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3
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Note
Before
reading the Study Guide, please note
that this study guide is provided to
give you some insight into the topic,
and to help direct your research. It is
simply to take you through the
background, history and problems of
the agenda. Please do not limit your
research and understanding to the
issues addressed in this guide. It is
mandatory for all delegates, to
research well on all aspects and be
well aware of their country’s stance
on the topic. It is expected from all
the delegates to discuss all facets of
the issue and come up with practical
and effective solutions that can also
be applied in the real world.

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The United Nations Human Rights
Council

The United Nations Human Rights Council AKA UNHRC is a United Nations body whose
mission is to promote and protect human rights around the world. The UNHRC has 47
members elected for staggered three-year terms on a regional group basis. The
headquarters of UNHRC is in Geneva.
The UNHRC investigates allegations of breaches of human rights in UN member states
and addresses important thematic human rights issues such as freedom of association
and assembly, freedom of expression, freedom of belief and religion, women’s rights,
LGBT rights and the rights of racial and ethnic minorities.
The UNHRC was established by the UN General Assembly on March 15, 2006.

Topic : Racial discrimination and violation of

rights of ethnic minority around the globe.

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About the committee :

The Human Rights Council is an inter-governmental body within the United Nations
system responsible for strengthening the promotion and protection of human rights
around the globe and for addressing situations of human rights violations and make
recommendations on them. It has the ability to discuss all thematic human rights issues
and situations that require its attention throughout the year. It meets at the UN Office
at Geneva. The Council is made up of 47 United Nations Member States which are
elected by the UN General Assembly. The UNHRC uses various mechanisms such as the
Universal Periodic Review, the Advisory Committee - considered the Council's "think
tank" - and the Complaint Procedure which allows individuals and organizations to bring
human rights violations to the attention of the Council. It has special rapporteurs,
special representatives, independent experts and working groups that monitor,
examine, advice and publicly report on thematic issues or human rights situations in
specific countries. Provided with a comprehensive mandate, the UNHRC “shall be
responsible for promoting universal respect for the protection of all human rights and
fundamental freedoms for all, without distinction of any kind in a fair and equal
manner”. Besides that, it “should address situations of violations of human rights,
including gross and systematic violations, and make recommendations thereon”. This
means that the work of the UNHRC is largely of advisory nature. Its resolutions could be
called firm suggestions to the UN Member States since it is ultimately up to the
countries’ governments to adopt legislation in line with said recommendations.

Introduction to the topic :

Discrimination is the unfair or prejudicial treatment of people and groups based on

characteristics such as race, gender, age, or sexual orientation. The Racial

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Discrimination Act protects people against discrimination in all areas of public life
including, among others, employment; education; getting or using services; renting or
buying a house or unit; and accessing public places. There are some very limited
exceptions. The Act also makes racial hatred unlawful. Reaffirming that one of the
basic aims of the United Nations, as proclaimed in the Charter, is to promote and
encourage respect for human rights and for fundamental freedoms for all, without
distinction as to race, sex, language or religion

What is racial discrimination ?

Racial discrimination is any discrimination against any individual on the basis of their
skin color, or racial or ethnic origin. Individuals can discriminate by refusing to do
business with, socialize with, or share resources with people of a certain group. Racial
discrimination is a serious human rights problem in the United States that intersects
with all of the US domestic issues covered by Human Rights. According to a survey by
the NGO Minority Rights Group International, over 55 per cent of violent conflicts
between 2007 and 2009 had tensions between communities or violations of the rights
of national and ethnic, religious and linguistic minorities at their core. “Violations of
minority rights constitute today a wide-scale problem, affecting all regions of the
world, with multiple manifestations ranging from attacks on religious minorities to
systematic exclusion of minorities from decision making in economic and public life,
and contributing to statelessness and other serious human rights challenges around
the world,” said Deputy High Commissioner for Human Rights, Kyung-wha Kang.
“These violations are not only undermining human rights and sustainable
development but also fueling insecurity and conflict.”

Different types of racial discrimination :

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There are four different types of racial discrimination.

Direct discrimination :

Direct discrimination is when you are treated worse than someone else because you
have a disability. You have to show that there is a link between your disability and the
way you have been treated, which can be difficult. However, you don't always have to
provide an example of a particular non-disabled person who was treated better than
you if it is clear from all the circumstances that your disability was the reason why you
were treated as you were.

There are three different types of direct discrimination.

Direct discrimination occurs when a person is treated less favorably because of:
A protected characteristic they possess. This is ordinary direct discrimination. It is the
only type of direct discrimination which may be lawful, but only if it is ‘objectively
justifiable’.
A protected characteristic possessed by someone who they are associated with (such
as a member of their family or a colleague). This is direct discrimination by
association.
A protected characteristic they are thought to possess, regardless of whether the
perception is correct or not. This is direct discrimination by perception.

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 • Although there is normally a deliberate act or exclusion, direct discrimination
does not have to be intentional. This means that even if discrimination occurred
unintentionally, a claim can still succeed

Examples

• Jon is not offered a promotion because he has depression. But his colleague
Harry, who does not have depression, is offered a promotion – even though
he has less experience and fewer qualifications.
• Carrie is interviewed for a job. She has better qualifications and more
experience than all the other candidates, and performs the best at the
interview. One of the interviewers knows of Carrie's diagnosis of bipolar
disorder. Carrie is not offered the job, but neither are any of the other
candidates. Carrie hasn't clearly been treated worse than any of the other
candidates, but she has been treated worse than a non-disabled person
would have been treated in the same situation.
• Jenny is not offered an apprenticeship after she tells the training provider
that she has caring responsibilities for her partner, who has a mental health
problem. This is an example of discrimination by association.

Indirect discrimination :

Indirect discrimination can happen when there are rules or arrangements

that apply to a group of employees or job applicants, but in practice are less
fair to a certain protected characteristic.

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The employee or applicant must be able to prove both of the following about
the rule or arrangement:

• it's unfair to them and to others with the same protected

characteristic, for example a woman believes she's experiencing sex
discrimination against women
• it's unfair compared with those who do not have the protected
characteristic, for example, it's unfair to employees who are women,
but not to men

Examples

• A business is recruiting for a head of sales. The HR team only

advertises the job internally. The only people who could apply internally are
all men. This means the business could be discriminating indirectly, based on
sex.

• A job advert for a salesperson says applicants must have spent 10

years working in retail. By doing this the business could be discriminating
indirectly based on age. This is because the advert excludes young people
who may still have the skills and qualifications needed.

The advert should instead say that applicants need a specific type of
experience and knowledge. It should also include the main tasks and skills
involved in the job, to show applicants what they'll need to be able to do.

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Harassment :

Harassment is ‘unwanted conduct’ related to a protected characteristic. It must have

the purpose or effect of violating a person’s dignity or creating an intimidating,
hostile, degrading, humiliating or offensive environment for them.
Bullying, nicknames, gossip, intrusive or inappropriate questions and comments can
be harassment. Excluding someone (not inviting them to meetings or events) may also
qualify. To say the behavior was not meant to cause offence or was ‘banter’, is not a
defense. With harassment, how the victim sees the conduct is more important than
how the harasser sees it. Someone who witnesses this type of conduct can claim
harassment if it has had a negative impact on their dignity at work, even if they do not
share the characteristic as the colleague who was harassed.

Victimization :

Victimization occurs when an employee suffers a ‘detriment’ because they have done
(or because it is suspected that they have done or may do) one of the following things
in good faith:
Make an allegation of discrimination
Support a complaint of discrimination
Give evidence relating to a complaint about discrimination
Raise a grievance concerning equality or discrimination
Do anything else for the purposes of (or in connection with) the Equality Act, such as
bringing an employment tribunal claim of discrimination

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A ‘detriment’ can include a loss, disadvantage, damage or harm. For example, being
labelled a ‘troublemaker’, being left out and ignored, being denied training or
promotion, or being made redundant.

Lawful Discrimination :

When can discrimination be lawful? In limited circumstances, ordinary direct

discrimination and indirect discrimination may be lawful if the employer
can objectively justify it (the law calls this ‘a proportionate means of achieving a
legitimate aim’).
The employer must show that the less favorable treatment or PCP was appropriate
and necessary (this must be objective and usually involves a business need). What is
‘proportionate’ will vary from case to case and can also depend on the size and
resources of the business. For example, a large employer with many staff may find it
easier to approve flexible working requests, which may come mostly from women
with childcare responsibilities, than a small firm may be able to if they only have a few
staff.

“Combatting racism and racial discrimination in Europe”

In today's world, contemporary forms of racism and racial discrimination are complex
and disturbing. In Europe, these issues increasingly lie at the heart of political and
social concerns. Faced with persistent expressions of racism and xenophobia, the
Council of Europe Member States have, for several years now, been taking firm and
sustained action to combat these trends.

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Without making an exhaustive inventory of the situation and listing all the problems
observed, we can outline a few broad categories in which racism and racial
discrimination occur: day to day life in major areas, such as employment, education,
housing and access to social services; human rights violations against members of
Roma communities; hostile attitudes to and stigmatization of migrants, refugees and
asylum-seekers; increasingly widespread anti-Semitic incidents; intensification of
expressions of Islamophobia; use of racist, anti-Semitic and xenophobic arguments in
political discourse; and a negative climate in public opinion, which plays a crucial part
in the emergence of expressions of racism and intolerance in society. These trends, of
course, vary in scale from one country to another, but are significant enough to be of
concern.

To cope with this situation, European countries have devised responses at both
national and European levels. At the broader European level, the most significant
advance in recent years has been the adoption of Protocol No. 12 to the European
Convention on Human Rights, which came into force on 1 April 2005. The Protocol
contains a general independent clause prohibiting discrimination.

In the immediate future, European Governments are faced with several challenges,
two of which are very significant: enforcing action against racism and racial
discrimination in an environment increasingly affected by the fight against terrorism;
and addressing the issue of integration, which is widely debated in most European
countries. Attention should be drawn to the ECRI General Policy Recommendation No.
8 on combating racism while fighting terrorism and to General Policy
Recommendation No. 11, adopted on 29 June 2007, on combating racism and racial
discrimination in policing. The latter contains a legal definition of racial profiling and
asks Member States to clearly define and prohibit racial profiling by law. The principle
of non-discrimination and policies on the pursuit of equality are the necessary basis
for achieving integration.

In the final analysis, encouraging signs at the national and European levels
demonstrate that
Governments and civil society are genuinely involved in fighting racism and racial
discrimination in Europe. But the fight is far from won and advances are needed now
more than ever to guide our countries and give practical effect and full meaning to the
universal principle: "All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights".

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“Circumstances of Pakistan”

In March, the UN Human Rights Council (HRC) adopted the outcome of Pakistan’s third
Universal Periodic Review (UPR), which was conducted in November 2017. The
Pakistani government rejected a large number of key recommendations that states
made to it during the UPR.

Since Pakistan was elected to the Human Rights Council in 2017, it has generally failed
to take a strong stance on serious human rights situations. However, in September
2017, it led Organization for Islamic Cooperation member states at the council in
expressing concerns about the ethnic cleansing campaign against the Rohingya by the
Myanmar military.

In June, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights
(OHCHR) released the first-ever report by the United Nations on human rights in
Kashmir. The report noted that human rights abuses in Pakistani Kashmir were of a
“different caliber or magnitude” to those in Indian Kashmir and included misuse of
anti-terrorism laws to target dissent, and restrictions on the rights to freedom of
expression and opinion, peaceful assembly, and association.

In July, the EU deployed an election observation mission to Pakistan that later issued
a report highlighting significant curtailment of freedom of expression, allegations of
interference in the electoral process by the military-led establishment, and
politicization of the judiciary.

Historically, tense relations between Pakistan and India have shown no signs of
improvement, with both countries accusing each other of facilitating unrest and
militancy.

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“Racism and Discrimination in the US”

The US is and always has been a very multicultural country. Nevertheless, minority
groups in the US are unfortunately often subject to discrimination, ranging from racist
comments to violent hate crimes. The groups that are most often discriminated
against are African Americans, Hispanics, and Muslims, but smaller minority groups,
such as Jews, other immigrant groups, and the LGBT community, bear their share of
intolerance as well.

Racism

Although the United States has come a long way since the days of slavery, and huge
steps were made towards granting equal rights on the basis of race in the 1960s,
racism is still a very pressing problem in the US today. Sometimes it is blatant and
open, but often it can be more subtle, or even built into the system, as seen by racial
profiling by law enforcement officers and other government officials, and the near
impossibility for some groups, especially African Americans, to break the cycle of
poverty. Discriminatory policies in schools lead to the so-called “school-to-prison
pipeline.” Due to zero-tolerance policies in schools, disadvantaged black youths
quickly end up being pushed out of school and into the juvenile and criminal justice
systems, instead of being given a chance and receiving counseling within the school
system.

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Xenophobia

Xenophobia has risen over the past years as the topic of illegal immigration has come
to the forefront of American politics. The nation is divided on what to do about the
millions of illegal immigrants currently living on US soil. Anti-immigration groups
patrol the border, making sure no more prospective immigrants cross over, and racial
profiling is used to question the legal status of anyone “foreign-looking”. Especially
with the instability of the US economy in recent years, some Americans fear that their
jobs are being given away to immigrants.

Islamophobia

After the September 11 terrorist attacks, Islamophobia has increased in the US, fueled
by ignorance and the faulty belief that all Muslims are fundamentalists. Muslims,
especially those who could be identified as such by their dress or practices, were
frequent victims of assaults and attacks, mosques were vandalized, and they were
generally made to feel unwelcome. The number of these incidents decreased over the
following years, but many people still harbor general suspicion of Muslims and the
Muslim faith.

“Racism and related violence against African communities”

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Two white men, Willem Oosthuizen and Theo Jackson, in 2016 were put behind bars
for a racially motivated assault on a black man after they alleged, he had trespassed,
in 2019 their sentences and conviction was adjusted finding the pair guilty of assault
with intent to do grievous bodily harm and kidnapping. Jackson was also sentenced
for defeating the ends of justice for burning evidence.

• RIGHTS VIOLATION:
Despite South Africa’s strong constitutional protections for human rights, public
confidence in the government’s willingness to tackle human rights violations,
corruption and respect for the rule of law has eroded. The government has
failed to ensure an estimated half-a-million children with disabilities have
access to a quality education. Concerns remain about police brutality, the
treatment of migrants, refugees, and asylum seekers, and recurring outbreaks
of xenophobia violence. South Africa continues to play an important but
inconsistent role in advancing the rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and
transgender people. Its commitment to human rights and international justice
in its foreign policy practice remains in question.
https://www.hrw.org/africa/south-africa

“ India”

In 2018, the government led by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) harassed and at times
prosecuted activists, lawyers, human rights defenders, and journalists for criticizing
authorities. Draconian sedition and counterterrorism laws were used to chill free
expression. Foreign funding regulations were used to target nongovernmental
organizations (NGOs) critical of government actions or policies.

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The government failed to prevent or credibly investigate growing mob attacks on
religious minorities, marginalized communities, and critics of the government—often
carried out by groups claiming to support the government. At the same time, some
senior BJP leaders publicly supported perpetrators of such crimes, made
inflammatory speeches against minority communities, and promoted Hindu
supremacy and ultra-nationalism, which encouraged further violence.

Lack of accountability for past abuses committed by security forces persisted even as
there were new allegations of torture and extrajudicial killings, including in the states
of Uttar Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, and Haryana.

The Supreme Court decriminalized homosexual sexual relations, striking down a

colonial-era law, paving the way for full constitutional protections for lesbian, gay,
bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people.

Dalits, Tribal Groups, and Religious Minorities

Mob violence by extremist Hindu groups affiliated with the ruling BJP against minority
communities, especially Muslims, continued throughout the year amid rumors that
they traded or killed cows for beef. As of November, there had been 18 such attacks,
and eight people killed during the year.

In July, the government in Assam published a draft of the National Register of Citizens,
aimed at identifying Indian citizens and legitimate residents following repeated
protests and violence over irregular migration from Bangladesh. The potential
exclusion of over four million people, many of them Muslims, from the register raised
concerns over arbitrary detention and possible statelessness.

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Dalits, formerly “untouchables,” continued to be discriminated against in education
and in jobs. There was increased violence against Dalits, in part as a reaction to their
more organized and vocal demands for social progress and to narrow historical caste
differences.

In November, farmers protested against debt and lack of state support for rural
communities, and called for establishing rights of women farmers and protecting the
land rights of Dalits and tribal communities against forcible acquisition.

In April, nine people were killed in clashes with police after Dalit groups protested
across several north Indian states against a Supreme Court ruling to amend the
Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act. In response
to a complaint of alleged misuse of the law, the court had ordered that a senior police
official should conduct a preliminary inquiry before a case is registered under the law.
Following the widespread protests, the parliament passed amendments to the law in
August, overturning the Supreme Court order.

In July, police in Ahmedabad city raided an area, home to 20,000 members of the
vulnerable and marginalized Chhara tribe, a denotified tribe. According to residents,
police allegedly brutally beat up scores of people, damaged property, and filed false
cases against many of them.

A January report by a government-appointed committee on denotified tribes—tribes

that were labeled as criminal during British colonial rule, a notification repealed after
independence—said they were the most marginalized communities, subject to “social
stigma, atrocity and exclusion.”

Tribal communities remained vulnerable to displacement because of mining, dams,

and other large infrastructure projects.

In September, the Supreme Court upheld the constitutionality of the biometric

identification project, Aadhaar, saying the government could make it a requirement
for accessing government benefits and filing income tax, but restricted it for other
purposes. Rights groups raised concerns that Aadhaar registration requirements had
prevented poor and marginalized people from getting essential services that are
constitutionally guaranteed, including food and health care.

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Civil Society and Freedom of Association

Authorities increasingly used the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act to target civil
rights activists and human rights defenders. Police in Maharashtra state arrested and
detained 10 civil rights activists, lawyers, and writers, accusing them of being
members of a banned Maoist organization and responsible for funding and instigating
caste-based violence that took place on January 1, 2018. At time of writing, eight of
them were in jail, and one was under house arrest. A fact-finding committee, headed
by Pune city’s deputy mayor, found that the January 1 violence was premeditated by
Hindu extremist groups, but police were targeting the activists because of pressure
from the government to protect the perpetrators.

In Manipur state, police threatened and harassed activists, lawyers, and families
pursuing justice for alleged unlawful killings by government security forces.

The Indian government also continued to use the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act
(FCRA) to restrict foreign funding for NGOs critical of government policies or
protesting the government’s large development projects. Cases filed by NGOs
challenging government decisions to suspend or cancel their FCRA were pending in
court.

Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity

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In September, India’s Supreme Court struck down section 377 of India’s penal code,
decriminalizing consensual adult same-sex relations. The ruling followed decades of
struggle by activists, lawyers, and members of LGBT communities. The court’s
decision also has significance internationally, as the Indian law served as a template
for similar laws throughout much of the former British empire.

In December, the lower house of parliament passed the Transgender Persons

(Protection of Rights) Bill, 2018. Rights groups and a parliamentary committee had
criticized an earlier version of the bill for contradicting several provisions laid down in
a 2016 Supreme Court ruling. Although the government incorporated several
amendments in the revised bill, it failed to adequately protect the community,
including transgender people’s right to self identify.

Foreign Policy

The Indian government spoke out against Maldives President Abdulla Yameen’s
crackdown on opposition leaders and declaration of a state of emergency, despite
concerns that criticism of the Maldives’ leader would push the country further toward
China. This led to tense relations between the two countries. India aimed to repair ties
with the Maldives after Yamen was defeated in elections held in September 2018.

In June, India joined 119 other countries in voting in favor of a United Nations General
Assembly resolution that deplored Israel’s “excessive, disproportionate and
indiscriminate” use of force against Palestinian civilians in Gaza after the United
States vetoed a similar resolution at the UN Security Council.

In May, Foreign Minister Sushma Swaraj visited Myanmar and said India would
help to ensure a “safe, speedy and sustainable” return of hundreds of thousands
of Rohingya Muslim refugees who had fled to Bangladesh during a campaign of

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ethnic cleansing by security forces in late 2017. Swaraj reaffirmed India’s
commitment to socioeconomic development projects in Myanmar’s Rakhine
State, but did not call on the Myanmar government to check abuses by its security
forces or amend its discriminatory citizenship law that effectively keeps the
Rohingya stateless. In October, the Indian government deported seven Rohingya
to Myanmar, where they are at grave risk of abuse, prompting condemnation from
rights groups at home and abroad.

A public call on rights protections did not feature during bilateral engagement with
other neighbors including Bangladesh, Nepal, Sri Lanka, and Afghanistan. Relations
with Pakistan were marked by angry allegations and counter-allegations of
sponsoring violent groups.

Key International Actors

In September, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Secretary of Defense James

Mattis visited India to hold talks with their counterparts to strengthen trade,
economic, and defense cooperation between the two countries, but there was no
public discussion of the human rights situation in either country.

Throughout the year, the UN special procedures issued several statements raising
concerns over a slew of issues in India including sexual violence, discrimination
against religious minorities, targeting of activists, and lack of accountability for
security forces.

The UN special rapporteur on racism called the decision to deport seven Rohingya
back to Myanmar a “flagrant denial of their right to protection.”

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In September, the US State Department quietly released the findings from its $1.4
million investigation into the crackdown on the Rohingya, which detailed the
military’s atrocities but did not reach legal conclusions about the abuses committed.
Members of Congress followed up with a call for a legal determination to be made.

Relevant organizations :

The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) was
founded in 1909 in response to the ongoing violence against Black people around the
country. The NAACP is the largest civil rights organization in the nation with over 2
million activists involved in its 2,200 units across the country. Its mission is to secure
the political, educational, social, and economic rights of Black people and to eliminate
race-based discrimination. Its website offers ways to volunteer and donate.

The Black Youth Project (BYP) examines the attitudes, resources, and culture of Black
millennials. It explores how culture influences the decisions young people make in
terms of health, sex, and politics.

BYP conducts research, shares knowledge, and takes action. Its headquarters are in
the Chicago area, but they have chapters in cities across the nation where they
provide social activism training to young people.

BYP offers several ways people can help its members make a difference,
including pitching and writing articles related to racial injustice, LGBTQIA+ issues, and
feminism or by making a donation.

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The Las Americas Immigrant Advocacy Center is a nonprofit organization that works to
serve the legal needs of low-income immigrants who aren’t able to afford legal aid. Las
Americas reports providing legal care to people in Texas and New Mexico. It has served
more than 30,000 low-income immigrant residents in the El Paso area alone, and its
clients come from all over the world.

From helping individuals gain asylum to providing general immigration relief, Las
Americas' legal services are abundant. To help, you can apply to be a volunteer.

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) seeks to ensure constitutional freedoms for
every gender, race, and sexual orientation. You can help the ACLU take action as its
members continue to lobby for systemic change across the country. Common issues
addressed include free speech, human rights, racial injustice, and criminal justice. The
ACLU is composed of hundreds of attorneys and thousands of volunteers who are
committed to protecting civil liberties in the country.

QARMA

Q1. What measures were taken to combat multiple forms of

discrimination against women belonging to minorities, as well as
migrant, asylum-seeking and refugee women?

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Q2. Racial Discrimination can not be only solved by government Policy it
needs Revolution in the societies to accept it.Bring Ideas/Suggest how
your country/other countries can bring this change?

Q3. How can HRC help the other UN agencies get food and materials to
the civilians and refugee of conflicted areas?

Q4. What strategies can institutions at the non governmental, national

and international levels implement to help better transition of countries
emerging from conflicts?

Q5. Should efforts to help Re establishment of human right be

concentrated in a specific region or to certain human rights only?

Links :

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https://www.hrsolutions-uk.com/4-types-of-discrimination/

https://www.equalityhumanrights.com/en/advice-and-guidance/your-
rights-under-equality-act-2010

https://www.equalityhumanrights.com/en/advice-and-guidance/race-
discrimination

https://www.ohchr.org/en/instruments-
mechanisms/instruments/international-convention-elimination-all-
forms-racial

https://www.acas.org.uk/race-discrimination

https://www.ohchr.org/en/minorities/about-minorities-and-human-
rights

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