All States must push forward in the fight against racial discrimination: UN experts

International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination
21 March 2024

GENEVA (20 March 2023) – Ahead of the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, a group of UN experts issued the following joint statement:

“The commemoration of the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination is a moment to take stock of the persistent gaps in the implementation of our shared commitment to protect hundreds of millions of people whose human rights continue to be violated due to racial discrimination. It is also an opportunity to recommit to our promise to fight all forms of racism everywhere.

Through our work, we see clearly that racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia, and related intolerance continue to be a cause of conflict around the world. We are witnessing a dangerous regression in the fight against racism and racial discrimination in many spaces. Minorities, people of African descent, people of Asian descent, Indigenous Peoples, migrants, including asylum seekers and refugees, are particularly vulnerable as they often face discrimination in all aspects of their lives based on their racial, ethnic or national origin, skin colour or descent. In this regard, it is crucial that States implement their international human rights obligations and commitments under the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination and the Durban Declaration and Programme of Action.

Initiatives aimed at revitalising multilateralism, including the Summit of the Future, provide an important opportunity to firmly establish the collective responsibility of States in ensuring concrete progress to address structural and systemic racial discrimination and its root causes.

The proclamation of an International Decade for people of African Descent in 2014 marked a significant milestone in the global effort to combating systemic racism and racial discrimination faced by people of African descent worldwide.

As the International Decade comes to an end, it is time to confront and rectify the pervasive obstacles and barriers hampering recognition, justice, and development for people of African descent. We call on States to respond to growing calls for reparatory justice and economic empowerment for people of African descent. We also call on States to leave no person of African descent behind in their efforts to realise the Sustainable Development Goals.

Today we join our voices again to urge all States to push forward in the fight against racial discrimination. We also call on States to proclaim a second International Decade for People of African Descent, to ensure greater recognition, justice, and development for people of African descent, including by engaging meaningfully in reparatory justice processes for past injustices.”