COMMITTEE ON ELIMINATION OF RACIAL DISCRIMINATION STARTS EXAMINATION OF SENEGAL'S REPORTS

CERD
61st session
6 August 2002
Afternoon




Delegation Says Fight against Racism and Discrimination
is a Priority of the Government of Senegal



The Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination this afternoon started its examination of the eleventh to fifteenth periodic reports of Senegal on how that country implements the provisions of the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination.
Introducing her country's reports, Abasa Claude Diallo, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Senegal to the United Nations Office at Geneva, said that her country played an important role in international fora and within the United Nations in combatting apartheid and supporting the Palestinian cause and anti-discrimination issues.
Mrs. Diallo said that at the national level, Senegal, since its accession to independence, had made the fight against racism its priority, as manifested in its legislation, and more concretely, in its 1996 Constitution. The 2001 Constitution had reinforced the fight against discrimination. The fight against discrimination based on sex also constituted one of the priorities of the public authorities. To that effect, a woman had been appointed at the head of the Government as Prime Minister and women also held important posts in the new Government.
Discrimination based on descent or the caste system was prohibited, Mrs. Diallo said. Persons belonging to the so-called caste system enjoyed all the rights guaranteed by the Constitution. The caste system in Senegal was related to the kind of trade traditionally practised by individuals.
Nourredine Amir, the Committee Expert who acted as country rapporteur to the reports of Senegal, that the State had implemented article 4 of the International Convention which necessitated the punishment of all dissemination of ideas based on radial superiority or hatred. He said that legal provisions had been put in place prohibiting any association aimed at promoting hatred and racial discrimination.
A number of other Committee Experts lauded Senegal for its important role in the preparation of the World Conference against Racism held in Durban. Other Experts raised a series of questions on such issues as the situation in Casamance, discrimination based on the caste system, and female genital mutilation, among other things.
Participating in the discussion were Committee Experts Regis de Gouttes, Luis Valencia Rodriguez, Linos Alexander Sicilianos, Morten Kjaerum, Jose Augusto Lindgren Alves, Patrick Thornberry, Raghavan Vasudevan Pillai, Tang Chengyuan and Mario Jorge Yutzis.
The delegation of Senegal was also composed of Bassine Niang, Human Rights Commissioner; Maymouna Diop, Ambassador, Foreign Ministry of Senegal; Abdou Salam Diallo, Diplomatic Advisor to the Prime Minister; Daouda Maligueye Sene, Minister-Counsellor, Permanent Mission of Senegal to the United Nations Office at Geneva; Oumar Diouf, Delagate to the Human Rights and Peace Department; Oumar Sarr, Deputy Director, Criminal Affairs and Pardon in the Ministry of Justice; and Momar Gueye, Second Counsellor at the Permanent Mission of Senegal in Geneva.
Senegal is among the 162 States parties to the International Convention and as such it must submit periodic summaries of its efforts designed to implement the provisions of the treaty.
Before adjourning its afternoon meeting, the Committee briefly discussed a letter from Madagascar requesting that the Committee defer consideration of the situation in the country, which was scheduled for 19 August under the review procedure. The Committee agreed to the postponement. The Committee then discussed Fiji's request to defer examination of the situation in the country under the review procedure to a later date. The Committee Experts also discussed how to hold a joint debate with the Sub-Commission on the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights on the theme of "descent".
The Committee will reconvene at 10 a.m. on Wednesday, 7 August, to continue its examination of the reports of Senegal.

Reports of Senegal
The eleventh to fifteenth periodic reports, contained in document CERD/C/408/Add.2, say that Senegal has undertaken to pursue by all appropriate means and without delay a policy of eliminating racial discrimination in all its forms and promoting understanding among all races. However, long before its ratification, in the early years of independence, Senegal put in place ample legislation to combat racial, ethnic and regional prejudices.
The reports note that Senegal is a secular, democratic State and its legislation does not favour any racial, ethnic or religious groups, or any particular individuals. There is no advantage or disadvantage by reason of place of birth, person or family. No section of the population and no individual can assume sovereignty.
Ever since independence, Senegal has taken steps to terminate any policy that may have the effect of causing or perpetuating racism or inequality, the reports say. In order to improve compliance with its international commitments, the Senegalese Government has gradually created an institutional framework for the promotion and protection of human rights and humanitarian law.
In conclusion, the reports say that Senegal solemnly renews its commitment to save no effort to create a tolerant society on its territory and to participate in the international effort to combat all forms of discrimination.

Presentation of Reports
ABSA CLAUDE DIALLO, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Senegal to the United Nations Office at Geneva, said that her country had played an important role in international fora and within the United Nations in combatting apartheid and supporting the Palestinian cause and anti-discrimination issues. Senegal had been presiding over the Committee on the Inalienable Palestinian Rights since its inception.
During the last several decades, Senegal had also contributed to the promotion and protection of human rights in the world, Mrs. Diallo continued to say. Senegal had deployed sustainable efforts towards the ratification of the African Charter on Human and Peoples Rights and that of the Statute of the International Criminal Court. The role played by Senegal in the preparation of the World Conference against Racism had also been significant.
Mrs. Diallo said that at the national level, Senegal, since its accession to independence, had made the fight against racism its priority, as manifested in its legislation, and more concretely, in its 1996 Constitution. The 2001 Constitution had also reinforced the fight against discrimination.
With a 95 per cent Muslim population, Senegal had been led by from 1960 to 1980 by a President who was a Christian, Mrs. Diallo said. That was a good example of the religious tolerance of the society. In addition, more than 80 per cent of the population spoke Wolof -- the language of one ethnic group representing 40 per cent of the population.
The fight against discrimination based on sex also constituted one of the priorities of the public authorities, Mrs. Diallo said. To that effect, a woman had been appointed at the head of the Government as Prime Minister. Women also held important posts in the new Government. The education of girls was among the priorities of the Government, despite the difficulties encountered to develop their access to higher education.
Also at the national level, Mrs. Diallo continued, the Government had put in place various institutional structures pertaining to the promotion and protection of human rights. An office of the Ombudsman had been set up in 1991 to serve as mediator between citizens and the public administration; the Human Rights Committee of Senegal had been created in 1997 as an independent institution to promote and protect human rights; and a Minister-Commissioner of Human Rights had been named in January 2002, among other things.
Mrs. Diallo said that discrimination based on descent or the caste system was prohibited. Persons belonging to the so-called caste system enjoyed all the rights guaranteed by the Constitution. The caste system in Senegal was related to the kind of trade traditionally practised by the individuals.
Turning to the Casamance conflict, Mrs. Diallo said that this was not an ethnic conflict but a search for international sovereignty, which was different from other independent strategies. The Casamance region, as in all regions of Senegal, was composed of a number of ethnic groups; and it was not only composed of Diolla, who made up 28 per cent of the region's population.

Discussion
NOURREDINE AMIR, the Committee Expert who acted as country rapporteur to the reports of Senegal, noted that after having defined in its legislation the aspects against racial discrimination in accordance with the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, Senegal had added an item to ensure that religion could not influence the political order. The secular aspect of the Republic had also been emphasized.
With regard to the implementation of article 4 of the Convention, which dealt among other things with punishment of all dissemination of ideas based on racial superiority or hatred, Mr. Amir said that the report had provided ample responses. Legal provisions had been put in place prohibiting any association aimed at promoting hatred and racial discrimination.
Mr. Amir also said that concerning article 5 of the Convention, article 8 of the Senegalese Constitution of January 2001 had defined the rights and liberties of citizens in accordance with the provisions of the treaty. Any form of discrimination between men and women had also been prohibited by the new Constitution, which guaranteed equality between the sexes.
Mr. Amir recalled that Senegal did not ratify the 1954 convention on stateless persons and the 1961 convention to reduce statelessness; the number of refugees in Senegal had reached 20,707 persons, among whom 19,000 were from Mauritania, and the rest from Rwanda and Burundi. He asked if the refugees were protected from deportation or extradition. He recommended that the detention of asylum-seekers for the purpose of establishing their identity should be limited to a reasonable period.
With regard to terrorism, Senegal had strongly condemned the 11 September attacks in the United States and had committed itself to the fight against terrorism, Mr. Amir said. Senegal had also hosted a Summit of African leaders in Dakar on 16 and 17 October 2001 who had aligned themselves with the international efforts in the fight against international terrorism.
Other Committee members also put a number of queries on various issues. An Expert, referring to the situation in Casamance, said that a report by Amnesty International indicated that despite two peace agreements, Senegalese security forces had used violent measures against civilians there. The delegation was asked to provided supplementary information on such allegations. On another issue, the Expert requested information on alleged discrimination based on the caste system.
Clarification was also required by another Expert on religious discrimination and the impact of religion in the society. Women were victims of triple discrimination, because of their ethnicity, social status and being women; could the delegation provide information on that issue.
Subscribing to the concern expressed by previous speakers on the caste system that led to discrimination, an Expert asked if there was a specific plan of action aimed at increasing awareness among the population on the issue of the caste system. He also asked if indicators could be provided on the economic and social situation of the various ethnic groups in Senegal.
An Expert asked about the prohibition of female genital mutilation which concerned certain ethnic groups; and what kind of associations defended regional languages?



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