UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination publishes findings on Belarus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Iran, Iraq, Pakistan, United Kingdom, and Venezuela

GENEVA (23 August 2024) – The UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD) today issued its findings on Belarus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Islamic Republic of Iran, Iraq, Pakistan, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, and the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela after reviewing the seven States parties in its latest session.

The findings contain the Committee’s main concerns and recommendations on the implementation of the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, as well as positive aspects. Key highlights include:

Belarus
The Committee highlighted its concern about live-threatening conditions faced by migrants, asylum seekers, and refugees at the Belarusian border with the European Union, citing reports of excessive use of force, arbitrary detention and difficulties accessing asylum procedures. The Committee urged Belarus to take immediate action to protect the lives and safety of those at the border, prevent excessive use of force, and provide human rights training to border guards and law enforcement officials. It also called for continued cooperation with international organisations and other stakeholders to enhance human rights protections and ensure asylum procedures meet international standards.

The Committee was concerned by reports that members of national and other minorities face administrative and other restrictions on their freedom of association and enjoyment of their right to education, religion, language, and culture, leading to the dissolution of minority associations, the closure of minority schools, and the cancellation of cultural events. The Committee urged Belarus to effectively implement the law on national minorities to ensure that members of national and other minorities fully enjoy their freedom of association, education in national minority languages, including Polish and Lithuanian, culture, and freedom and manifestation of their religion.

Bosnia and Herzegovina
The Committee remained concerned about the persistent discrimination and marginalisation of Roma, which hinder their full enjoyment of rights under the Convention. Key issues include poor living conditions, limited access to public services and formal employment, especially for Roma women, inadequate healthcare, and low education enrollment and attendance rates for Roma children. The Committee urged the State party to intensify efforts to address systemic racial discrimination against Roma. It recommended improving Roma housing and living conditions through genuine consultation, ensuring access to employment and vocational training, combating workplace discrimination, and increasing Roma children's enrollment and attendance in education. Additionally, it called for accessible and culturally appropriate healthcare services, particularly for Roma women and girls.

The Committee remained concerned that returnees continue to face widespread discrimination and de facto segregation, which hamper their full reintegration into their place of origin. Despite some progress in the access to adequate housing, returnees still struggle with education, employment, healthcare, and social protection, and continue to face hate speech and physical violence. The Committee called on the State party to ensure a safe and sustainable return and reintegration of returnees, adopt measures to combat discrimination, improve access to essential services, investigate and prosecute all incidents of hate speech and violence, and provide reparation for victims.

Pakistan
Highlighting escalated incidents in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa from May to June 2024, the Committee underscored its concern over blasphemy accusations and subsequent mob lynchings and the destruction of places of worship, particularly targeting ethnic and ethno-religious minorities. The Committee questioned the impunity for these crimes, citing few arrests and convictions. The Committee underlined the right to fair trial of those accused of blasphemy, highlighting its concerns over the treatment of suspects, including deaths in police custody and prolonged legal proceedings. It urged Pakistan to prevent and protect individuals and communities against violent reprisals, to repeal its blasphemy laws, ensure fair trials, and prosecute all acts of violence.

The Committee was alarmed by the mass exodus under the Illegal Foreigners’ Repatriation Plan, which saw 700,000 individuals, including 101,000 between April and June 2024, deported or returned to Afghanistan. The Committee highlighted reports of harassment, forced evictions, and the detention of 28,500 Afghans from September to December 2023, which have driven many to return to Afghanistan out of fear. The Committee urged Pakistan to conduct individual assessments of refoulement risks and to mitigate risks faced by vulnerable groups, including the risks of trafficking and exploitation of unaccompanied children. The Committee expressed regret for the lack of legislative and institutional framework in line with international law; recommending the ratification of the 1951 Refugee Convention and its 1967 Optional Protocol.

Iran
The Committee voiced serious concerns over reports of grave human rights violations and abuses committed by law enforcement officers against protestors belonging to ethnic and ethno-religious minority groups during the November 2019, July 2021 and September 2022 protests, particularly in the provinces predominately inhabited by these minority groups. It urged Iran to immediately conduct impartial investigations into allegations of violations and abuses of human rights committed by State actors during these protests and to provide reparation for the victims.

The Committee expressed concern over reports that ethnic and ethno-religious minorities are overrepresented in the criminal justice system and are disproportionately subjected to arbitrary detention and death sentences for broadly defined offences under the Islamic Criminal Code, as well as for drug-related offences. It called on Iran to review its legal framework, repeal vaguely worded criminal offences punishable by death, ensure fair and due process for minority groups, and establish a moratorium on the death penalty with the goal of abolishing it.

Iraq
The Committee was concerned about reports that the decision to close all camps for internally displaced persons (IDP) by the end of 2024 could lead to forced and involuntary return of IDPs from ethnic and ethno-religious minority groups, warning that many of these individuals would have to return to areas severely damaged by armed conflict, with inadequate infrastructure. The Committee urged Iraq to ensure that returns or resettlements are safe and genuinely voluntary. It also recommended efforts to integrate IDPs, rebuild their communities, and restore essential services while combating stigmatization and guaranteeing equal access to education, healthcare, employment, and housing, as protected under the Convention.

The Committee stated its concern over delays in providing reparations to victims, particularly women who have suffered grave human rights violations, and highlighted the absence of a legislative framework for prosecuting war crimes, crimes against humanity, or genocide. The Committee urged the State party to take swift action to support and adequately compensate women survivors, including speeding up the verification of pending applications under the Law on Yazidi female survivors and ensuring the process does not re-traumatise them. It also called for the prompt passage of a bill by the Council of Representatives to criminalise genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity, and enable domestic courts to prosecute these crimes.

The United Kingdom
The Committee expressed its concern about the persistence of hate crimes, hate speech and xenophobic incidents on various platforms and by politicians and public figures. It was particularly concerned about recurring racist acts and violence against ethnic and ethno-religious minorities, migrants, refugees and asylum-seekers by extremist far-right and white supremacist individuals and groups, including the violent acts committed in late July and early August 2024. In calling for action, the Committee urged the United Kingdom to implement comprehensive measures to curb racist hate speech and xenophobic rhetoric, including from political and public figures. The Committee emphasized the need for thorough investigations and strict penalties for racist hate crimes, and effective remedies for the victims and their families.

The Committee expressed concern about the disproportionate impact of police stop-and-search practices, including strip searches, on ethnic minorities, especially children. It also raised alarms over the use of excessive and deadly force by law enforcement, the lack of accountability, and the inadequate support for victims' families, all of which disproportionately affect people of African descent and other ethnic minorities. It further highlighted concerns about institutional racism within policing and the criminal justice system. The Committee urged the State party to set up an independent complaint mechanism to investigate allegations of racial profiling, stop-and-search practices, strip searches, and excessive use of force by police. It called for the prosecution and punishment of perpetrators and stressed the need for victims and their families to access effective remedies. Additionally, it recommended taking decisive action to eliminate racial discrimination within policing and the criminal justice system, including its institutional dimension.

Venezuela
The Committee was seriously concerned about the negative impact of mining on indigenous lands and the livelihood of indigenous people. It highlighted the situation in the National Strategic Development Zone “Orinoco Mining Arc”, where indigenous territories were militarized, and military operations were carried out without due consultation, as well as human rights abuses and violations committed against indigenous peoples by actors linked to State entities, including members of the National Armed Forces, and non-State armed groups. The Committee urged Venezuela to refrain from deploying military forces and conducting military operations in indigenous territories without prior consultation with the indigenous peoples concerned, and to establish effective accountability mechanisms for possible human rights violations if the use of military forces is strictly essential. It also asked the State party to investigate all allegations of abuses and violence committed by military forces or non-state armed groups against indigenous Peoples, particularly indigenous women.

The Committee raised serious concern over alleged acts of violence, threats, and assassination attempts against human rights defenders, including indigenous and Afro-descendant leaders and rights defenders. It called on Venezuela to immediately halt the persecution of these human rights defenders, prevent all acts of violence, threats, and attacks on their lives and physical integrity, and investigate all allegations of violence, intimidation, and defamation against them.

The above findings, officially named Concluding Observations, are now available online on the session page.