A hallmark of humanity

Successful human development underpinned by respect for human rights requires strong public ownership of the principles of rights and freedoms and equality that can only be fully enjoyed in a tolerant and peaceful Bangladesh.
Intolerance, particularly forms that lead to violence, can often undermine human rights and freedoms, has a chilling effect on those rights and contributes to an environment that challenges the very nature of human rights. Tolerance and human rights are inseparable in many ways and together with obligation invoke a strong sense of pride about how a society treats its members and equally how individuals behave to others in a society they share. Public cultures that are imbued with a strong sense of tolerance and civic patriotism are celebrated as a hallmark of the spirit of humanity.
Societies that are tolerant are envied throughout history. When societies that were once tolerant fall into parochialism they decay. The traits of prejudice are distrust, suspicion and violence. Those of openness are trust, understanding of difference and engagement.
At one level, tolerance can be understood as a freedom for any individual to decide on how they want to live their life and fulfil the pursuit of their own potential and happiness. On another level, it can also be seen as how society respects the right of an individual to make these decisions and live according to them however different they may be. At its heart are human rights and the right to lead a life that people chose freely without oppression or restraint. It is about protecting those rights and the diversity that exists when we recognise those essential fundamental and civil and political rights that make societies free.
It is diversity that makes our societies so interesting and creative. The acceptance of pluralism leads to the kaleidoscope of ideas, thoughts, and cultures that have always interacted around the world. When we embrace difference we open access to many viewpoints and knowledge, cultures, lifestyles and choices. If we reject it we suppress these voices, their experiences and deny their contribution to society. By refusing to recognise this we effectively choose to live in a single-lensed and hermetically sealed room where we fail to see the richness of society and the world.
There are social consequences of intolerance and it can often manifest itself in violence. This violence is almost always against the weak and vulnerable, the marginalised and oppressed. It is often violence that is arbitrary and it is always violence that stems from a lack of real understanding about these communities. Where an intolerance to opposing viewpoints is displayed this can lead to radicalisation of moderate voices frustrated by not having their concerns discussed. When this is a mindset, we simply miss the opportunities that diversity has to offer. There are also economic costs from the exclusion that it brings with it.
Tolerance above all requires putting prejudices aside and defeating them, it is learning about others, accepting and embracing a range of opposing views and belief systems. And this is only possible in societies that can reflect these differences and accept that conversations and engagement are the friends of tolerance. In the modern world culture is more diverse as belief systems co-exist side by side and we should remember it is this co-existence that makes for societies that are great.
We have an obligation to promote understanding. This means engagement, a curiosity to find out about others in society regardless of how different they appear. By embracing diversity we are acknowledging that our background beliefs may diverge at times on issues. However, this does not negate the ability of communities to reach a consensus over fundamental aspects of the society they share. On the contrary, it offers an opportunity to enrich this process and enhance the universal values of human rights.
In Bangladesh, human rights remains at the heart of the development work we invest in and by empowering communities to take control over their own destinies we are seeing rapid changes in the country. These will accelerate as the country moves towards its ambition of middle income status. As these impact on more peoples' lives it is important that virtues such as tolerance remain at the centre of society and the community to ensure diversity and the freedom to make choices about the way individuals wish to live their lives is respected.

The writer is Resident Representative a.i., of the United Nations Development Programme.