Page 95 - Dignity and justice for all of us our voices are heard in Thailand

Article 18

He believes prejudice is a normal phenomenon in religion. “We can’t understand anything
without prejudice; born into this world, we are indoctrinated by the world in which we live and
the way we are brought up. We each have our own perception,” he says, “which may need
correction…Prejudice is a consequence, not a problem. Some types of prejudice may be related
to religion, such as the Islamic negative attitude towards dogs and pigs. We must realize that we
all have prejudice, and not just think that others have it but we don’t.”

He stresses that it is equally important to ask whether it is possible to protect religious rights
without government rules and regulations. He thinks that the government should not interfere
too deeply in the life of its citizens. The government should perform its duties in providing
services and basic rights, but should not take too much control. Keeping a watchful eye on
citizens does not always constitute protecting their rights, the professor argues.

On the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration on Human Rights, he finds that the crucial
point to ponder is the role of religion in today’s world, wherein, “religions play an increasingly
important role in socio-political affairs. It is important that we re-evaluate the importance of
religion in issues like international relations, for example. International relations are no longer
confined to political and economic dimensions, but are closely related to culture and religious
rights.” He points out that “the United Nations should celebrate this 60th anniversary by
focusing not only on the issues of protection or violation, but also on religion as a tool for
problem solving in society.”

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