Human Rights Council holds debate on the state of racial discrimination worldwide

Human Rights Council
AFTERNOON 

18 March 2016

The Human Rights Council this afternoon held a debate on the state of racial discrimination worldwide, with a focus on challenges and achievements of the Durban Declaration and Programme of Action 15 years after.

In her opening statement, Kate Gilmore, Deputy High Commissioner for Human Rights, said that the World Conference had recognized that racism was a global concern which required a universal effort, as it pervaded all aspects of life.  The anti-discrimination agenda was everyone’s business, she said, adding that the legacy of slavery and the slave trade continued to be borne by people of African descent.  Slow progress was not sufficient.

Abdul Samad Minty, Chair of the Ad Hoc Committee on the Elaboration of Complementary Standards and former Permanent Representative of South Africa to the United Nations Office at Geneva, said that while the Durban Conference had created awareness and new forms of cooperation, there was a lack of resources to implement its mechanisms, and it was important to re-mobilize efforts because racism in certain quarters was becoming more respectable.  The international community had to continue working to fulfil the precepts of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

Doudou Diène, Chair of the International Coalition of Sites of Conscience and former Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance, spoke about the contemporary state of racism, noting that politicians used it to feed their platforms with the aim of reaching power.  Identifying the causes of racism was necessary to address it.  Most racist ideologies were a reflection of an identity crisis, particularly in multicultural societies.  In many societies, minorities were identified as an enemy.  There was a need for political will to implement the Durban Programme of Action.   

Margarette May Macaulay, Commissioner, Rapporteur on the Rights of Women and Rapporteur on the Rights of Afro-descendants, Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, focused her presentation on the Durban Declaration’s achievements and challenges in the region of the Americas.  She also addressed challenges in the framework of the International Decade for People of African Descent.  On the topic of promoting the visibility of racism, she said that countries had to be enabled and assisted in recognising the manifestations and practices of racial discrimination in their laws, policies, and institutions.  

Mireille Fanon Mendès-France, Chair-Rapporteur of the Working Group of Experts on People of African Descent, said that the Durban Declaration and Programme of Action had to be questioned in light of the current international, post 9/11 – confrontation context, the rise of Afrophobia and Islamophobia.  She referred to the slave trade, which continued to have negative impacts on African societies, and noted what while people in developed countries were threatened by the rise of political extremism, others were deprived of their inalienable right to self-determination.  States had to protect and respect their citizens, and not the opposite.

In the ensuing discussion, speakers uniformly condemned racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance in all forms.  Some speakers bemoaned the lack of consensus on how the international community could practically move forward toward a world free of racism.  The role of stress factors such as economic insecurity in driving a perceived growth in racism was noted by several delegations.

Speaking were European Union, Dominican Republic on behalf of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States, South Africa on behalf of the African Group, Pakistan on behalf of the Organization for Islamic Cooperation, Namibia, Brazil, China, France, Cuba, United States, Portugal, Russian Federation, Iran, Ecuador, Mexico, Egypt, Bolivia, Venezuela, Armenia, Colombia, Kyrgyzstan, Costa Rica, Italy, Angola, Nigeria, and Latvia.

Also taking the floor were Commissioner for Fundamental Rights of Hungary and the following non-governmental organizations: Indian Council of South America, International Youth and Student Movement for the United Nations, World Jewish Congress,  Arab Commission for Human Rights, Japanese Workers’ Committee for Human Rights, International Lawyers’ Organization, and International Organization for the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination.

The Council will next meet on Monday, 21 March at 9 a.m. to hold an interactive dialogue with the Special Rapporteur on the human rights situation in the Palestinian territories occupied since 1967, and to hear reports by the High Commissioner and the Secretary-General, followed by a general debate on the agenda item on the human rights situation in Palestine and other occupied Arab territories.

Debate on the State of Racial Discrimination Worldwide

Opening Statements

CHOI KYONGLIM, President of the Human Rights Council, said that the Council would hold a debate on the state of racial discrimination worldwide, convened pursuant to General Assembly resolution 70/140 and in the context of the commemoration of the fifteenth anniversary of the adoption of the Durban Declaration and Programme of Action.  The theme of the debate was “challenges and achievements of the Durban Declaration and Programme of Action – 15 years after”.

KATE GILMORE, Deputy High Commissioner for Human Rights, said that the World Conference had recognized that racism was a global concern which required a universal effort.  It had recognized that racial discrimination pervaded all aspects of life.  Racism and discrimination of all kinds were unacceptable.  The formula for its eradication was education about it, truth and reconciliation processes to expose it, and redress.  The anti-discrimination agenda was everyone’s business, she said, noting that the Durban Declaration had listed groups which faced racial discrimination.  The Declaration’s fifteenth anniversary was a moment for the international community to take further action.  Turning to the issues of slavery and the slave trade, she said their legacy continued to be borne by people of African descent, who even today were frequently deprived of equal access to opportunities and services.  The International Decade for People of African Descent’s three themes of recognition, justice, and development focused on the rights of people of African descent, and that the Decade’s proclamation should be counted among Durban’s achievements.  The Durban outcomes had been the product of a difficult, lengthy and at times frustrating process, and to some extent the casualty of contentious debates.  Slow progress was not sufficient when there were growing incidents of racial discrimination and xenophobia.  Now more than ever, States had to focus their attention on protecting the most vulnerable.  The manipulation of stress factors such as rising unemployment for political gain had to be condemned. Racism was not innate but learned, and thus it could be unlearned.

Statements by the Panellists

ABDUL SAMAD MINTY, Chair of the Ad Hoc Committee on the Elaboration of Complementary Standards and former Permanent Representative of South Africa to the United Nations Office at Geneva, noted that at the outset of the third millennium the fight against racism was a matter of priority for the international community.  The Durban Conference offered an important opportunity to define innovative and comprehensive approaches to combat racism at the national, regional and international levels.  There was a need for a common platform to eradicate racism.  With the end of the apartheid system in South Africa, there had been an understanding to make a small contribution by hosting the conference.  Colonial people knew what racism meant for them.  Racism indeed led to the Holocaust, and colonialism and slavery led to other conflicts.  It was all to do with human dignity, inherent to all human beings.  The Durban Conference had created an awareness and new forms of cooperation.  However, there was a lack of resources to implement its mechanisms, in addition to the lack of political will.  It was important to re-mobilize efforts because racism in certain quarters was becoming more respectable.  Fear was used to cement racial attitudes and new stereotypes were emerging.  For many societies the fight against racism was no longer a priority.  There was no longer the kind of support for the mechanism established under the Durban Declaration and Programme of Action.  If people could be taught to hate, then they could be taught to love.  The international community had to continue working to fulfil the precepts of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Mr. Minty concluded.

DOUDOU DIÈNE, Chair of the International Coalition of Sites of Conscience and former Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance, said that the Durban Declaration and Programme of Action were historical steps and the most finished international documents listing measures to combat racism.  These texts must be implemented.  Racism had become highly visible, and so were the ones promoting and propagating such language.  There was also an intellectual legitimation of racism, and a political instrumentalization of racist speech.  Racism was taken out by politicians to feed their platforms with the aim of reaching power.  Identifying the causes of racism was necessary to address it.  Most racist ideologies were a reflection of an identity crisis, particularly in multi-cultural societies.  In many societies, minorities were identified as an enemy.  Mr. Diène underscored the need for political will to implement the Durban Declaration and Programme of Action.  It was important to de-construct racism, and essential to develop the fight against discrimination through justice and the rule of law.  It was also important to tackle inequalities, and to ensure that the identity of each community was respected, with policies promoting harmony and living together. 

MARGARETTE MAY MACAULAY, Commissioner, Rapporteur on the Rights of Women and Rapporteur on the Rights of Afro-descendants, Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, called the Durban Declaration and Programme of Action of the Third World Conference against Racism a fundamental reference, and said she would focus her presentation on its achievements and challenges in the region of the Americas.  On the topic of achievements of the Programme, she noted that agencies at the national level had engaged in programmes to overcome racial inequalities in countries like Colombia, Brazil, Venezuela and Mexico.  Turning to challenges in the framework of the International Decade for People of African Descent, she reviewed the socio-political situation of those people in the Americas, and noted that the International Decade offered a unique opportunity to use concrete measures in promoting their inclusion.  On the topic of promoting the visibility of racism, she said that countries had to be enabled and assisted in recognising the manifestations and practices of racial discrimination in their laws, policies, and institutions.  She spoke about the organisation of the “Rapporteurship on the Rights of Persons of Afro-Descendants and against Racial Discrimination”, which was established in 2005, and about the issues it focused on, thereunder the excessive use of force against “Afro-descendants”.  

MIREILLE FANON MENDÈS-FRANCE, Chair-Rapporteur of the Working Group of Experts on People of African Descent, said that the Durban Declaration and Programme of Action had to be questioned in light of the current international, post 9/11 – confrontation context, the rise of “Afrophobia” and Islamophobia.  She referred to the slave trade, which had broken prosperity in Africa for four centuries and continued to have negative impacts on African societies.  She regretted that States adopted memorial laws, and called instead for the objective review of all archives relating to this tragic period in order to share, acknowledge and put into question the ideology of European domination that led to colonialism and apartheid.  She regretted that communities continued to face social, political and judicial discrimination, to be subjected to racism and to be made responsible for malfunctions.  Peoples were threatened by the rise of political extremism in developed countries, while others were deprived of their inalienable right to self-determination.  She stressed that States had to protect and respect their citizens, and not the opposite, and called for the establishment of an international order based on democracy, pluralism and recognition of the variety of social models. 

Discussion

European Union asked the panellists how to tackle extremist, racist and xenophobic agendas that exploited contemporary fears about security and unemployment using the existing Durban framework.  Dominican Republic, speaking on behalf of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States, said that despite progress made, there was still racism, which had an impact on the enjoyment of human rights, adding that the attention of the Council was drawn to the region’s efforts toward approving a Programme of Action for people of Afro-descendants.  South Africa, speaking on behalf of the African Group, said that the years since the adoption of the Durban Declaration and Programme of Action had been marred by a lack of consensus on the ways and means by which humanity could be practically moved toward the realization of the goal, adding that there was a need to openly confront racism, however uncomfortable that might be for some.  Pakistan, speaking on behalf of the Organization for Islamic Cooperation, said that a number of factors were driving the current upsurge in racism, including economic insecurity and weak leadership, and that priority measures to combat racism should include strengthening the legal framework for addressing hate speech, among other measures.  Namibia said the international community should promote tolerance and give practical effect to instruments to combat racism in all its forms and manifestations.  Brazil spoke about national efforts to combat racism as well as the country’s contributions to international efforts, and noted that Brazil had urged the United Nations General Assembly to call for a Fourth World Conference against Racism.

Brazil presented its initiatives to promote multiculturalism, and affirmed its commitment to the Decade for People of African Descent.  China regretted that the United States and other countries refused to acknowledge their responsibilities for the slave trade and colonialism, and expressed concern about racism and xenophobia in Europe.  France was fully committed to combat all forms of discrimination, and had adopted an Action Plan 2015-2017 to combat hate speech on the Internet.  Strengthened efforts were needed in the field of prevention and education.  Cuba was concerned about freedom of expression being abused to harm the dignity of others, and regretted that some States lacked political will to progress on the mandate from the Durban agreement and review conference.  United States reaffirmed its commitment to mark the International Decade for People of African Descent, which was an opportunity to encourage positive discourse on human rights, non-discrimination and equality.
 
Portugal noted that its focus was on the development and enforcement of proper integration policies, which was a key and most important tool to fight racism and more broadly to effectively address discrimination on any grounds.  Russian Federation stated that globalization and global economic crises and conflicts had exacerbated the resurgence of racism and religious intolerance, adding that it was not understandable why some countries justified neo-Nazism under the heading of freedom of expression.

Commissioner for Fundamental Rights of Hungary noted that although segregation in education was prohibited by law, in practice the segregation of Roma students in Hungary was widespread.  Minority and religious education were invoked by the parents’ rights to choose the kind of education that would be given to their children. 

Indian Council of South America voiced concern over the situation of the indigenous peoples living in the Amazon region, noting that the violation of their basic rights continued.  In Bolivia national parks and protected areas were endangered by the exploitation of natural resources.  International Youth and Student Movement for the United Nations stated that it was high time that a solid information campaign on the implementation of the Durban Declaration and Programme of Action be launched by the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights. 

Responses by the Panellists

ABDUL SAMAD MINTY, Chair of the  Ad Hoc Committee on the Elaboration of Complementary Standards and former Permanent Representative of South Africa to the United Nations Office at Geneva, said that the Durban Declaration had set up mechanisms that did not enjoy much support.  Priorities worked out, even in the Council, often left issues related to racism behind.  He insisted on the need for implementation, which had become even more important today with the rise of racism. 

DOUDOU DIÈNE, Chair of the International Coalition of Sites of Conscience and former Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance, said that political will was key, and stressed the need for measures to combat discrimination at all levels. 

MARGARETTE MAY MACAULAY, Commissioner, Rapporteur on the Rights of Women and Rapporteur on the Rights of Afro-descendants, Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, regretted that, too often, States neglected to ensure that minorities had the right to participate in political life. 

MIREILLE FANON MENDÈS-FRANCE, Chair-Rapporteur of the Working Group of Experts on People of African Descent, pointed that the International Forum for People of African Descent, which was supposed to take place every year, had still not been set up. 

Discussion

Iran considered that violent extremism could be considered as a consequence of racism and intolerance, which was why Iran had endured a lot to combat different forms of racism and fanatical attitudes.  Ecuador underscored that the legacy of colonialism had been reconstructed in new forms through the discourse of far-right parties, and that those trends were visible in former colonialist countries.  Mexico noted that a lot of progress had been made since the adoption of the Durban Declaration in 2001, such as greater visibility for certain groups, including indigenous peoples, people of African descent and migrants.  Egypt expressed shock over the fact that racism was able to spread at a time when different mechanisms to fight it existed.  It was deplorable that many modern and developed countries clearly discriminated against certain groups.  Bolivia condemned all forms of racial discrimination, and said it had set up legal mechanisms to fight racist crimes and hate speech.  It asked the panellists how to control online discriminatory messages.  Venezuela noted that despite international efforts there had been an increase in racist speech and discriminatory treatment of certain groups.  That resurgence showed that the fight against racist had to be a political priority. 

Armenia said it had a National Human Rights Action Plan which outlined 119 activities which related among other things to diversity, adding that regrettably, there were manifestations of intolerance and national hatred coming from the highest authorities of certain States.  Colombia said that States over the last 15 years had had the opportunity to review action in light of the Durban Programme of Action, underscoring the need to fight poverty and ensure the empowerment of Afro-descendants.  Kyrgyzstan said that diversity was what made the world interesting, calling for the consolidation of the efforts of the international community to combat racism and racial intolerance; Kyrgyzstan supported any initiative to that end.  Costa Rica expressed concern about growing inequality in the world, adding that ethnic and racial origins continued to be a factor for poverty around the world.  Italy said that given the global situation which was exacerbated by current crises, how would the panellists recommend that the international community make sure that equality and non-discrimination could be effectively implemented in all sectors and spheres of life?  Angola said that racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance in all forms and manifestations endangered the right to development.  Nigeria regretted that not much had been done to tackle racism, and believed that the world had to re-commit to the Durban Declaration and Programme of Action.  Latvia deeply regretted that Russia was using this important debate to advance its own political agenda with ungrounded statements.

World Jewish Congress said that anti-Semitism was as present as ever, and should be better addressed by the Council and its Special Procedures.  A society where people were dehumanized could lead to atrocities.  Arab Commission for Human Rights said that Arab-Palestinian citizens in Israel suffered from discrimination both in law and in practice with regard to citizenship or access to land.  They were denied formal minority status and their collective rights.  Japanese Workers’ Committee for Human Rights linked neo-colonialism with racial discrimination, and recognized that the crime of colonial domination was a crime against humanity.  International Lawyers’ Organization referred to abuses against the Arab population and African migrants at the hands of Israel, and expressed concern about anti-migrant rhetoric in Europe.  International Organization for the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination referred to aggressive discrimination against Ahwaz Arabs in Iran. 

 
Concluding Remarks
 
ABDUL SAMAD MINTY, Chair of the Ad Hoc Committee on the Elaboration of Complementary Standards and former Permanent Representative of South Africa to the United Nations Office at Geneva,  said the world was in a dangerous phase where no one was clear about the future.  There was widespread poverty and racism had resurged.  There was a need to eliminate scapegoating of innocent people.  If racism was truly a crime against humanity, the international community should act as if it indeed was such a crime.  In the experience of decades of anti-Apartheid fight, one question emerged: racism was perhaps not considered a crime against humanity when victims were dark or black.  Millions of people around the world continued to suffer quietly.  There was a need to act in the interest of common humanity.  An insult to the dignity of one was an insult to all.  

DOUDOU DIÈNE, Chair of the International Coalition of Sites of Conscience and former Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance, noted that education against racism was important.  But, in itself education was not an answer. There was a need for education about human values and multicultural education where it was important for each country to look at how history was taught and to have minority groups represented in teaching. 

MARGARETTE MAY MACAULAY, Commissioner and Rapporteur on the Rights of Women and Rapporteur on the Rights of Afro-descendants at the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, thanked non-governmental organizations that spoke about restorative justice because it was a custom in some States to criminalize racial discrimination and believe that that was the end of racism.  That was not enough; training in human rights principles and standards was necessary and it had to be made part of all secondary school curricula.  It was important for the international community to deal with racism as a global problem.  Full cooperation with United Nations agencies, regional agencies, civil society and academia was needed to try to achieve the goals laid out in the Durban Declaration and Programme of Action. 

MIREILLE FANON MENDÈS-FRANCE, Chair-Rapporteur of the Working Group of Experts on People of African Descent, reminded that the African Charter had been referred to in the Durban Declaration and Programme of Action.  However, few people of African descent were present during the panel discussion.  Secondly, a number of questions had been raised on freedom of expression: the Durban Declaration and Programme of Action provided guidelines and legal penalties were set out in line with international law, especially for online hate messages.  Unfortunately, hate speech was not punished in a number of countries, especially when it concerned persons of African descent.  Finally, there was a need to define the bounds placed on freedom of expression.
__________

For use of the information media; not an official record

Follow UNIS Geneva on: Website | Facebook | Twitter | YouTube |Flickr