PART II Policies & Implementation

Unit 6 Definitions and forms of

discrimination; institutional racism

10 November 2004

Introduction: EU policies• Amsterdam Treaty (Article 13) • two Directives (2000/43/EC, 2000/78/EC)• European constitution (Treaty establishing a Constitution for

Europe) incl. Charter of Fundamental Rights (Part II)

• ECHR (constitutes general principles of the Union's law, TITLE II, ARTICLE I-9)

• ECHCR Protocol 12 (that relates to Article 14) • EUMC (on Racism and Xenophobia) http://www.eumc.eu.int/

• ECMI http://www.ecmi.de

• European Framework Convention for protection of national minorities (FCNM)

• European Charter for Regional or Minority languages

European constitutionhttp://www.europa.eu.int/constitution/index_en.htm

ARTICLE I-2: The Union's values„The Union is founded on the values of respect for human

dignity, freedom, democracy, equality, the rule of law and respect for human rights, including the rights of persons belonging to minorities.“

„These values are common to the Member States in a society in which pluralism, non-discrimination, tolerance, justice, solidarity and equality between women and men prevail“.

The Union's objectives„It shall combat social exclusion and discrimination, and

shall promote social justice and protection, …

Charter of Fundamental Rights

Non-discrimination (ARTICLE II-81)

„ Any discrimination based on any ground such as sex, race, colour, ethnic or social origin, genetic features, language, religion or belief, political or any other opinion, membership of a national minority, property, birth, disability, age or sexual orientation shall be prohibited.“

Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Article 1

„ all human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood ( and sisterhood)“

Europe´s challenge is to work twds realisation of this right.

How to help transform established law ( national or intl.) from pieces of paper to popular practice ?

Who are the key policy making and policy implementing actors?

Council of Europe

• Specialist Groups on Roma and Gypsies, • the European Commission for Democracy through

law, • the European Commission against Racisms and

Intolerance, • The Parliamentary Assembly , • The Congress of Local and RegionalAuthorities, • programmes to build inter community confidence in

society, • the Council of Europe monitoring department• the Commissioner for Human Rights, • Advisory Committee of the Framework Convention

UN Commitees, OSCE

UN CERD• CRC • CEDAW • ICCPR • ICESCR• CAT • UN Commissioner for Human Rights• etc

OSCE High Commissioner on National MinoritiesLund, Oslo, and Hague recommendations

OSCE ODIHR Roma/ Sinti Contact point (vide next term)

Roma Policies : UNIT 7+8

Rooker, Marcia (1997) "Monitoring Human Rights: The Importance of the Universal Level for Roma and Sinti" CPRSI Newsletter, February 1997, vol.3, no. 1, pp. 3-10, http://www.osce.org/odihr/documents/periodicals/cprsi3-1.pdf

Martin Kovats (2001) The Emergence of European Roma Policy.” http://www.tolerance.cz/courses/monnet/summer2004/KOVATS.PPT

useful links:

European Roma Information Office http://www.erionet.org/Home.html

European Roma Forum http://www.europeanromaforum.org/

European Roma Rights Centre http://www.errc.org

Czech Radio http://www.romove.cz

What commitments do State Parties undertake when they ratify the Framework Convention ( FCNM)?

  Choice of identity

   Non-discrimination;

    Promotion of effective equality;

    Promotion of conditions favouring the preservation and development of culture, religion, language and traditions;

  Freedom of assembly, association, expression, thought, conscience and religion;

  Access to and use of media;

       Linguistic freedoms:       - use of the minority language in private and in public as

well as its use before administrative authorities;       - use of one’s own name in the minority language;        - Display of information of a private nature in the

minority language;       - Topographical names in the minority language;       Education:       - Learning and instruction in the minority language;      - Freedom to set up educational institutions;       Transfrontier contacts;       International and transfrontier co-operation;       Participation in economic, cultural and social life;       Participation in public life;       Prohibition of forced assimilation;

FCNM cont.

• FC emphasises State Responsibilities rather than being a broad expression of rights.

• What is National Minority? No definition. Selected in good faith.

• The existence of a minority is a matter of fact not a matter of legislation by a State ( UN HR commiteee)

• Monitoring of State compliance with the Convention: Advisory committee (AC) + Commitee of Ministers (CM),

• State reports (every 5yrs or upon request of CM, if needed AC sends States written questionnaires),

• AC Country visists, alternative reports from NGOs

• AC adopts an opinion,upon which the State can comment

• CM adopts a resolution with conclusions and recommendation to the State on th eimplementationm of the FC.

• Rersolution incl Comments and opinion available on CoE web site

• www.coe.int/T/E/human_rights/minorities

Activity 1- DiscriminationTake a piece of paper and put down the following:1. Try to remember when you felt you were

discriminated against (as a kid or as an adult)2. When you discriminated against somebody else3. When you vitnessed someone being discriminated

against and you remained a „bystander“4. When you took action to help or intervene when

someone else was discriminated against.How did it feel? In groups of four share your notes

and select a rapporteur who will report on behalf of the whole group.

Activity 2 +3

Vocabulary of discrimination:

Fill in the sheet that was handed out to you

Body Ritual among the Nacirema (homework):in UNIT 6 web site

Read the article, complete the excercise and send your answers by email to laubeova@chello.cz

Discrimination – definition 2000/43/EC

Indirect discrimination shall be taken to occur where an apparently neutral provision, criterion or practice would put persons of a racial or ethnic origin at a particular disadvantage compared with other persons, unless that provision, criterion or practice is objectively justified by a legitimate aim and the means of achieving.

see also notes on the directive in UNIT 6 web site

Role of NGOs in drafting the directive

• Policy actors: governments & public admin., private sector, intl. organisations, NGOs

• Role of NGOs - Julie Fisher• Starting Line Group : ERRC, Interrights, MPG –

see text on the directive in Unit 6

• Cf directives 2000/43/EC and 2000/78/EC

Enlarged Europe – May 2004

Green paper on Equality and non-discrimination in an enlarged European Union:

http://www.stop-discrimination.info

http://europa.eu.int/comm/employment_social/fundamental_rights/greenpaper_en.htm

http://www.enar-eu.org/en/info/fact18.shtml

Case Study: UK (see also Unit 9)

Ethnic minority groups - census figuresCensus 2001- NEW CLASSIFICATION

ALLOWED SELF-DECLARATION OF MIXED RACE (in 1991 classified as white) – annex 1

1999 – Steven Lawrence Report (RECOGNITION OF institutional racism in METRO Police as well as British society

UK Ethnic minority groups- 1

location Census 1991 Census 2001

UK 5.5% 9%

Greater London 20.2%*  28.8%*

West Midlands 15% 11.3%* 

Brent 45% 54.7%

Newham 43% 60.6%

Slough  27.7%* 36.3%

Birmingham 21%??  29.6%

Luton 19.8%* 28.1%

UK Ethnic minority groups- 21992 2002

Black Black-Caribbean (West Indies)

0,9% 1,1%

Lewisham (London) 12,3%

  Black-African 0,4% 0,9%

  Black-Other 0,3%  

South Asian

Indian 1,5% 2% (Leicester 25,7%)

  Pakistani 0,9% 1,4% (in Bradford 15 %)

Bangladeshi 0,3% 0,5% (in Tower Hamlets 33,4%)

Chinese and others

Chinese 0,3%  

  Other-Asia 0,4%  

Other-Other 0,5  

Links for statistics

• http://www.cre.gov.uk/pdfs/em_fs.pdf http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/1470573.stm http://www.warwick.ac.uk/~errac/keyinf.htm http://www.cre.gov.uk/duty/reia/statistics_census.html http://www.statistics.gov.uk/CCI/nugget.asp?ID=263&Pos=2&ColRank=2&Rank=224

Institutional racism

1999 – The Stephen Lawrence Inquiry: Report of an Inquiry by Sir William Macpherson of Cluny, also at www

.official-documents.co.uk/document/cm42/4262/4262.htm; mainly chapter 6, pp. 26-28

„Institutional Racism defined as: The collective failure of an organisation to provide an appropriate and professional service to people because of their colour, culture or ethnic origin. It can be seen or detected in processes, attitudes and behaviour which amount to discrimination through unwitting prejudice, ignorance, thoughtlessness and racist stereotyping which disadvantages minority ethnic people.“

see also notes on inst. racism in UNIT 6 web site

Case Study: UK

UK immigration/nationality and race relation legislation: the ”liberal” compromise

The antidiscriminatory legislation was implemented as a trade off to compensate for increasingly tight immigration policy. Assimilation possible only if the numbers are low…

1948 British Nationality Act

Commonwealth citizens allowed freely to enter and settle in Britain

1962 Commonwealth Immigrants Act

removed rights of the 48 Act for most new (black) Commonwealth citizens. Instead. A limited number of employment vouchers were issued

1968 Commonwealth Immigrants Act

restricted entry to East African Asians who held UK passports issued by the British government

1971 Immigration Actmade a distinction between patrials (born in Britain or

with (great)parents born in Britain) who kept full citizenship rights; and non-patrials (mainly black, new Commonwealth) who were required to obtain work permits prior to entry.

1981 British nationality Act

1988 Immigration Act

1965 Race Relations Acti) made illegal discrimination in certain places,

but means of enforcement were very weak,

ii) made incitement to racial hatred illegal

1968 Race Relations ActEnlarged the 65 Act (discrimination made illegal

in employment & housing, enforcement still weak, relying on the new Community relations Council to take up individual complaints

1976 Race Relations Act Extended the anti-discrimination laws to

unintended as well as intended discrimination

 1998 Human Rights Act

1976 RRA (Amendment 2000)Introduced positive duty

Antidiscrimination legislation

UK – see Unit 9 in reader

Also: Fredman, Sandra. Discrimination Law, OUP, 2002

Case Study 2 - the NL

• Ethnic composition

• Central policies

• Wet SAMEN Act

• LBR – Landelijk Bureau ter bestrijding van Rassendiscriminatie (National Bureau against Racism), annual reports at http://www.lbr.nl