EU Presidency Statement - Elimination of racism and racial discrimination

I have the honour to speak on behalf of the European Union. The Candidate Countries Bulgaria, Romania, Turkey and Croatia , the Countries of the Stabilisation and Association Process and potential candidates Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Serbia and Montenegro, and the EFTA country Iceland, members of the European Economic Area, align themselves with this statement.

Mr/Mme Chairperson,

The European Union attaches great importance to the fight against racial discrimination in all its policies, internal as well as external. I would like to emphasise that all states have the obligation to take measures to protect all persons in their territory against racism and discrimination. The international community has taken its responsibility by creating a legal framework to accommodate the fight against racism and intolerance. The framework is laid down inter alia in the UN Charter, the Universal Declaration on Human Rights and the International Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Racial Discrimination. The EU urges all States that are not yet parties to the International Convention to ratify or accede to this Convention, with the view to its universal ratification by 2005.

In Durban in 2001, the international community has adopted a declaration and Programme of Action resulting from the World Conference against Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia and Related Intolerance. However, despite all international efforts, the scourge of racism and intolerance continues to manifest itself. There are new challenges. Firstly terrorism. Terrorist acts are acts of hatred, which call for a multi-faceted response. Efforts to combat all forms of racism, discrimination and intolerance can contribute to such a response by the international community. I ask you to be aware however that the fight against terrorism may pose great challenges to civil liberties and human rights. There is a risk to identify entire groups of people with terrorists or their supporters. The EU recalls that the fight against terrorism should be led in compliance with international human rights law, including non-discrimination norms.

Secondly, anti-Semitism has reared its ugly head again. The number of anti-Semitic incidents has increased the past few years. Unfortunately, the memory of the atrocities committed in World War II is receding in public memory. The EU has demonstrated its commitment to combat such developments. We are very concerned at the possible exploitation of the media or the Internet to fuel messages of racism, anti-Semitism and intolerance and have expressed such concerns in the case of reporting about Middle East politics when some broadcasts have fuelled confusion and misconceptions. Political discontent with the policies of the state of Israel should never be used as an argument or an excuse to promote prejudices about Jews.

Thirdly, as more people move around the world to avail of the opportunities that globalisation offers, we face new challenges. Integration policies should be based on a broad base of tolerance and respect for migrant groups. We must find new ways of allowing immigrants to contribute to the development of the political, economic, social and cultural richness of their new homes. It is also important to ensure social cohesion - a task, which can be addressed in part by open and transparent dialogue. To do this successfully, we need to address the needs of all persons and possible tensions between them in an open and transparent manner.

The European Union is also strongly concerned by the prevalence of discrimination based on work and descent, including caste-based discrimination, which is estimated to affect 260 million people world-wide and which carries profound implications for their enjoyment of human rights. The EU notes the work, which has been accomplished on this issue in the UN context, including by the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, the UN Sub-Commission on Human Rights and the UN Special Rapporteur on Racism. The EU calls on all States where such discrimination exists to intensify their efforts to combat it, including through co-operation with the UN Special Rapporteur.

Combating all forms of racism and discrimination, including anti-Semitism and Islamophobia remains one of the most important goals of the European Union. The EU also remains committed to implement the outcome of the Durban conference and calls on all countries to take appropriate action on the national level to put together concrete actions to fight racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and all other forms of intolerance. The European Union would like to emphasise that states have the primary responsibility for effectively combating racism.

The EU expresses its appreciation for the contribution of the Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia and related intolerance and the OHCHR Anti-Discrimination Unit in support of the effective implementation of the Durban Declaration and programme of action. The EU equally expresses its support to the work of the CERD Committee in promoting the implementation of the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination. We also urge all governments to co-operate with and support those institutions.

Chairperson,

The fight against racism is not only part of the EU's external policies, it is also very much a part of our internal policy. To stress the importance the EU attaches to human rights and fundamental freedoms, the European Council in June 2004 adopted the draft European Constitution, including a Charter of Fundamental Rights. This Charter further strengthens the legal framework of the EU. It includes an article that explicitly forbids all forms of discrimination.

In recent years, we had to step up our efforts with regard to internal EU policy regarding discrimination. Two major pieces of anti-discrimination legislation were adopted in 2000 to be implemented by Member States in their national legal systems. The first directive bans discrimination on the grounds of racial and ethnic origin and strives for equal opportunities for all with regard to employment, access to jobs, working conditions, rates of pay, access to education and training, social security benefits and health care. A second Directive banning discrimination in employment on a range of grounds, including religion and belief was adopted at the same time. These new laws are backed up by a 6-year 100 million EURO programme in support of research, non-governmental organisations and information activities. A similar plan has also been adopted to promote equal opportunities between men and women. Prevention, education, and awareness raising are measures included in these plans to address the root causes of racism and intolerance.

The EU strongly supports the efforts made by the OSCE and the Council of Europe with regard to awareness raising and the condemnation of all forms of racism. These efforts are in line with the Durban documents' call to reinforce regional co-operation in the fight against racism and discrimination. In this respect, I would like to recall the declarations of the OSCE Conference on Anti-Semitism which took place in Berlin on 28 and 29 April and the OSCE Conference on Tolerance and the Fight against Racism, Xenophobia and Discrimination in Brussels held in September 2004. The OSCE participating states agreed to join forces to take concrete steps. For example, they committed themselves to collect reliable information and statistics about anti-Semitic crimes and other hate crimes and they tasked the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights to follow closely and to report to the Permanent Council about incidents motivated by racism, xenophobia or related intolerance, including discrimination against Muslims and anti-Semitism in the OSCE area.

The EU also welcomes the increasing priority being given by these organisations to addressing racism and discrimination against the Roma, Sinti and Travellers in Europe. In November 2003, the OSCE Ministerial Council approved in Maastricht an Action Plan for improving the situation of the Roma and Sinti in the OSCE region, which provides a comprehensive list of recommendations to combat racism and discrimination against these minorities and to address their social and economic rights and to promote their political participation. Within the Council of Europe, the work towards setting-up a European Roma and Travellers Forum is in its final stages. The Forum, which will be an independent consultative body with a treaty-based special relationship with the Council of Europe, will provide a platform for the voicing by the Roma themselves, their concerns at an international level, and for promoting the stuggle against racism and discrimination. The Forum seeks to cooperate also with the relevant UN bodies.

With respect to data collection, in 2004 the EU Monitoring Centre on Racism and Xenophobia in Vienna published a report on Manifestations of anti-Semitism in the EU in 2002 and 2003. The centre shows the importance the EU attaches to monitoring the phenomena of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and intolerance.

Another important challenge is the proliferation of racial discrimination and intolerance through the Internet. The EU welcomes the Additional Protocol to the Council of Europe's Convention on Cybercrime, which commits states parties to criminalize acts of a racist and xenophobic nature committed through computer systems. Most EU states have signed the Additional Protocol since its opening for signature last year. To combat cyber crime, the OSCE organised a meeting on the Relationship between Racist, Xenophobic and Anti-Semitic Propaganda on the Internet and Hate Crimes on 16 and 17 June 2004 in Paris.

Finally, I would like to emphasise once again that the EU urges all states to support a common effort to take concrete and concerted actions to eliminate the scourge of racism and all other forms of intolerance. But it is not enough to tolerate people's diversity, it is fundamental that people are respected in their dignity and that their human rights are protected. We must all contribute to realise the goal of the International Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Racial Discrimination, respecting others irrespective of their race, colour descent, or national or ethnic origin, or any other ground for discrimination prohibited by international law. Please allow me to summarise this common objective with the words of the famous European sixteenth century humanist and philosopher Desiderius Erasmus: "Humanity is to celebrate in mankind's diversity."

Thank you Mr/Mme Chairperson.

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