Committee on the Elimination
of Racial Discrimination
Concluding observations on the
Committee considered the
combined twenty-first to twenty-third periodic reports of Canada (CERD/C/CAN/21-23),
submitted in one document, at its 2566th and 2567th meetings (CERD/C/SR. 2566,
CERD/C/SR. 2567), held on 14 and 15 August 2017. At its 2580th, 2581st and 2582nd meetings, held on 23 and 24 August, it adopted the following concluding observations.
A. Introduction
2.
The Committee welcomes the
submission of the combined twenty-first to twenty-third periodic reports of the
State party, which included responses to the concerns raised by the Committee
in its previous concluding observations. The Committee welcomes the open and
constructive dialogue with the State party’s delegation.
B. Positive aspects
3.
The Committee welcomes the
adoption of the following legislative and policy measures:
(a)
The establishment in 2016 of
the Anti-Racism Directorate in Ontario to address systemic racism and to
promote fair practices and policies across Ontario province.
(b)
Canada’s House of Commons
condemnation of Islamophobia and all forms of systemic racism and religious
discrimination in March 2017.
(c)
The work and final report of
the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) of Canada released in 2015, titled
Honouring the Truth, Reconciling for the Future, which includes 94 calls to
action to address historical and ongoing discrimination against Indigenous Peoples.
(d)
The Resettlement of 46,000
Syrian refugees in 2016, and the commitment to resettle 25,000 refugees in
2017.
(e)
Full restoration of the Interim Federal Health Programme to provide limited temporary
health care coverage to eligible
groups such as refugees in April 2016.
4.
The Committee welcomes the
vibrant participation of representatives of the First Nations, Inuits and Métis
and civil society organizations
in the review of Canada. The Committee also greatly
appreciates the contributions of the Canadian Human Rights Commission.
C. Concerns and recommendations
Statistical
data
5. The Committee regrets again that
the absence of recent reliable and comprehensive statistical data on the
ethnic composition of the population, including disaggregated economic and
social indicators for ethnic groups, African-Canadians, Indigenous
Peoples, and non-citizens and the lack of detailed data
and information on the representation of minority groups in public and
political life in the State party, prevents it from evaluating the enjoyment of
civil and political, economic, social and cultural rights in the State party by
these groups. The Committee reiterates its concern of the continued use of the term “visible minority” in the State party to
describe minority groups, as it renders invisible the differences in the lived
experiences of diverse communities.
6.
Recalling its revised guidelines
for reporting under the Convention (see CERD/C/2007/1, paras. 10-12), the
Committee recommends that the State party:
(a)
Provide statistical data in its
next periodic report on the demographic composition of the population,
disaggregated in the manner specified in article 1, paragraph 1, of the
Convention, on the basis of self-identification of ethnic groups, and Indigenous Peoples.
(b)
Systematically collect disaggregated data in all relevant ministries and
departments to improve monitoring and evaluation of the implementation and impact of policies to eliminate racial
discrimination and inequality.
(c)
Provide information in its next periodic report on economic and social
indicators for ethnic minority
groups, Indigenous Peoples, and non-citizens, to enable the Committee
to better evaluate their enjoyment of economic, social and cultural rights
in the State party.
(d)
Revise its use of the
terminology “visible minority” in the Employment Equity Act, 1995, and in other legislation, as previously
recommended (CERD/C/CAN/CO/19-20, para. 8).
Domestic applicability of the
Convention
7.
The Committee regrets the lack of comprehensive information on the equal
implementation of the Convention in all 10 provinces and 3 territories of the
State party (art. 2).
8.
The Committee requests detailed information on the work of the
intergovernmental Committee on supporting domestic implementation of the
Convention and its efforts to ensure the equal application of the Convention at the federal, provincial and
territorial levels.
The Committee recommends that the State party create an accountability mechanism and ensure
equal distribution of resources for the implementation of the Convention by the
federal, provincial and territorial levels.
National Action Plan Against
Racism
9. While welcoming Ontario’s first
provincial anti-racism strategy of March 2017, the Committee regrets the
absence of a new National Action Plan Against Racism, applicable to the
federal, provincial and territorial levels, since the elapse of the previous plan
in 2010.
10. The Committee recommends that the State party
develop and launch a new National Action Plan Against Racism, in compliance
with its obligations under the World Conference Against Racism, through
meaningful consultations process with civil
society organizations, including ethnic minorities and Indigenous Peoples,
which includes implementing legislation, dedicated resources, targets, and
adequate monitoring and reporting mechanisms, using good practices mentioned in
Ontario’s anti-racism strategy of 2017. The Committee requests information in
its next periodic report on the implementation and impact of Ontario’s
anti-racism strategy, and other such strategies in the State party.
Anti-racism
legal framework
11. The Committee is concerned that an adequate
anti-racism framework legislation meeting all of the requirements of article 4
is not yet in place in all provinces and territories in the State party (art. 4).
12.
Recalling its general
recommendation No. 7 (1985), No. 15 (1993) relating to the
implementation of article 4 of the Convention, and No. 35 (2013) on combating
racist hate speech, and reiterating its pervious
recommendation (CERD/C/CAN/19-20, para. 13), the Committee
recommends that the State party enact legislation in
compliance with the requirements of article
4 in all provinces and territories.
Racist Hate crimes
13. The Committee is concerned that racist hate crimes continue to be underreported,
and that the lack of updated systematic and coordinated tracking of racist hate crime data in all provinces
and territories of the State party may mean that actual numbers of violations may
be much higher. The Committee is concerned about the 61% increase on racist hate crimes reported against
Muslims. The Committee is also concerned that the data
provided by the State party on the implementation of anti-discrimination
provisions, although it does indicate the number or extent of incidents and
complaints submitted; it doesn´t indicate the number of ex officio
prosecutions, investigations launched and convictions.
14.
The Committee recommends that
the State party:
(a)
Take steps to prevent racist hate crimes
against all ethnic and minority groups, migrants and Indigenous Peoples in the State party.
(b)
Facilitate reporting by the victims, and ensure
effective investigation of cases of racist
hate crimes and prosecute and sanction
perpetrators.
(c)
Systematically track and
maintain data on the number of reported racist
hate crimes, prosecutions, convictions, sentences and
penalties and compensation to victims and provide this data
to the Committee in its next periodic report.
(d)
Provide mandatory training on
recognition and registration of racist hate crimes and other racially motivated crimes to law enforcement
officials and judges to ensure proper handling of these complaints, and provide updated, detailed information and
statistics in its next periodic report,
including the time frame for when these
trainings were conducted, how many people were trained, and any measurable
impact.
(e)
Investigate and address the reasons for
the 61% increase in racist hate crimes reported against Muslims and the rise of Islamophobia.
Racial profiling and
disproportionate incarceration
15. The Committee is concerned by reports that racial profiling by the police,
security agencies and border agents continue on a daily basis in the State
party, with a harmful impact on Indigenous Peoples, as well as ethnic minority
Muslims, African-Canadians, and other ethnic minority groups. The Committee is
further concerned at the reported disproportionately high rate of incarceration
of Indigenous Peoples
and persons belonging to minority groups, in particular African-Canadians due to reasons such as socio-economic
disparity, high rates of incarceration of minorities with mental or
intellectual impairments, lack of appropriate community services, over-policing
of certain populations, drug policies, and racially biased sentencing. The Committee is
further concerned at reports that both African-Canadian
and Indigenous offenders are over
represented in segregation, 50% of Indigenous inmate women have reportedly been
placed in segregation, and that Indigenous inmates have the longest average stay in segregation.
16. The Committee recommends that the State party:
(a)
Ensure that law
enforcement and security agencies have programmes to prevent racial profiling, and that they
are implemented and compliance monitored,
including through independent oversight.
(b)
Make it mandatory to collect
and analyze data at the federal, provincial, and
territorial levels for random stops by law
enforcement officers,
including on the ethnicity of the persons stopped, reason for
stop, and whether stop resulted in an arrest, prosecution and conviction, and report publicly on this data at regular
intervals.
(c)
Ensure that the staff in law enforcement and security
agencies and among border agents are demographically diverse and include
Indigenous Peoples, African-Canadians and other ethnic minorities. Ensure that all staff are trained in the prevention of racial
discrimination, and on
policies preventing racial profiling.
Ensure lawyers and judges are trained on provisions relating to sentencing and
alternatives to incarceration for Indigenous peoples,
such as in the Corrections and Conditional Release Act (sections 29, 77, 80,
81, and 84) and that these provisions are consistently
applied. Provide updated, detailed information and statistics in its next periodic
report on such training programmes and on the impact of such trainings.
(d)
Address the root causes
of over-representation of African-Canadians and Indigenous Peoples at all levels of the justice system, from arrest to incarceration, such as by eliminating poverty,
providing better social services, re-examining drug policies, preventing racially
biased sentencing through training of judges, providing evidence-based alternatives to incarceration for non-violent drug users,
and fully implement the recommendations of the Truth and Reconciliation
Commission on this topic, in order to reduce the incarceration of African-Canadians and
Indigenous
Peoples.
(e)
Implement key health
and harm reduction measures across all prisons.
(f)
Systematically collect
data and report publically on the demographic composition of the prison population, including on
Indigenous Peoples, African-Canadians and other ethnic minorities and on the sentencing of
minority offenders.
(g)
Effectively limit the use of segregation to exceptional
circumstances, as a last resort and for as short a time as possible, in line
with the Mandela Rules, given its proven deleterious effects on
mental health. Implement
legislation to provide independent judicial oversight of all decisions related
to segregation.
(h)
Abolish the use of segregation for inmates with mental or
intellectual impairments.
Truth and Reconciliation
Commission and UN DRIP
17. While welcoming the
commitment made to implement all of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s (TRC) 94 Calls to Action, the Committee is concerned at the lack of an action plan and full implementation. The Committee is further concerned that the United Nations
Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UN DRIP) Action Plan has not
yet been adopted, while noting the Ministerial working group established
in 2017 to bring laws into compliance with obligations towards Indigenous Peoples.
18. The Committee recommends that the State
party:
(a)
Develop a concrete action plan to implement the TRC’s 94 Calls to Action,
in consultation with Indigenous Peoples.
(b)
Implement the UN DRIP, and adopt a legislative framework to implement the
Convention
including a national action plan, reform of national laws, policies and
regulations to bring them into compliance with the Declaration, and annual
public reporting.
(c)
Ensure that the action plans include regular monitoring,
evaluation, and annual reporting of the implementation, including the use of
statistical data to evaluate progress.
(d)
Develop and implement training programs, in
consultation with Indigenous Peoples, for State
officials and employees on the TRC’s Calls to Action and the UN DRIP, to ensure
their effective impact.
(e) Ensure that the Ministerial working group is transparent and inclusive
of Indigenous Peoples.
Land rights of Indigenous Peoples
19.
Taking note of the recent
release of a set of 10 Principles Respecting the Government of Canada’s
Relationship with Indigenous Peoples in 2017, the Committee is deeply concerned
that:
(a)
Violations of the land rights
of Indigenous Peoples continue in the State party, in particular
environmentally destructive decisions for resource development which affect
their lives and territories continue to be undertaken without the free, prior
and informed consent of the Indigenous Peoples, resulting in breaches of treaty
obligations and international human rights law.
(b)
Costly, time consuming and
ineffective litigation is often the only remedy in place of seeking free, prior
and informed consent, resulting in the State party continuing to issue permits
which allow for damage to lands.
(c)
According to information
received, permits have been issued and construction has commenced at the Site C
dam, despite vigorous opposition of Indigenous Peoples affected by this
project, which will result in irreversible damage due to flooding of their
lands leading to elimination of plants medicines, wildlife, sacred lands and
gravesites.
(d)
According to information
received the Site C dam project proceeded despite a joint environment review
for the federal and provincial governments, which reportedly concluded that the
impact of this dam on
(e)
Indigenous Peoples would be
permanent, extensive, and irreversible.
(f)
According to information
received the Mount Polley mine was initially approved without an environment
assessment process, consultation with or free, prior and informed consent from
the potentially affected Indigenous Peoples, and that the mining disaster has
resulted in a disproportionate and devastating impact on the water quality,
food such as fish, fish habitats, traditional medicines and the health of Indigenous
Peoples in the area (art. 5-6).
20.
Recalling its general recommendation No. 23 (1997) on the rights of Indigenous Peoples and reiterating its previous
recommendation (CERD/C/CO19-20, para. 20) the Committee recommends that the
State party:
(a)
Ensure the full implementation
of general recommendation No. 23, in a
transparent manner with the full involvement of the First Nations,
Inuits, Métis and other Indigenous Peoples with their free prior and informed
consent for all matters concerning their land rights.
(b)
Prohibit the environmentally
destructive development of the territories of Indigenous Peoples, and allow Indigenous
Peoples to conduct independent environmental impact studies.
(c)
End the substitution of costly
legal challenges as post facto recourse in place of obtaining meaningful free
prior and informed consent of Indigenous Peoples.
(d)
Incorporate the free, prior
and informed consent principle in the Canadian regulatory system, and amend
decision making processes around the review and approval of large-scale resource development projects like
the Site C dam.
(e)
Immediately suspend all permits and approvals for the construction of
the Site C dam. Conduct a full review in collaboration
with Indigenous Peoples of the violations of the right to free prior and
informed consent, treaty obligations and international human rights law from
the building of this dam and identify alternatives to irreversible destruction
of Indigenous lands and subsistence which will be caused by this project.
(f)
Publically release the results of any government studies of the Mount
Polley disaster and the criminal investigation into the
disaster, before the statute of limitations for
charges under these Acts expires.
(g)
Monitor the impact of the
disaster on affected Indigenous Peoples as a result of the disaster, and take measures
to mitigate the impact through provision of safe water and food, access to
healthcare, and fair
remedy and reparations.
Corporations operating
abroad
21. While noting
information received about recent judicial decisions allowing litigation
against Canadian corporations operating abroad before Canadian Courts, and
existing non-judicial mechanisms, the Committee is concerned that victim’s of alleged actions of transnational corporations
registered in Canada, whose activities negatively impact the rights of persons
outside of Canada, do not
have adequate access to justice. The Committee regrets that an independent
Ombudsman mandated to investigate such complaints has not yet been established (art. 6).
22. The Committee reiterates its
previous recommendation (CERD/C/CAN/CO/19-20, para 14), that the State party ensure
access to justice through judicial and non-judicial remedies for violations of
rights of persons by transnational corporations registered in Canada, operating
abroad. The Committee also recommends that the State party swiftly
establish an independent Ombudsman mandated to receive and investigate human
rights complaints against Canadian corporations operating in other
countries.
Violence against Indigenous
women and girls
23. The Committee is alarmed at the
continued high rates of violence against Indigenous women and girls in the State party. While welcoming the 2016
launch of the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and
Girls, the Committee is concerned at the lack of an independent mechanism to re-examine cases where there is evidence of
inadequate or biased investigations, failure to provide regular progress
reports, and to build transparent and accountable relationships with survivors,
families and stakeholders. (arts. 2, 5 and 6).
24. Recalling its general
recommendation No. 25 (2000) on gender-related
dimensions of racial discrimination, the Committee recommends that the State
party:
(a)
Take immediate action to
end violence against Indigenous women and girls. Provide support and access to
equal services for survivors. Enact a National Action Plan on Violence Against
Women, inclusive of the federal, provincial and territorial jurisdictions, with
special provisions to end the high rates of violence against Indigenous women
and girls.
(b)
Apply a human rights-based
approach to the Inquiry by examining the issues holistically to identify
barriers to equality and their root causes and recommend lasting solutions.
Monitor progress to achieve these recommendations, with the participation of
affected survivors, families and stakeholders.
(c)
Establish an independent
review mechanism of unsolved cases of missing and murdered Indigenous women and
girls where there is evidence of bias or error in the investigation.
(d)
Publicly report on
violence against Indigenous women and girls including data on reported cases of
violence, murders, and missing Indigenous women and girls, and numbers of
investigations, prosecutions and convictions.
(e)
Improve communication from
the Inquiry and build transparent and accountable relationships with survivors,
families and stakeholders.
Situation of Indigenous Peoples
with disabilities
25. The Committee is concerned by
the multiple forms of discrimination faced by Indigenous Peoples with
disabilities, who reportedly face additional barriers to healthcare, education
and social services, in particular if they are located in remote communities
with inadequate access to quality services. The Committee further regrets the
lack of detailed information on meaningful consultations with Indigenous Peoples and the outcome of such
consultations on the development of accessibility legislation (art. 5).
26. The Committee recommends that
the State party conduct meaningful consultations with Indigenous Peoples during the development of
accessibility legislation. The Committee requests information from the State
party on provisions included in the accessibility legislation which address the
specific situation of ethnic minorities and Indigenous Peoples with disabilities who
face multiple and intersecting forms of discrimination. The Committee
recommends that the State party create a strategy, in consultation with Indigenous Peoples, to ensure that
Indigenous Peoples
with disabilities have equal access to quality services.
Discrimination against Indigenous
children
27. The Committee is alarmed that
despite its previous recommendation (CERD/C/CAN/CO/19-20, para. 19), and multiple decisions by the
Canadian Human Rights Tribunal, less money is reportedly provided for child and family services to Indigenous children than in other
communities, and that this gap continues to grow. The Committee is
further concerned, that the federal government has adopted an
overly narrow definition of the Jordan’s Principle, as stated in the
Canadian Human Rights Tribunal decision First
Nations Child and Family Caring Society of Canada et al. v. Attorney General of
Canada in 2016, and has failed to
address the root causes of displacement, while tens of thousands of children
are needlessly removed from their families, communities and culture and placed
in state care. (arts. 1-2 and 5-6).
28. The Committee recommends that
the State party:
a. Fully
comply with and
implement the January 2016 ruling (2016 CHRT 2) and subsequent non-compliance
orders (2016 CHRT 10, 2016 CHRT 16, and 2017 CHRT 14)of the Canadian Human Rights
Tribunal, and
end the underfunding of First Nations, Inuit and Métis child and family services.
b. Ensure that all children, on and off reserve, have
access to all services available to other children in Canada, without
discrimination.
c. Implement the full scope and meaning of Jordan’s Principle so that access to these
services is never delayed or denied because of disputes between the federal,
provincial and territorial governments over their respective responsibilities.
d. Address
the root causes of displacement such as poverty and poor housing that disproportionately
drive children into foster care.
Discrimination in the
Education System
29. The Committee is concerned at
reported disparity in resource allocation for education and the lack of sufficient
funding of mother tongue education programmes leading to unequal access to quality
education, especially for African-Canadian and Indigenous
children, which contributes to future socio-economic disparity among these
groups. The Committee is further concerned that African-Canadian students are
reportedly disciplined more harshly than other students; which forces them out
of learning environments and contributes to the “school-to-prison” pipeline
(art. 5).
30.
The Committee recommends that
the State party:
(a)
Ensure equal access to quality
education for all children in the State party, without
racial discrimination and regardless of whether the child lives on or
off of a reserve.
(b)
Address funding inequalities
identified in the Parliamentary Budget Officer’s 2016 report, and other funding
inequalities of schools attended by Indigenous, African-Canadian
and other ethnic minority children. Work in consultation
with affected groups to ensure schools are in conditions comparable to and can
meet the distinct cultural and linguistic needs of ethnic minorities and Indigenous students.
(c)
Create a national education
strategy to prevent the low educational attainment, high dropout, suspension
and expulsion rates of African-Canadian children. Collect
disaggregated data on disciplinary measures of African Canadian children, to
monitor and track the impact of measures to reduce discriminatory effects of
disciplinary procedures.
Employment discrimination
31. The Committee is concerned by
reports of discriminatory hiring practices and discrimination in the workplace
faced by ethnic minorities, migrants and Indigenous Peoples, and
high rates of unemployment of educated ethnic minorities. The Committee is
concerned that reportedly no province other than Quebec has legislated
mandatory employment equity for its public sector bodies, and that changes to the Federal Employment Equity regulation have reduced the labor rights approach conditions of the mandatory contractor
compliance mechanism. The Committee notes that there is no mandatory
employment equity for private employers at the provincial level, which accounts
for approximately 76% of Canada's labour force. The Committee
welcomes the data received from the Human Rights Commission and after the dialogue from the State party,
however, it is concerned about the lack of data on labour inspections in the State party report.
32.
The Committee recommends that
the State party:
(a)
Ensure the elimination of
discriminatory hiring practices and discrimination against ethnic minorities in
the workplace including by providing adequate training to employers and awareness raising campaigns for employees about
their rights and effective recourse for reporting violations.
(b)
Conduct a comprehensive review
of the existing employment equity regime and make necessary changes to increase
the representation of ethnic minorities and Indigenous Peoples in the workforce.
(c)
Request
all public bodies to
collect and publish data on the ethnic composition of the public service
periodically. That data should include statistics that disaggregate total
employees, job categories, numbers at middle managerial levels and higher
levels. All contractors to public service agencies should be requested to do
the same.
(d)
Request private employers to publish similar disaggregated data on its workforce
and to take measures to ensure the elimination of discriminatory employment practices
against ethnic minorities in hiring retention and promotion.
(e)
Improve the mandatory contractor compliance mechanism’s labour rights approach conditions in the Federal Employment Equity regulation.
(f)
Request professional organizations that control the accreditation for
professional practice to have their policies reviewed by the State Party with a view to
determine whether there are discriminatory barriers to certification of certain
ethnic candidates, particularly those who received their academic
qualifications in other countries.
(g)
Take effective measures to ensure that labour inspections and other
administrative or legal procedures reach all industries, with a view to
detecting labour rights violations, bringing perpetrators to justice and
compensating victims.
(h) Provide in its next
periodic report comprehensive data on the coverage of labour inspections and
other administrative or legal procedures, including statistics of inspection visits, violations
detected and sanctions or penalties imposed over the review period and compensations
provided to victims, disaggregated among others by type of violation, industry
or occupation, age, sex, national origin and ethnic origin of the victim.
Situation of migrants,
refugees and asylum seekers
33. The Committee is concerned that:
(a) There is no legal time limit on the
detention of migrants. Nearly one third of migrants were held in provincial
prisons, leading to deaths in some cases.
(b) Migrant children are detained.
(c) There is a lack of data provided to the
Committee on persons in immigration
detention.
(d) In the context of
limitations in the Safe Third Country Agreement, there is a reported sharp rise in asylum
seekers attempting to enter the State party through irregular border crossings,
under dangerous or life-threatening conditions.
(e) Although the
temporary foreign worker program conducts inspections, temporary migrant workers are
reportedly susceptible to exploitation and abuses, and are sometimes denied
basic health services, and employment and pension benefits to which they may
make contributions.
(f) There is a lack of access to
health care for undocumented migrants (art. 5).
34. In light of its general
recommendation No. 22 (1986) on article 5 of the Convention on
refugees and displaced persons, and No. 30 (2004) on discrimination against
non-citizens, the Committee recommends that the State party:
(a)
Undertake planned immigration
detention reforms. Ensure that immigration detention is only undertaken as a
last resort after fully considering alternative non-custodial measures.
Establish a legal time limit on the detention of migrants.
(b)
Immediately end the practice of
detention of minors.
(c)
Provide statistical data to the
Committee in its next periodic report on the persons detained in immigration
detention, reason and length of detention of migrants, disaggregated by age,
gender, nationality and ethnicity.
(d)
Rescind or at least suspend the
Safe Third Country Agreement with the United States of America to ensure that
all individuals who attempt to enter the State party through a land border are
provided with equal access to asylum proceedings.
(e)
Reform current policies and
measures to ensure protection of temporary migrant workers from exploitation
and abuse as well as grant them access to health services and employment and
pension benefits. Implement protective policies for migrant workers. Reconsider
the decision not to ratify the Convention on the Protection of the Rights of
All Migrant Workers and Members of their Families. Expedite the consideration
for the adoption of International Labour Organization Convention No. 189 (2011)
concerning Decent Work for Domestic Workers.
(f) Ensure that all persons have access to healthcare, regardless of
immigration status, without discrimination.
D. Other
recommendations
Ratification
of other instruments
35. The Committee recommends that
the State party consider ratifying: International Convention for the Protection
of all Persons from Enforced Disappearance, optional Protocol to the
International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, optional Protocol
to the Convention against Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading
Treatment or Punishment, optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of
the Child on a communications procedure, optional Protocol to the Convention on
the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, international Labour Organisation
Convention No. 169 (1989) concerning Indigenous and Tribal Peoples Convention.
Follow-up
to the Durban Declaration and Programme of Action
36.
In the light of its
general recommendation No. 33 (2009) on the follow-up to the Durban Review
Conference, the Committee recommends that, when implementing the Convention in
its domestic legal order, the State party give effect to the Durban Declaration
and Programme of Action, adopted in September 2001 by the World Conference
against Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia and Related Intolerance,
taking into account the outcome document of the Durban Review Conference, held
in Geneva in April 2009. The Committee requests that the State party include in
its next periodic report specific information on action plans and other
measures taken to implement the Durban Declaration and Programme of Action at
the national level.
International
Decade for People of African Descent
37.
In the light of General Assembly resolution 68/237, in which the
Assembly proclaimed 2015-2024 the International Decade for
People of African Descent, and resolution 69/16 on the
programme of activities for the implementation of the Decade, the Committee
recommends that the State party prepare and implement a suitable programme of
measures and policies. The Committee requests that the State party include in
its next periodic report specific information on the concrete measures adopted
in that framework, taking into account its general recommendation No. 34
(2011) on racial discrimination against people of African descent.
Consultations
with civil society
38.
The Committee
recommends that the State party continue consulting and increasing its dialogue
with civil society organizations working to combat racial discrimination, in
connection with the preparation of the next periodic report and in follow-up to
the present concluding observations.
Declaration
under article 14 of the Convention
39.
The Committee encourages the State party to
make the optional declaration provided for in article 14 of the Convention recognizing the competence of the
Committee to receive and consider individual communications.
Follow-up to the present
concluding observations
40.
In accordance with
article 9 (1) of the Convention and rule 65 of its rules of procedure, the
Committee requests the State party to provide, within one year of the adoption of the present concluding observations, information on its implementation of the
recommendations contained in paragraphs 34 (a, b, and d) and 20 (e and f) above.
Paragraphs
of particular importance
41.
The Committee wishes to
draw the attention of the State party to the particular importance of the recommendations contained in
paragraphs 16, 18, 20 (a, b, c
and d), and 32 above and requests the State party to provide
detailed information in its next periodic report on the concrete measures taken
to implement those recommendations.
Dissemination
of information
42.
The Committee
recommends that the State party’s reports be made readily available and
accessible to the public at the time of their submission and that the concluding observations of the Committee with respect
to those reports be similarly publicized in the official and other commonly
used languages, as appropriate.
Preparation
of the next report
43. The Committee recommends that the State party submit its combined twenty-fourth and twenty-fifth periodic
reports, as a single document, by 15 November 2021 taking into account the
reporting guidelines adopted by the Committee during its seventy-first session
(CERD/C/2007/1) and addressing all the points raised in the present concluding
observations. In the light of General Assembly resolution 68/268, the Committee
urges the State party to observe the limit of 21,200 words for periodic
reports.
* Adopted by the Committee at its ninety-third session (31 July to 25 August 2017).
