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Activities
Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of racism
Statements, interviews and open letters
2023
Reply from the ICC Prosecutor regarding the Situation in the State of Palestine 26 April 2023
32 UN experts issue a joint letter to the ICC Prosecutor regarding the Situation in the State of Palestine and Annex
23 March 2023
2022
2020
9 October 2020: Statement before the Security Council Counter-Terrorism Committee on “addressing violent extremism though a human rights based approach” (PDF)
15 July 2020: Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance (PDF)
3 July 2020: Statement delivered at the Global Pandemic Prevention & Control and Human Rights Protection Conference (PDF)
April 2020: UN News Podcast ‘Entrepreneurs of intolerance’ compound COVID-19 racist backlash
English | 中文 | Français
2019
December 2019: Open letter to the United Nations Network on Migration on their Workplan
September 2019: Statement delivered at a High-Level Conference for the 25th Anniversary of European Commission against Racism and Intolerance
2018
December 2018: Article on "Putting Racial Equality onto the Global Human Rights Agenda", published in the Sur – International Journal on Human Rights
October 2018: Interview with UNA-UK on "Taking Forward the UN’s Fight Against Racism"
July 2018: Remarks during the Interactive Dialogue of the 38th session of the United Nations Human Rights Council
July 2018: Keynote address on racial equality and migration governance, entitled "Refugees, Intolerance and Racism: Contemporary Reflections", at the Refugee Law Initiative’s Annual Conference
June 2018: Open Letter from the Special Rapporteur on Racism on Draft Rev 2 of the Global Compact on Migration
English | Français | Español
Amicus briefs
These are amicus curiae/ third party interventions submitted by the Special Rapporteur before domestic, regional and international courts in cases relating to contemporary forms of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance.
Le Conseil d'État
Date: 24 May 2022
Court: Le Conseil d'État
Case: Case concerning the systemic use of racial profiling within law enforcement activities
Amicus as filed: English | Français
Follow-up letter: English | Français
The Eastern High Court of Denmark
Date: 22 April 2022
Court: Eastern High Court of Denmark
Case: Case concerning whether the Government’s legal distinction between “Westerners” and “non-Westerners” for purposes of housing redevelopment policy—and resulting evictions mandated by that policy constitutes prohibited discrimination in the enjoyment of the right to adequate housing
Amicus as filed
The Supreme Court of India
Date: 12 July 2019
Court: Supreme Court of India
Case: Case concerning a collective deportation order of Rohingya and racially equal enjoyment of security
Amicus as filed
The Dutch Immigration and Naturalisation Service
Date: 23 October 2018
Court: Dutch Immigration and Naturalisation Service
Case: Case concerning citizenship stripping as a counter-terrorism measure and its impact on racial equality Amicus as filed
European Court of Human Rights
Date: 21 September 2018
Court: European Court of Human Rights
Case: Emin Huseynov v. Azerbaijan, Application no. 1/16
Intervention as filed (joint intervention with the Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression)
Newsletters
Please email racism@ohchr.org with the title "Subscription" to sign up for the Special Rapporteur's newsletter.
2019
Newsletter No. 4 (June 2019)
2018
Newsletter No. 3 (November 2018)
Newsletter No. 2 (June 2018)
Newsletter No. 1 (January 2018)
Informal civil society consultations
The Special Rapporteur is committed to building a strong network of civil society organizations, social movements, community-based actors, academics and others working in the field of racial discrimination. To ensure the participation of interested stakeholders in the agenda setting of the mandate, the Special Rapporteur hosts informal consultations with national and local actors across all regions of the world.
Information about future consultations is circulated through the network of the mandate and made available on this website.
Expert consultations
Special procedures mandate holders frequently organise expert seminars or consultations on topics related to their mandate. Such consultations may either have been requested by the Human Rights Council, or organised by mandate holders with the support of OHCHR in order to receive information for their studies or thematic reports from a broad range of stakeholders.
Examples of expert consultations convened by the previous mandate holder:
2017: Racism in the context of counter-terrorism
On 22 and 23 June 2017, the mandate convened an expert group meeting in Budapest, Hungary on combating racism, xenophobia and discrimination in the context of counter-terrorism. The meeting was attended by academics, practitioners and civil society representatives who discussed the patterns and manifestations of racism, racial discrimination and xenophobia emerging from state counter-terrorism practices. After examining trends and challenges in different regions, participants exchanged views on the key legal and policy measures taken at the national, regional and international level as well as on relevant good practices. The discussion and contributions to this meeting informed the Special Rapporteur’s report to the seventy-second session of the General Assembly in October 2017 (A/72/287).
2015: Xenophobia
On 30 November and 1 December 2015, the mandate convened an expert consultation that was held at the African Centre for Migration and Society, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg. Participants from all geographic regions discussed the manifestations of xenophobia in different regions and underscored the need for further research on strategies for combating xenophobia in order to assist stakeholders in developing effective policies and plans of action. The outcomes of this consultation informed the Special Rapporteur’s report to the Human Rights Council in June 2016 (A/HRC/32/50).
2014: Racial and ethnic profiling
On 11 and 12 November 2014, the Special Rapporteur convened expert consultations in Los Angeles on racial profiling. The consultations were organized in partnership with the Faculty of Law of the University of California, Los Angeles, and were attended by a wide range of experts, academics and representatives of civil society organizations. The aim of the consultations was to discuss, inter alia, the different manifestations of racial profiling as well as to highlight and discuss relevant good practices at international, regional and national levels. The consultations informed the Special Rapporteur’s report on racial and ethnic profiling in law enforcement (A/HRC/29/46).
2013: Racism on the internet and social media
On 11 and 12 November 2013, the Special Rapporteur convened expert consultations in New York on racism and the internet. Participants included academics, representatives of Internet and social media providers and civil society. The consultations sought to provide an updated overview of the challenges and some good practices in the fight against racism and discrimination on and through the Internet. The consultations informed the Special Rapporteur’s report on manifestations of racism on the internet and social media (A/HRC/26/49).