The 'International Day of Tolerance' is being celebrated under the auspices of United Nations throughout the world, including Pakistan, on November 16 with a pledge to continue efforts for creation of tolerant society through creating more awareness among people about necessity of tolerance for national development.
To mark the day, walks, seminars, scientific sessions, symposiums, and special functions will be held across the country.
Following the United Nations Year for Tolerance in 1995, the International Day for Tolerance was first observed on 16 November 1996. Activities on the Day seek to promote recognition of the need for tolerance and understanding of the practice of tolerance.
"Building tolerance and trust in diverse communities is not done overnight, but takes time and commitment. Building tolerance requires access to education. Intolerance is often rooted in ignorance and fear: fear of the unknown, of the "other", other cultures, religions and nations. Intolerance is also closely linked to an exaggerated sense of self-worth and pride: notions taught and learned at an early age", activists of human rights said.
Talking to Business Recorder, they said this day could serve as an annual occasion for tolerance education as well as for wider social and political reflection and debate on local and global problems of intolerance.
According to them, tolerance is a social, cultural and religious term applied to the collective and individual practice of not persecuting those who may believe, behave or act in ways of which one may not approve. Authoritarian systems practice the opposite of tolerance, intolerance. Tolerance is seen as a more widely acceptable term than "acceptance" and particularly "respect," where the application to controversial parties is concerned.
In the wider sociological sense, they said "tolerance" carries with it the understanding that "intolerance" and conformity breeds violence and social instability. "Tolerance" has thus become the social term of choice to define the practical rationale of permitting uncommon social practice and diversity, they added.
Historically, they said political and religious tolerance have been the most important aspects of tolerance, since differences of political and religious ideology have led to innumerable wars, purges and other atrocities.
They further said that violence has traditionally occupied a central place in our culture.
SOME OF ITS MANIFESTATIONS IN OUR SOCIAL LIFE ARE: (1) the value we put on revenge, (ii) the violence against women and, (iii) our abuse of children. Violence against women is a global phenomenon which cuts across class, race, ethnic, religious and cultural boundaries.
It is multifaceted and affects all aspects of women's lives. Women face the threat of multiple forms of violence, including sexual violence by family members, strangers, and state agents; domestic abuse, including spousal murder and being burned, disfigured with acid, beaten, and threatened; ritual "honour" killings; and custodial abuse and torture.
All forms of violence against women are actually the articulation of male power over women. The unequal socio-economic position of women in society and the institutionalisation of male power over women continue to play a determining role in incidents of gender violence, they added.
Moreover, a United Nations report on women explains the nature of domestic violence generally in terms of the structure of the family. Comprehensive studies on domestic violence indicate that it is a structural rather than causal problem.
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