International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination 21 March

Day 3,773, 13:56 Published in Egypt Egypt by Ministry of Foreign Affairs EG
International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination 21 March

Every person is entitled to human rights without discrimination. The rights to equality and non-discrimination are cornerstones of human rights law. Article 1 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights states that all human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights.
And based on Article 2, everyone is entitled to all the rights and freedoms set forth in the Declaration, without distinction of race or any other kind.

Background

On that day, in 1960, police opened fire and killed 69 people at a peaceful demonstration in Sharpeville, South Africa, against the apartheid "pass laws". After a day of demonstrations against pass laws, a crowd of about 5,000 to 7,000 protesters went to the police station. The South African Police opened fire on the crowd, killing 69 people. There were 289 casualties in total, including 29 children. Many sustained back injuries from being shot as they fled.

Proclaiming the Day in 1966, the General Assembly called on the international community to redouble its efforts to eliminate all forms of racial discrimination. In present-day South Africa, 21 March is celebrated as a public holiday in honour of human rights and to commemorate the Sharpeville massacre.
Racial discrimination

Racial and ethnic discrimination occur on a daily basis, hindering progress for millions of people around the world. Racism and intolerance can take various forms — from denying individuals the basic principles of equality to fuelling ethnic hatred that may lead to genocide — all of which can destroy lives and fracture communities. The struggle against racism is a matter of priority for the international community and is at the heart of the work of the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights.
The United Nations has been concerned with this issue since its foundation and the prohibition of racial discrimination is enshrined in all core international human rights instruments. It places obligations on States and tasks them with eradicating discrimination in the public and private spheres. The principle of equality also requires States to adopt special measures to eliminate conditions that cause or help to perpetuate racial discrimination.


Human rights in Egypt

Most sources agree that Egypt is a gross violator of human rights. Authorities have effectively banned protests and freedom of expression, imprisoned its opponents, usually after unfair trials, outlawed the Muslim Brotherhood, and expanded its antiterrorism powers. Torture, forced disappearances, and deaths in custody are not rare occurrences. The government continues to persecute NGOs and journalists. Women and members of religious minorities are subject to discrimination. People are arrested for “debauchery” and sexual orientation. There is a critical lack of accountability, with most human rights violations being committed with impunity. In a December 2016 report, a panel of UN experts concluded that: “The continuous persecution of women human rights defenders such as Azza Soliman and Mozn Hassan... establishes and reinforces a pattern of systematic repression of the Egyptian women’s rights movement, aiming to silence and intimidate those working tirelessly for justice, human rights and equality”.


Freedom House, the "independent watchdog organization that supports the expansion of freedom around the world," rated Egypt "not free" in 2011. It gave Egypt a "Political Rights Score" of 6 and "Civil Liberties Score" of 5 on a scale of 1-7, with 1 representing the highest level of freedom and 7 representing the lowest level of freedom.
Freedom House’s office was among the offices of NGOs in Cairo raided by Egyptian security forces 29 December 2011 for "violation of Egyptian laws including not having permits."
The raid was condemned by Freedom House as "an unprecedented assault on international civil society organizations and their local Egyptian partners."
In 2000 the related Center for Religious Freedom placed Egypt as partly free at 5, this put them in line with Muslim nations like Turkey and Indonesia. Reporters Without Borders placed Egypt between Bhutan and the Côte d'Ivoire in press freedom. Conclusion and Recommendations

Τhe OHCHR delegation recommends the following steps to accompany national efforts toward an open and democratic society and the building of a new Egypt governed by the Rule of Law and respect for human rights:


1. Restore a state of normalcy as soon as possible where full respect for international human rights norms can be secured, in particular through the lifting of the state of emergency in place since 1981 and the repeal of all decrees issued under it.

2. Ensure that the Egyptian people enjoy full freedom of expression, assembly and association and that peaceful demonstrators detained in the context of the period of unrest and subsequent events are released; adopt a targeted amnesty law ensuring the release of any remaining prisoners of opinion and; ensure that civil society organizations, including those representative of youth and women, are able to play their full role in the run-up to the elections.

3. Ensure that all measures are taken for the preparation and holding of free and fair parliamentary and presidential elections, including through an effective monitoring system; ensure that all Egyptians enjoy the right to participate freely and effectively in the conduct of public affairs, to be managed with full transparency, in particular through a national dialogue, inclusive of all sectors of society, all generations and with equal representation of women and men, on new policy or legislation, in particular for the drafting of the new Constitution and; ensure that the drafters of the new constitution take due account of international human rights standards and of the principles of separation of powers between the executive, the legislative and the judiciary.

4. Ensure that torture and ill-treatment are eradicated, including through: a clear public statement issued by the highest authorities clarifying that the use of torture and ill treatment will not be tolerated under any circumstance and indicating that all perpetrators will be severely sanctioned if found guilty after independent investigation of all allegations; the review of the definition of torture in national law to ensure consistency with the definition provided in the Convention against Torture; the establishment of independent monitoring of prisons and all places of detention and; through ensuring the availability of a complaints mechanism for victims of torture.

5. Ensure full compliance with the right to equal access to courts and tribunals and to fair trial for all, including putting an end to trials of civilians before military courts.

6. Taking into account the initial steps taken with regard to the violations that have occurred during the period of unrest, adopt a comprehensive approach to transitional justice with regard to all serious recent and past human rights violations, including through seeking accountability, reparations and reconciliation mechanisms after consideration of different models and good practices and lessons learnt from examples considered close to the circumstances of the Egyptian transition; hold national consultations on transitional justice so as to identify the most appropriate options for Egypt; take the necessary measures to preserve all evidence, documentation and archives that could shed some light on human rights abuses perpetrated over the years; ensure that perpetrators of serious human rights violations are subjected to investigation, prosecution and trial while respecting the right to equality before courts and tribunals and to a fair trial and; ensure that the victims of serious human rights violations or their families are awarded reparations.

7. Undertake a comprehensive reform of the security sector, to include: vetting of members of the former security apparatus and other law enforcement officials, including both police and prison officers, ensuring that those against whom there is evidence of serious human rights violations do not remain or are not placed in positions where they could repeat such violations; creating an independent oversight mechanism as to hold security forces and all law enforcement officials to account for human rights violations and; considering the most effective ways and setting up new programs so as to ensure adequate human rights training, including on international human rights norms, for law enforcement officials.

8. Ensure inclusion and participation of all parts of society, without discrimination, in the development of a new social contract and give due consideration to the people’s expectations in relation to a more equitable system where corruption is systematically
combated and duly sanctioned and due attention is paid to economic, social and cultural rights. Take immediate and concrete steps to work towards the progressive redress of disparities in standards of living and access to and quality of health, education, employment and social support structures for women, youth and marginalized communities across the country.

9.
Following broad-based consultations, take steps towards nominating new members of the National Human Rights Council in a manner consistent with the Paris Principles on National Institutions.

10. Enhance cooperation with the UN, including: Implement recommendations by UN treaty bodies, the UPR and special procedures, and report to the Human Rights Committee, the Committee against Torture and the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights; Issue a standing invitation to all UN human rights experts, and facilitate immediately the visits requested by the special procedures, including the Special Rapporteur on torture, the Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial executions, the Special Rapporteur on the independence of judges and lawyers, the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders, the Special Rapporteur on 18 freedom of religion or belief, and the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention; ratify the Rome Statute, the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance and OPCAT and accept individual complaints mechanisms related to human rights treaties to which Egypt is already party, in particular CCPR, CESCR, CEDAW, CAT and CERD, and enhance cooperation with OHCHR through the development of technical cooperation projects, including in the fields of justice, security sector reforms and Human Rights Education.


Every day, each and every one of us can stand up against racial prejudice and intolerant attitudes. In the lead-up to the 70th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in December 2018, join us in fighting racism and standing up for human rights!


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