Clinton strongly opposes defamation laws on religion

Oct 26, 2009, 22:49 GMT

Washington - US Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton on Monday sharply opposed efforts by some Islamic countries to bar the defamation of religion, warning that it infringes on free speech.

Speaking ahead of the release of an annual report by the State Department on religious freedom, Clinton warned that anti-defamation laws could prevent the legitimate criticism of different religions.

'Some claim that the best way to protect the freedom of religion is to implement so-called 'anti-defamation' policies that would restrict freedom of expression and the freedom of religion,' Clinton said. 'I strongly disagree.'

The Organization of the Islamic Conference, a bloc of 57 countries, is pushing for the United Nations Human Rights Council to issue a broad condemnation of the defamation of religions.

The issue has provoked serious disputes in the past between majority Muslim countries and the West, such as the violence sparked by a Danish newspaper's 2005 cartoons seen as denigrating Muslim prophet Mohammed.

Clinton said that protecting a person's right to practice their religion 'has no bearing on other's freedom of speech.'

'The protection of speech about religion is particularly important since persons of different faith will inevitably hold divergent views on religious questions,' she said. 'These differences should be met with tolerance, not with the suppression of discourse.'

The annual Statement Department report offered a mixed view of the state of religious freedom around the world, highlighting some new efforts at inter-faith dialogue in Jordan and Spain but noting growing repression in other parts of the world.

The report listed Burma, China, Eritrea, Iran, North Korea, Saudi Arabia, Sudan and Uzbekistan as countries of particular concern.