country s policy as far as the OIC is concerned? 18