Yangon Model United Nations, 2019 | X Annual Session ​ Forum: Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) Issue: Mitigating the Economic and Social Outcome of Religious Prejudice Student Officer: Nang Mwe Hom Kham Introduction "Everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion; this right includes freedom to change his religion or belief, and freedom, either alone or in community with others and in public or private, to manifest his religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship and observance."- Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Article 18 In today’s globalized and interconnected world, religious antagonism has taken the 21st century by a storm.The terrorist attacks of 9/11 led to wars in and out of US borders (Iraq, Afghanistan). As a result of the attacks, the number of discrimination cases over the last decade have risen significantly especially against underrepresented religious communities and Muslims. According to a global study conducted worldwide the report shows that more than 86 out of 100 people have said to be victims of religious prejudice. (BBC, 2017). Pew Research Center shows that between 2010 and 2050, the growth of religious populations worldwide is projected to be 23 times larger than the growth of religiously unaffiliated populations.(Grim,2015) These violence and hostilities cause a rise in government restrictions on religious freedom. These events show that religious extremism can start wars and major economic disruptions. Religious intolerance often takes in two forms either as an individual/a group’s belief or government policies. Different forms: “intra-faith intolerance (e.g. Shiite vs. Sunni Muslims), inter-faith ​ intolerance (e.g. Hindu-Christian conflict), intolerance from a faith group against a secular group (e.g. Christians fundamentalists vs. Atheists) and intolerance by a secular group against a religious group (e.g. feminists vs. some organized religions.)” (Exarchou, 2) According to a study done by the World Economic Forum in 2014, the report show that the 12 most religiously diverse countries were found to have above average economic growth (< 4% per year). If a country does not have religious stability, foreign investors are less likely to invest in that country. Even the act of hiring employees are affected by religious discrimination, and this in a business environment decreases economic output. (World Economic Forum, 2014) Research Report | Page 1 of 10 ​ Yangon Model United Nations, 2019 | X Annual Session ​ Definition of Key Terms Religion Religion is a “shared set of beliefs, activities and institutions premised upon faith in supernatural forces” (Iannaccone, 1466) Religious Freedom The United Nations states that it is the right to choose a religion (or no religion) without any interference of the government, the right to freely practice one’s religion, to gather fellow supporters of the religion, etc without being discriminated by anybody. Religious Intolerance An act which occurs when a society is unwilling to accept views, beliefs, behaviours and customs and the right to practice one's beliefs on religious grounds. Economic Growth According to the Cambridge dictionary, the definition of ‘Economic Growth’ is when there is “an increase in the economy of the country/area primarily in the value of goods and services the country/area produces.” GDP per Capita A measure of a country’s economic output that is accounted for its number of people. Unemployment Unemployment occurs when a person who is actively searching for employment is unable to find work. History Europe during the 15th and 16th century The study of whether religion and economic growth has a correlation has been studied in the 16th Century. During the 16th century religion was viewed as a commercial activity and people “respond to religious costs and benefits in a predictable and observable manner” (McCleary,2008). Therefore people called for a disassociation between church and state which allows competition and creates open Research Report | Page 2 of 10 ​ Yangon Model United Nations, 2019 | X Annual Session ​ discussion. This resulted in increased productivity and when people derive more satisfaction from consumption. Europe after the Reformation, gave birth to Reformed Protestantism, Calvinism, in Northern Europe. Calvinism encouraged good ethics, honesty, hard work and thrift. As a result they worked harder than Catholics in Southern Europe; this facilitated the rise of capitalism in Northern Europe. Calvinists would then contribute to the society by investing their surplus into the economy by building new businesses. This generated a growth of capitalism in Northern Europe. (Weber,1905) Sunni Vs. Shia Sunni and Shia are the two major branches of Islam. The divide between Sunni and Shia dates back to the death of the Prophet Muhammad in 632. The problem between is who should be the successor, the first caliph after the death of the Prophet Muhammad. Sunnis, 80% of all Muslims, believe that before Prophet Muhammad death, he has chosen Ali, his cousin and son-in-law as his successor. However the Shia believe that Prophet Muhammad did not choose a successor and that the first caliph should be chosen by the leaders of the Muslim community. The majority of the Middle Eastern countries are predominantly Sunni and only Iran, Bahrain and Iraq majority are Shia. 9/11 attacks On September 11, 2001, 4 planes were hijacked by Al Qaeda members which crashed on the World Trade Center, the Pentagon and in the fields of Philadelphia taking the lives of almost 3000 people. After this, “incidents were identified where negative or discriminatory act was perpetrated against Muslims or an entity that was associated with Islam. However the proliferation, seriousness, frequency and measure of violence differed widely across the world.” (EUMC, 2001). Key Issues Research Report | Page 3 of 10 ​ Yangon Model United Nations, 2019 | X Annual Session ​ Loss of financial investors Religious hostilities creates a ground to drive away local and foreign investment which slows down the development of the economy. For instance in Egypt religious policies issued by its government has negatively affected the tourism industry. (Bell, 2013) Another example of how religious ties to economy is Islamic finance. “For instance, businesses involved in creating, buying, or selling Islamic financial instruments can find themselves in the situation that one Islamic law board deems a particular instrument acceptable while another board does not (Lawrence, Morton, and Khan 2013), making the instrument’s acceptance on stock exchanges subject to differing interpretations of Islamic law. Other examples include the banning of Hollywood films in some Arab countries for religious reasons (Browning 2014) and the misuse of anti-blasphemy laws to attack business rivals (Tarin and Uddin 2013). Perhaps most significant for future economic growth, the instability associated with high and rising religious restrictions and hostilities can influence young entrepreneurs to take their talents elsewhere (Younis and Younis 2011).” (Grim, Clark, Synder, 2014) Decrease in GDP Religious Freedom and Business Foundation conducted a study and advises that “young entrepreneurs are pushed to take their talents elsewhere due to the instability associated with high and rising religious restrictions and hostilities," According to the RFBF, the study looked at GDP growth for 173 countries in 2011 and found religious freedom correlated with lower corruption. Moreover, "when religious groups operate in a free and competitive environment, religion can play a measurable role in the human and social development of countries." The authors analyzed 2011 GDP data and compared with data on religious restrictions, the level of economic and business freedom in a given country, and Research Report | Page 4 of 10 ​ Yangon Model United Nations, 2019 | X Annual Session ​ "measures of government regulation, taxes, labor issues, demographics and economic circumstances." The result: "Religious freedom is one of only three variables that remains a significant predictor of GDP growth," the report indicated. (Kellner, 2014) Government system “Religious freedom has been a complicated issue in many societies ranging from death ​ sentences imposed by draconian blasphemy laws in the Middle East and Africa to more subtle restrictions through local zoning regulations, marriage and health care laws in the United States.” (Kellner,2014) Some very religious countries in Asia do not tolerate religious diversity. For instance Saudi Arabia does not allow non-Muslims to hold Saudi citizenships making the country less diverse religious ​ and conversion from Islam to another religion is considered apostasy and punishable by death. Unemployment in the EU “Muslims and other ethno-religious minorities are underrepresented in labour participation and overrepresented in European employment statistics. The disproportionately high unemployment of ethnic minorities, does not attributable to a lack of skills, schooling or language. Within the same ethnic group some religious minorities face an additional ‘religion penalty’ in particular in the case of Islam. For instance, Muslim Indians face significantly higher unemployment than Christian, Sikh or Hindu Indians. ” (Alidadi, 2017) In 2010, the unemployment rate in Belgium among ethnic minorities was 5 times higher than amongst the native Belgians and among the them only a quarter of the ethnic minorities receive unemployment benefits. Likewise in the Netherlands,