1. Introduction
and definitions
1. The title of the report for
which I have been appointed rapporteur refers to refugees. I therefore
intend to focus on people who have fled armed conflict or persecution
and have been recognised as refugees in accordance with the definition
provided in Article 1 of the 1951 Convention Relating to the Status
of Refugees.

The term “refugee camps”, which
was used in the motion for a resolution to include the various places
where refugees are grouped together and may be subject to violence
and discrimination, does not adequately reflect the situation in
Europe. The committee therefore decided to change the title as follows:
“Prevention of violence and discrimination against religious minorities
amongst refugees in Europe”. This should also allow me to address
the issues at stake with a view to suggesting constructive solutions
and approaches that could be applied in various contexts ranging
from retention centres to residence facilities for refugees.
2. Religious minorities are groups that share a religion and
identify themselves as belonging to a minority because they are
smaller in number than other groups. They will accordingly vary
from one place to another depending on the numbers of members of
each religion, and people belonging to a religion that is a minority
in the country of origin will not necessarily be in the same position
once they arrive in Europe.
3. Violence against religious minorities is difficult to address.
Many countries leave the religious aspects to the private sphere,
insisting that governments should not intervene in this area. Religious
affiliation is not recorded when dealing with refugees’ asylum claims.
This being said, for many, nationality or citizenship is less important
than faith (Shia, Sunni, etc) and can be the cause of tensions and
violence. Therefore, the issue deserves attention and specific mechanisms
to prevent and resolve faith-based conflicts should be examined.
4. The report also addresses the need to end discrimination against
religious minorities in various places (retention centres, temporary
accommodation facilities, etc.) and circumstances related to asylum
seeking. The work carried out previously by the Council of Europe
on the intercultural

and interreligious dialogue, including the
proposal to create a European platform, should be taken into consideration
when devising policies in this area. The outcomes of earlier Council
of Europe action and the principles of interreligious dialogue should
be used to end violence and discrimination against religious minorities
– including amongst refugees and asylum seekers – across Europe.
5. The 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights

and the 1966 International Covenant
on Civil and Political Rights

refer to but do not define discrimination.
Three criteria are employed to define discrimination: there needs
to be unfavourable treatment based on unlawful grounds and with
no objective justification.

The features of interest to us are
therefore an unlawful difference based on belonging to a religious
minority.
2. The issues involved
6. Some refugees report being
victims of discrimination or violence due to their religious beliefs.
This violence may be committed among refugees but sometimes also
by members of NGOs present on the ground, retention facility staff
or even by State police officers.
7. Documentation providing evidence of violence and discrimination
against religious minorities among refugees and asylum-seekers is
scarce. It would appear that few victims decide to report instances
to the authorities because they are afraid of reprisals or believe
their complaint will come to nothing, or else they take no action
because of language barriers. There is a real lack of information
on these incidents as only a tiny fraction are reported. The association
Open Doors

has carried out surveys in Germany

and Sweden

concerning abuse committed against
Christians and Yezidis. The most frequent abuses cited are insults,
death threats, theft and physical and/or sexual violence.
8. The Open Doors surveys

, were limited to two countries.
The Open Doors, however, notes that there were also attacks in other
European countries, such as Switzerland and Austria, where refugees
have said they have been forced to comply with Muslim rules, such
as praying at sunrise. Italy may also be taken as an example: numerous
acts of violence have been reported, especially in the Rigano Garganico
camp in Italy’s southern region of Puglia.

9. It is therefore essential to combat these abuses and document
what may occur inside the retention centres or temporary accommodation
facilities. An exchange of views with the representative of the
Open Doors is planned during the Migration Committee meeting on
3 October 2019.
10. On 29 May 2019, the Committee held an exchange of views, in
which a number of issues were raised:
- the obvious need to deal with all religious minorities,
since in some countries people from Muslim or Jewish communities
were discriminated against;
- a call for a balanced report, focusing not only on Christians
or Yazidi communities, and insisting on tolerance between religious
communities;
- the need to refer to the European Convention on Human
Rights which should be invoked to protect the right to exercise
religious rights;
- the need to be more precise about the focus of the report,
be it integration of religious minorities (namely Muslims) in Europe
or persecution of religious minorities (namely Christians) all over
the world; the reports of Christians being thrown overboard from
refugee boats and Christians killed in the world;
- the suggestion to change the title, following the reference
of the UNHCR representative to the fact that there were no refugee
“camps” in Europe.
11. During an exchange of views
held in Zurich on 29 May, the UNHCR Representative, stressed the
fact that religion played an important role in refugee protection,
as many people became refugees because of religious persecution.
Faith-based organisations played a major role in refugee protection,
when they had the opportunity to do so. She presented the action
taken by UNHCR in this area. She informed the Committee about several
UNHCR initiatives, such as the 2012 High Commissioners Dialogue
on Faith and Protection, the Affirmation of Faith based Leaders
“Welcome to the stranger”

, the Swiss Interreligious Declaration
on refugee protection,

the report on Persecution for reasons
of religion, and the “Step with Refugees” initiative.
12. On 3 October 2019, the Committee heard the representatives
of civil society and academia working with asylum seekers.

Mr Greve,
representing the NGO “Open Doors”, insisted that the police needed
to take seriously the complaints concerning religiously motivated
attacks. He was arguing in favour of providing separate shelters
for asylum seekers, separating people by religion. Having referred
to the conflicts in the Middle East, he noted that the life there
was organised according to districts separated by religion (such
as the Jewish district, Christian district, etc). According to him,
this created safe places for those religious minorities in such
cities. In refugee camps this separation did not exist. Consequently,
the members of religious minorities did not have a refugium where
to hide and were exposed to perpetrators of violence. This proposal
was, however, not supported by other speakers, who contrary to him,
spoke against segregation, calling for greater efforts to foster
social cohesion and leaving together in peace.
13. According to Ms Barbarella, her experience was different from
the experience which was presented by Mr Greve. In her region, migrants
came from different countries, but in a smaller number compared
to other regions. There were not many tensions. Her organisation
worked on mediation to improve communication and to create a common
understanding about identities. Religion had a very important role
for one’s identity. Mediators, who understood the issues related
to ethnicity, were trained. Her organisation – Alisei Coop – developed
a methodology, which encouraged people to listen actively. This
methodology included meetings with representatives of different
religious communities and visits to different places of worship.
The aim was to create a social model where people could leave together,
and where diversity, including religious differences, would be respected.
The results were positive. Interreligious dialogue could, indeed,
facilitate social solidarity and help people from different religious
and ethnic groups live together.
14. A similar approach was developed by the INTER-RELIGIO project
presented by Mr Messner. It aimed to create training programmes
on religions. It was noted that whilst different religions were
studied by scholars, there was not a real dialogue between different
religious communities. The project examined religions’ common points
in order to see how religion can contribute to society. Pluralism
was inevitable. In order to maintain peace between different religious
communities, creating dialogue was necessary. The INTER-RELIGIO
project created a counter discourse to radicalism. He sustained
that using tools, such as medias, to spread the counter-discourse
could help building social peace in the long term.
15. The principles of inter-religious dialogue could be used to
end violence and discrimination against religious minorities – especially
among refugees and asylum seekers – across Europe, according to
Mr Ugorij International Center for Ethno-Religious Mediation (ICERM),
New York, USA. Following research carried out in more than 15 countries,
the shared values in different religions could be used to foster
a culture of peace, enhance the mediation and dialogue processes
and outcomes, and to educate the mediators and dialogue facilitators
of religious and ethno-political conflicts as well as policymakers
and other State and non-State actors working to reduce violence
and resolve conflict within migrant centers or between migrants
and their host communities. To address violence and discrimination
amongst religious minorities he proposed the use of unconventional
and religious intervention processes that encouraged the development
of an open mind to learn and understand the worldview and reality
of the others; creation of a psychologically safe and trusting physical
space; reinjection and rebuilding of trust on both sides; engagement
in a worldview-sensitive and integrative dialogue process through
the help of third party intermediaries or worldview translators
often referred to as ethno-religious mediators and dialogue facilitators.
Through active and reflective listening and by encouraging non-judgmental
conversation or dialogue, the underlying emotions would be validated,
and self-esteem and trust would be restored. While remaining who
they are, the opposing parties would be empowered to live together
in peace and harmony.
16. In this framework, the following two ICERM projects should
be mentioned. The Mediation of Ethnic and Religious Conflicts empowered
professional and new mediators to resolve ethnic, racial, and religious
conflicts using a blended model of transformative, narrative and
faith-based conflict resolution. The Living Together Movement was
designed to help prevent and resolve ethnic and religious conflicts
through dialogue, open-hearted discussions, compassionate and empathic
listening, and diversity celebration.
3. The
legal framework
3.1. The
United Nations
17. Freedom of religion is protected
by various UN instruments. Article 18 of the 1948 Universal Declaration of
Human Rights

guarantees freedom of thought, conscience
and religion, which includes the possibility of manifesting one’s
religion. The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights
reinforces this protection.

18. More specifically as far as refugees are concerned, Article
3 of the 1951 Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees

establishes the principle of non-discrimination,
and freedom of religion is enshrined in Article 4. Pursuant to these
instruments, States are responsible for guaranteeing these rights
to refugees on their territory.
19. In 1981, the UN General Assembly adopted a Declaration on
the Elimination of All Forms of Intolerance and of Discrimination
Based on Religion or Belief,

which states that freedom of religion
must be guaranteed, and that no discrimination based on religion
can be tolerated. This instrument also places an obligation on States
to take measures to prevent and eliminate any discrimination based
on religion or belief (Article 4).
20. Subsequently, in 1992, the UN General Assembly adopted the
Declaration on the Rights of Persons Belonging to National or Ethnic,
Religious and Linguistic Minorities,

Article 1 of which obliges States
to protect “the existence and the national or ethnic, cultural,
religious and linguistic identity of minorities within their respective
territories […]”. The Declaration also provides for the freedom
to profess one’s religion and calls on Sates to take measures to
protect this freedom.
21. Refugee centres are usually established with no specific provision
for guaranteeing the enforcement of these rights and are often administrated
by non-State players on the ground. The situation of these centres
is rather unique and there is a real legal vacuum as far as they
are concerned.
22. The host country is responsible for the administration of
refugee reception centres and temporary accommodation facilities,
which means it must ensure the maintenance of both security and
law and order. This role may be undertaken by an international organisation
(i.e. IOM), but the host country remains responsible for operational
matters. The police present on the ground works to maintain public
order. The host country’s responsibility means that the centres
are subject to the domestic law of the State in which they are operated, and
consequently the applicable law will depend on the State’s domestic
law and on certain provisions of international or regional law to
which that State is a party.
3.2. The
European Union
23. The Charter of Fundamental
Rights of the European Union provides certain guarantees, such as
the prohibition of torture and inhuman or degrading treatment (Article
4), the right to liberty and security (Article 6) and to freedom
of thought, conscience and religion (Article 10).

These fundamental rights must clearly
be upheld also in relation to refugees.
24. 2013 saw the adoption of
Directive
2013/33/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council

, which lays down standards for the
reception of persons seeking international protection. In 2016,
the European Commission proposed amending the original text in order
to take a further step towards harmonising reception conditions
in the European Union. The new Article 20 is devoted to “applicants
with special reception needs”

and provides that States must take
account of the specific situation of refugees. It may therefore
be assumed that religious minorities have “special needs” regarding
their freedom of religion including the exercise of their religious
rites.
25. The European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA)

has drawn up a report entitled
Fundamental rights of migrants in an irregular
situation in the European Union,

which sets out the various fundamental
rights that refugees hold. The FRA has also carried out a survey
on minorities and discrimination

with the aim of understanding the
discriminatory practices in order to combat them effectively.
3.3. The
Council of Europe
26. In 1995, the Council of Europe
adopted the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities

which calls for the protection of
these minorities and, in particular, for guaranteeing them equality before
the law. Article 7 guarantees them freedom of thought, conscience
and religion, while the following article protects the right to
manifest one’s religion. However, a significant number of member
States have not signed or ratified the Convention,

which means that some States are
not bound by these provisions, although they are still bound by
the European Convention on Human Rights, which should provide the
broad protection mentioned above, covering without specifically
referring to religious minorities.
27. In 2007, an issue paper was drawn up by the Council of Europe
Commissioner for Human Rights on the subject of
The Human Rights of Irregular Migrants in Europe.
The Commissioner drew attention to the lack of information on the
nature and types of violations of migrants’ rights and the places
where they were committed. This observation, made over a decade
ago, still applies today as very few data are available. It was
pointed out that “(s)tates have a general duty to protect all migrants’
rights, regardless of nationality or status, both in transit, and
within each State”.

28. In January 20189, the Parliamentary Assembly adopted
Resolution 2262 (2019) “Promoting the rights of persons belonging to national
minorities”. In this resolution, the member States are called on
to sign and ratify the Framework Convention for the Protection of
National Minorities, which include religious minorities. This therefore
remains a relevant matter. Council of Europe work on interreligious
dialogue is described in 4.1. below.
4. Fostering
interreligious and inter-faith dialogue in the context of asylum
4.1. Inter-religious
dialogue 
29. In 2008, the Council of Europe,
in a White Paper on Intercultural Dialogue, drew attention to the
role that inter-religious dialogue could play in building stronger
and more cohesive societies and in addressing the major societal
challenges. The White Paper states that “Apart from the dialogue
between public authorities and religious communities, which should
be encouraged, there is also the need for dialogue between religious communities
themselves (inter-religious dialogue). The Council of Europe has
frequently recognised inter-religious dialogue as a part of intercultural
dialogue and encouraged religious communities to engage actively in
promoting human rights, democracy and the rule of law in a multicultural
Europe. Inter-religious dialogue can also contribute to a stronger
consensus within society regarding the solutions to social problems.
Furthermore, the Council of Europe sees the need for dialogue within
religious communities and philosophical convictions (intrareligious
and intra-convictional dialogue), not least in order to allow public
authorities to communicate with authorised representatives of religions
and beliefs seeking recognition under national law”.

30. The proposal to set up an inter-religious dialogue platform
at European level has been expressed by the Assembly on several
occasions. In the
Recommendation
1962 (2011) on “The religious dimension of the intercultural dialogue”,
the Assembly recommended that the Committee of Ministers: “17.1.
promote a genuine partnership for democracy and human rights between
the Council of Europe, the religious institutions and humanist and
non-religious organisations, seeking to encourage the active involvement
of all stakeholders in actions to promote the fundamental values
of the Organisation; 17.2. establish to this end a place for dialogue, a
workspace for the Council of Europe and high-level representatives
of religions and of nondenominational organisations, in order to
place existing relations on a stable and formally recognised platform;
17.3. develop this initiative in concertation with the interested
parties, closely associate the Parliamentary Assembly and, as far
as possible, the European Union, and invite the United Nations Alliance
of Civilizations and, if appropriate, other partners to contribute;
17.4. continue, in this context, organising dedicated meetings on
the religious dimension of intercultural dialogue”.
Unfortunately, the platform was not set up for a number of reasons, including
financial ones. This being said, inter-religious dialogue platforms
were set up at national level in a number of countries. The example
of Switzerland was brought to our attention during the committee
meeting in Zurich on 29 May 2019. They could be extremely helpful
in promoting a better living together climate in the context of
asylum seeking.
31. Initiatives to promote inter-religious dialogue as set out
in these recommendations could be taken in the specific context
of migration, including in reception centres and temporary accommodation
facilities for refugees and asylum seekers. The backbone of inter-religious
dialogue is to perceive religions as belonging not to a closed space,
but as an open context in which everyone must be able to recognise
the validity of the belief of the others. Inter-religious dialogue
allows building bridges and social bonds that would be essential
for the social integration of refugees once they have obtained legal
status in a host country.
32. The role played by faith-based organisations cannot be underestimated.
According to Majbritt Lyck-Bowen and Mark Owen, “faith-based organisations
involved in multi-religious collaborations are responding to the
more practical needs, helping migrants understand how public services
work, housing, material support, legal aid, etc., as well as cultural
awareness and relationship building, including learning local laws,
customs and language, and the establishment of new social contacts
and networks. However, in addition to these important services they
are also well equipped to introduce migrants into relevant local
religious communities, and facilitate emotional, religious and spiritual
support; which can be imperative for the well-being of some religious
migrants who have experienced significant trauma”.

33. The local initiatives and practices should, however, foster
greater participation of refugee women. In its
Resolution 1615 (2008) and
Recommendation
1838 (2008) “Empowering women in a modern, multicultural society”,
the Assembly reiterated that States must protect women against violations
of their rights (including those carried out in the name of religion),
promote and fully implement gender equality and reject all religious or
cultural relativism where women’s rights are concerned. It invited
member States to empower women in a modern, multicultural society
and called, in particular, to “promote active participation by women
in intercultural dialogue, including its religious dimension”. This
should also apply in the context of asylum.
34. The principles used for developing programmes and projects
should include: relational approaches which express the plurality
of the different cultural/religious groups; efforts to overcome
prejudices against other forms of sociality or belonging; building
common spaces and horizontal networks to facilitate dialogue between
the “different” or “invisible”; the promotion of personal relationships
and active listening to address issues that affect everyone, not
just the individual community or believer, and forms of solidarity
not only between individuals but with different subjects and communities.
35. The Church of Sweden implemented a project entitled “A world
of neighbours”

that included working with asylum
seekers and newly settled persons in the Church of Sweden's Parishes.

An important characteristic of this
project was the active involvement of volunteers. According to most
of the parishes, it has been easy to recruit volunteers for the
work with asylum seekers and newly settled persons. The activities
have been attracting new groups of volunteers, both young people
and people that did not have a close contact with the parish earlier.
There were differences in local traditions when it came to volunteering.
In some cases, it occurred spontaneously through already existing
personal networks outside of established organisations. Parishes
recruited volunteers by advertising in the local press, via social
media and by directly asking people at worship services or in connection
with other activities.
36. The driving force for those who have chosen to engage themselves
as volunteers was the opportunity to contribute to something meaningful.
The interviewed volunteers referred to values and behaviour passed
on from their parents, personal experiences of vulnerability due
to, for example, sickness or own migration story, as well as knowing
others, who started to volunteer, as an inspiration. For the parishes,
voluntary work was a great asset, but it also required organisation
and leadership. One should be aware that the lack of information, or
uncertainty regarding tasks may hinder the ability to maintain engagement
and commitment over time.
37. Practical initiatives should include meetings with the ministers
of the different religious communities on general and specific themes
in order to activate relations and contacts between different religious
cults; meetings with the faithful within the different place of
worship, with the aim of promoting mutual knowledge of ritual aspects,
modalities of worship and socialisation (often strongly ethnically);
participation in religious festivities of the different present
communities as a privileged tool to develop respect and sharing.
I would like to bring the example of the inter-religious calendar
prepared by the Geneva Inter-religious Platform.

4.2. Mediation
38. Mediation can be an effective
way of dealing with possible conflicts between the different religious communities.
It has a very important role as it can enable tensions to be eased
without necessarily bringing a case before the domestic courts,
where the proceedings would take much longer.
4.3. Taking
into account the opinion of refugees
39. In the surveys conducted in
Germany and Sweden, Open Doors asked the refugees interviewed what measures
they would like to see applied in order to reduce the violence against
them. Refugees were overwhelmingly in favour of separating the accommodation
of Christians and Muslims and suggested that no Muslim should be
a member of the staff.
40. In the light of this observation, it is clear that the task
of arranging for different communities to live together is not easy.
There is a need for teaching about integration before refugees are
settled in host societies, and such an approach should include,
in addition to courses on the host country’s culture, fostering
awareness of religious tolerance. Members of reception centres’
staff should also be better trained in order to look after people
of different faiths, get to know the specific features of certain
religions and deal with inter-faith conflict situations.

4.4. Proposals
from NGOs
41. Refugees should be given the
opportunity to report religiously motivated attacks anonymously.
A larger number of refugees would agree to testify regarding the
abuse they had suffered if they did not have to reveal their identity,
as they would no longer be afraid of reprisals. This would also
enable reliable data to become available on attacks that had taken
place.
5. Examples
of practice on the ground
42. Open Doors conducted only two
surveys, namely in Germany and Sweden. Various good practices have been
observed in Germany and could serve as a basis for States to improve
the situation of religious minorities in their refugee centres.
In Bad Homburg, Muslim members of staff were accused of attacking
Christian refugees in 2015 and were dismissed as a result.

In 2015, the “Integration and Security
Masterplan”,

which provides for the protection
of religious minorities against violations, was published in Berlin.
In addition, training courses have been made available to members
of staff. One final example is Stuttgart, where a special reception
centre for Christian refugees was set up in February 2016 to respond
to attacks on them. However, the local authorities have emphasised
that this separation of ethnic or religious groups should be avoided
at all costs in order not to heighten tensions.

Safety of minorities should remain the
priority.
43. UNHCR has indicated that while there are incidents occurring
in reception facilities in Germany, the reasons for those incidents
are very varied. They can be based on the nationality, the ethnicity,
the religion, the gender, the age and the gender orientation as
well as cultural misunderstandings. When there have been tensions
of an interreligious nature, the authorities have dealt with them
in an holistic manner, the same way as they do with any other conflict
arising between groups of persons. It should be noted that the prevention
of violence, regardless of its nature, is part and parcel of the
management of reception centres.
44. The value of religious tolerance is also promoted as part
of the integration courses for asylum-seekers with a high likelihood
of being granted protection and to recognised or resettled refugees
and beneficiaries of subsidiary protection. Also, the German Government
is engaging in a dialogue with Muslim organisations in the “Islam
Conference”. To the same end, inter-religious dialogue is promoted
on many levels through local initiatives such as the Berlin Forum
of the Religions.

Often, schools are a particular
focus through a so called “welcome class” to a mosque and a Christian
church (class consisting of minor asylum-seekers, refugees and other
foreigners which have recently arrived which provides language training
in other classes with a view to preparing the participant for their
participation in the regular schooling system)”.

One should also take into consideration
the results of the recently held 10th World
Assembly of religions for peace that recently took place in Germany.

45. In Turkey, the Turkish Presidency of Religious Affairs issued
a circular entitled “Asylum Seekers” on 18 September 2015 outlining
the measures to be taken to cover the humanitarian needs of refugees
and asylum seekers. These included providing necessary spaces for
them to fulfil their religious needs and measures to facilitate
their living in peace regardless of their identity, religion, language,
race, nationality, opinions and membership. Some of the measures
foreseen in the circular are as below:
- Sermons and religious preaches, also in the languages
of refugees, on solidarity, fraternity, peace and other similar
topics in the refugee centres or at the mosques of the neighbourhoods
densely populated by refugees;
- Appointment of female and male religious officials who
have language skills in order to serve refugees and asylum seekers;
- Provision of religious consultancy and moral support services
at the refugee centres and at host communities;
- Appointment of a coordinator who has the necessary language
proficiency in order to coordinate religious services;
- Provision of humanitarian assistance to refugees and asylum
seekers;
- Preparation of information materials (including public
service announcements) to be published in local media targeting
local population in order to call for solidarity with refugees;
- Socio-cultural activities to promote social cohesion,
including “peer family” initiatives between refugees and host community
members;
- Working in co-operation with other public institutions
in order to prevent interruption of education life of children,
particularly girls with a view to prevent child marriages;
- Social activities with children.
46. In the framework of the Church of Sweden’s project “A time
of encounters”, strategies had to be put in place for responding
to hostility, prejudice and racism (“giving local communities an
injection against xenophobia and racism”). This included creating
opportunities for local communities to help, demonstrate care, to
establish personal contacts with asylum seekers, and to arouse empathy,
asking people to put themselves in the situation of asylum seekers.
Accurate information on benefits and regulations around asylum seekers can
create a more positive climate, dispelling misconceptions and fears.
The emphasis was put on the importance of not making comparison
between different vulnerable groups but rather work for social change for
all, fostering local mobilisation for inclusion and human rights
for all as a way of countering organised racism.

6. Tools
for tackling faith-based conflicts inside refugee reception centres
and temporary accommodation facilities
47. Refugees arriving to Europe
come from diverse backgrounds that include practitioners of many
varied religious faiths. Upon their arrival, they are generally
grouped in temporary accommodation centres, forced to a close cohabitation
for a period of time.
48. The subject is complicated, since tensions and conflicts within
refugee centres can originate from several overlapping reasons.
According to Giuseppe Castello, Italian cultural mediator, rather
than for religious motivation, tension is linked to ethical conflicts.

Philippe Dugard

is of the same opinion.
The priest talking about a case of violence against some Christians
in the refugee centre of Grande-Synthe (France), affirmed «I think
the Iranians were attacked because they are a minority in the Grande-Synthe:
the centre is populated by Iraqi Kurds, and there are tensions between
Iranians and Iraqis. [The fact] that they are Christians does not help.
In my opinion, this is an ethnic conflict, on which a religious
conflict has been grafted».

Many refugees arriving to Europe
had suffered different forms of discrimination, including religious
discrimination. Therefore, the Council of Europe has a primary interest
promoting policies and practices aimed to avoid and to solve faith-based
conflicts. More should be done to support the opportunities for
inter-religious dialogue and support for future social inclusion.
The presence of refugees in centres, where they are grouped together,
is an opportunity to promote interreligious dialogue and co-operation.
49. According to Open Doors

, various tools and methods could
be applied for tackling faith-based conflicts within migrant centres,
such as the following:
Specific training of personnel
of the reception centres and temporary accommodation facilities
50. Civil servants and centre personnel
need in-depth knowledge of the religions of the centre’s residents. It
is essential that they are informed about religious festivities,
prayer timing, facilities needed in order to practice the religions.
This is necessary in order to respect the freedom of religion of
the refugees. Moreover, training on interfaith mediation needs to
be provided for all personnel.
Workshop for asylum seekers
51. Specific training and information
sessions should be provided to the residents of the centres, at
the time of their arrival and periodically during their stay. The
sessions should cover international and national law on freedom
of religion, workshops to prevent religious radicalisation, religious
arrangements of the centre, and complaint procedures in the event
of religiously motivated discrimination.
Hotlines
52. Each State shall create a national
hotline for complaints regarding religiously motivated discrimination. The
personnel of the hotline should be trained in order to evaluate
the situation and to react early. The hotline should be connected
with inter-religious mediators and the police in order to immediately
intervene and provide support to the alleged victim/s.
Anonymous complaints
53. The fear of receiving further
pressure or persecution can be an obstacle to filing a complaint
against religiously motivated attacks. Therefore, States should
provide dedicated office for receiving complaints within the migrant
centres and the opportunity to file a complaining report anonymously.
Moreover, States should guarantee the possibility to anonymously
file complaints to the police.
Early reaction
54. In case there is a complaint
of a religiously motivated attack or discrimination, the safety
of the alleged victim/s must be the priority. Therefore, a simple
complaint shall activate a protection procedure: the victim/s must
be immediately transferred to a safe place, such as an alternative
centre. Afterwards, a thorough investigation must be carried out.
Police training
55. Sensitisation on the management
level of the police administration and departments as well as the directorates
of the criminal police (responsible for State security offices)
regarding religious conflict. Designating a contact person in the
context of the deployment department of the State police headquarters.
7. Inter-religious
dialogue projects for refugees and asylum seekers’ integration
7.1. In
Germany
56. The inter-faith dialogue project
Weisst Du Wer Ich bin? was implemented
in 2016.

The participating organisations
were the Council of Christian Churches in Germany,

Turkish-Islamic Union for Religious Affairs,

the Islamic Council for Germany,

the Council of Islamic Cultural
Centres,

the Central Council of Muslims in
Germany

and the Central Council of Jews
in Germany.

The project promoted the co-operation among
Muslim, Christian and Jewish communities and organisations on projects
aimed at assisting migrants in the integration process.

The German Federal
Ministry of the Interior supported the project and allocated €500.000
for multi-religious initiatives locally active in the integration
of migrants. The funding has been used to support several multi-religious
projects all over Germany.

One of these projects involved visits
to different places of worship.

Volunteers from
different organisations partnered and exchanged their competence helping
bridge the experience and skills gap, in building projects for enhancing
the integration of migrants. According to Majbritt Lyck-Bowen and
Mark Owen, “for Muslim refugees who have fled violent conflicts
with religious dimensions, experiencing multi-religious cooperation
helped them see that religions can act as a positive force to bring
people together. Staff from the projects in Germany reported that
migrants from some Middle Eastern countries were not used to religious
freedom, and seeing multi-religious cooperation helped them become
accustomed to this”.

7.2. In
Sweden
57. Under the programme “A world
of neighbours” of the Church of Sweden mentioned above, various
other projects were set up, including the
Goda
Grannar (“Good neighbours”)

project. The co-operation between different
religious communities in migrants’ integration that started by practical
collaboration in providing services (language courses, legal advices,
etc.), eventually resulted in volunteers from the mosque and the church
learning dialogue about each other’s religious beliefs, festivals
and life in general.

The
work of mosque volunteers who had several skills useful to a wide
communication with migrants (language skills, knowledge of and experience
with the cultures migrants come from) mutually complemented the
church-led initiative which had the institutional knowledge about
immigration and refugee processes.

Relationships between
religious communities have been improved, as reported by the UNHCR.

This demonstrated that different
religious communities can successfully work together, and mutually
benefit from the close collaboration in terms of knowledge and dialogue.
Projects that creates dialogue and space of discussion between different
religions, with the aim of promoting mutual knowledge of cultural
and religious traditions of different communities, would benefit
all the participants and would prevent religious motivated violence
or radicalisation.
7.3. In
Poland
58. The Project
Dialogue for Integration – a Multi-Faith Approach 
was launched by Africa Connect Foundation.
It involved seminars meetings in four cities (Krakow, Poznan, Wroclaw
and Lodz), involving religious leaders and representatives and it
was aimed to discuss the role of religion and different religious communities
in migrants’ integration (mostly African migrants). Seminars and
meetings were organised bringing together leaders and representatives
of different religions along with NGOs and local community leaders
in order to network, share experiences and build the capacity of
religious communities to promote integration.
7.4. In
the UK
59. The project
Refugee Support 
was set up by the British Red Cross.
It aimed at providing practical support to asylum seekers and refugees,
including access to services. The British Red Cross co-operates
with a wide range of organisations including non-religious, mono-religious
and multi-faith organisations.

Christian and
Muslim communities and organisations were involved in helping migrants
settle, providing contacts and networks for housing, material assistance,
employment opportunities and spiritual and religious support which transcended
religious boundaries and established a wide and diverse support
network that intervened early in their integration processes.

For
example,
Weekend Club 
project in Glasgow was run by “Interfaith Glasgow”

, creating a network and providing
refugees, asylum seekers or new migrants a better understanding
of Scottish culture, history, and values; and improving their English.
Activities and events were delivered by a team of volunteers from
different religion and belief backgrounds. Participants came from numerous
countries: Algeria, Eritrea, Iran, Iraq, Ethiopia, Sudan, Syria,
Palestine, Nigeria, Ghana, Pakistan, India, Libya, Cameroon, Poland,
and the Czech Republic. To cite but a few, the following activities
were organised: a day trip to New Lanark; shortbread-making; a virtual
tour of Glasgow’s art galleries and museums, complete with an introduction
to ‘Glasgae’ slang; workshops covering the history of migration
to Scotland and the history of knitting; a fun introduction to some
of the key figures of Scottish history; a trip to Glasgow’s annual Christmas
market; and a Burn’s Night celebration in which participants learned
how the bagpipes are played, sampled ‘neeps and tatties’, etc.
60. There are inter-faith dialogue projects devoted to children
which could be adapted to meet the needs of children in the context
of asylum. The
Bullying and Belief Project 
is run by NEWHAM Sacre. It helps
pupils understand how people with different beliefs are treated,
aiming to prevent bullying. It is a project dedicated to primary
and secondary schools that provides teachers with various resources,
such as films and classroom lesson plan. The
Buried
Treasure project run by Cumbria SACRE is a day-long event
aimed at Year 6, 7 and 8 students. Participants take the role of
explorers, working in small groups facing a series of challenges
and carrying out experiments to discover if the sacred texts of
various religions hold some answers for the issues in the world
today. The quotations or “gems” they uncover from direct exposure
to the sacred texts are worked in to precious artefacts to be kept
in a treasure chest to be shared with others.

The project advance children awareness
of common points shared by different faiths, they promote dialogue
and better understanding of other beliefs.
8. Conclusions
61. The prevention of violence
and discrimination against religious minorities amongst refugees
in Europe requires actions at various levels – international, European,
national, and most of all – local level. Countries should make greater
effort to alleviate tension and to create a climate of respect and
dignified living for refugees and asylum seekers. People fleeing
terrible circumstances arrive extenuated and are particularly vulnerable and
would need additional support in times of crisis. European countries
have both the capacity to provide such support and the ability to
do it. What is lacking today is the political will and we are here
to make a difference at that level. The first step could consist
in setting up and supporting the work of inter-religious dialogue platforms
at national and local levels and their involvement in settling the
refugee crisis in Europe.