'Islamophobia today is worse than post-9/11'- experts warn

ANTALYA – Islamophobia is worse today than in the post-9/11 period, and politicians must stop spreading religious hatred to stem the surge in anti-Muslim hatred, rights experts and top officials have said.

The warning came during the three-day Antalya Diplomacy Forum, an international event that brought together ministers, diplomats and top officials from 148 countries in the Mediterranean resort city of Antalya last week.

At a discussion titled 'Rising Racism, Xenophobia and Islamophobia', the panellists underscored the urgent need to tackle religious hatred to ensure a peaceful society.

The experts agreed that Europe has seen an alarming surge in anti-Muslim hate since October last year when Hamas launched an unprecedented cross-border operation and Israel launched its brutal military offensive in Gaza.

Miguel Moratinos, the High Representative of the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations, underscored the severity of the situation by asserting that "Islamophobia today is even worse than (after) 9/11".

"Hate is the first step to convert hate into violence and from violence to conflict and then war; we have to go to the root causes of it," Moratinos said, highlighting that spiteful acts such as Quran burnings and violence are converted to deep-seated “hate”.

Between different ideologies – from socialists to the right-wing and the left – “Islam is at the core of every political discourse,” he said.

“We need a programme and project to change people’s minds and hearts” to tackle these issues.

Far-right 'exploit' minorities

A top official from the Organization of Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) exhorted politicians to refrain from exacerbating the problem through polarising rhetoric.

Matteo Mecacci, Director of the Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights of the OSCE, said, “The forces (that) are pushing for intolerance and discrimination are the same forces that are also going to challenge democracy and rule (of law)”.

Mecacci stressed the importance of leaving matters of law enforcement to the appropriate authorities, asserting that politicians should not dictate responses that impinge upon minorities’ rights.

“It is not the job of a politician to say what needs to be done by the police…because this affects the constitutional right…to live free of fear.”

Mecacci warned that failure to counteract the influence of the far-right could lead to a surge in hate crimes and pose a “destabilising” threat to society.

'We don't stand at a better place'

While experts unanimously agreed on the need to address rising racism in general, there was a consensus that the political will to do so is lacking.

Explaining the situation, Secretary General of the Council of Europe, Marija Pejcinovic Buric, highlighted the “decline in rule of law, democracy and human rights”.

According to Buric, there are enough tools to implement to tackle racism, xenophobia and Islamophobia, but “we are just not implementing them”.

To tackle rising Islamophobia, “we must (first) acknowledge it as a problem”, Buric said, outlining a three-fold approach to addressing anti-Muslim hatred by employing strategies focused on prevention, protection, and prosecution.

Evren Dagdelen Akgun, the OCSE’s representative on Combating Intolerance and Discrimination Against Muslims, emphasised the importance of fostering healthy engagement with the Muslim community.

“(But) a healthy engagement with the Muslim community is being hampered,” Akgun said. And today, more than ever, “we don’t stand at a better place”.