Human Rights Education in Asian Schools Volume V
World Conference Against Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia and Related Intolerance
Programme of Action
III. Measures of prevention, education and protection aimed at the eradication of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance at the national, regional and international levels
58.
Urges States to adopt and implement, at both the national and international levels, effective measures and policies, in addition to existing anti-discrimination national legislation and relevant international instruments and mechanisms, which encourage all citizens and institutions to take a stand against racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance, and to recognize, respect and maximize the benefits of diversity within and among all nations in working together to build a harmonious and productive future by putting into practice and promoting values and principles such as justice, equality and non-discrimination, democracy, fairness and friendship, tolerance and respect within and between communities and nations, in particular through public information and education programmes to raise awareness and understanding of the benefits of cultural diversity, including programmes where the public authorities work in partnership with international and non-governmental organizations and other sectors of civil society;
59.
Urges States to mainstream a gender perspective in the design and development of measures of prevention, education and protection aimed at the eradication of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance at all levels, to ensure that they effectively target the distinct situations of women and men;
60.
Urges States to adopt or strengthen, as appropriate, national programmes for eradicating poverty and reducing social exclusion which take account of the needs and experiences of individuals or groups of individuals who are victims of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance, and also urges that they expand their efforts to foster bilateral, regional and international cooperation in implementing those programmes;
61.
Urges States to work to ensure that their political and legal systems reflect the multicultural diversity within their societies and, where necessary, to improve democratic institutions so that they are more fully participatory and avoid marginalization, exclusion and discrimination against specific sectors of society;
62.
Urges States to take all necessary measures to address specifically, through policies and programmes, racism and racially motivated violence against women and girls and to increase cooperation, policy responses and effective implementation of national legislation and of their obligations under relevant international instruments, and other protective and preventive measures aimed at the elimination of all forms of racially motivated discrimination and violence against women and girls;
63.
Encourages the business sector, in particular the tourist industry and Internet providers, to develop codes of conduct, with a view to preventing trafficking in persons and protecting the victims of such traffic, especially those in prostitution, against gender-based and racial discrimination and promoting their rights, dignity and security;
64.
Urges States to devise, enforce and strengthen effective measures at the national, regional and international levels to prevent, combat and eliminate all forms of trafficking in women and children, in particular girls, through comprehensive anti-trafficking strategies which include legislative measures, prevention campaigns and information exchange. It also urges States to allocate resources, as appropriate, to provide comprehensive programmes designed to provide assistance to, protection for, healing, reintegration into society and rehabilitation of victims. States shall provide or strengthen training for law enforcement, immigration and other relevant officials who deal with victims of trafficking in this regard;
65.
Encourages the bodies, agencies and relevant programmes of the United Nations system and States to promote and to make use of the Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement (E/CN.4/1998/53/Add.2), particularly those provisions relating to nondiscrimination;
A. National level
1. Education and awareness-raising measures
117.
Urges States, where appropriate working with other relevant bodies, to commit financial resources to anti-racism education and to media campaigns promoting the values of acceptance, tolerance, diversity and respect for the cultures of all indigenous peoples living within their national borders. In particular, States should promote an accurate understanding of the histories and cultures of indigenous peoples;
118.
Urges the United Nations, other appropriate international and regional organizations and States to redress the marginalization of Africa's contribution to world history and civilization by developing and implementing a specific and comprehensive programme of research, education and mass communication to disseminate widely a balanced and objective presentation of Africa's seminal and valuable contribution to humanity;
119.
Invites States and relevant international organizations and non-governmental organizations to build upon the efforts of the Slave Route Project of the United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization and its theme of "Breaking the Silence" by developing texts and testimony, slavery multi-media centres and/or programmes that will collect, record, organize, exhibit and publish the existing data relevant to the history of slavery and the trans-Atlantic, Mediterranean and Indian Ocean slave trades, paying particular attention to the thoughts and actions of the victims of slavery and the slave trade, in their quest for freedom and justice;
120.
Salutes the efforts of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization made within the framework of the Slave Route Project and requests that the outcome be made available to the international community as soon as possible;
Access to education without discrimination
121.
Urges States to commit themselves to ensuring access to education, including access to free primary education for all children, both girls and boys, and access for adults to lifelong learning and education, based on respect for human rights, diversity and tolerance, without discrimination of any kind;
122.
Urges States to ensure equal access to education for all in law and in practice, and to refrain from any legal or any other measures leading to imposed racial segregation in any form in access to schooling;
123.
Urges States:
(a) To adopt and implement laws that prohibit discrimination on the basis of race, colour, descent or national or ethnic origin at all levels of education, both formal and non-formal;
(b) To take all appropriate measures to eliminate obstacles limiting the access of children to education;
(c) To ensure that all children have access without discrimination to education of good quality;
(d) To establish and implement standardized methods to measure and track the educational performance of disadvantaged children and young people;
(e) To commit resources to eliminate, where they exist, inequalities in educational outcomes for children and young people;
(f) To support efforts to ensure safe school environments, free from violence and harassment motivated by racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia or related intolerance; and
(g) To consider establishing financial assistance programmes designed to enable all students, regardless of race, colour, descent or ethnic or national origin, to attend institutions of higher education;
124. Urges States to adopt, where applicable, appropriate measures to ensure that persons belonging to national or ethnic, religious and linguistic minorities have access to education without discrimination of any kind and, where possible, have an opportunity to learn their own language in order to protect them from any form of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance that they may be subjected to;
Human rights education
125.
Requests States to include the struggle against racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance among the activities undertaken within the framework of the United Nations Decade for Human Rights Education (1995-2004) and to take into account the recommendations of the midterm evaluation report of the Decade;
126.
Encourages all States, in cooperation with the United Nations, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization and other relevant international organizations, to initiate and develop cultural and educational programmes aimed at countering racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance, in order to ensure respect for the dignity and worth of all human beings and enhance mutual understanding among all cultures and civilizations. It further urges States to support and implement public information campaigns and specific training programmes in the field of human rights, where appropriate formulated in local languages, to combat racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance and promote respect for the values of diversity, pluralism, tolerance, mutual respect, cultural sensitivity, integration and inclusiveness. Such programmes and campaigns should be addressed to all sectors of society, in particular children and young people;
127.
Urges States to intensify their efforts in the field of education, including human rights education, in order to promote an understanding and awareness of the causes, consequences and evils of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance, and also urges States, in consultation with educational authorities and the private sector, as appropriate, and encourages educational authorities and the private sector, as appropriate, to develop educational materials, including textbooks and dictionaries, aimed at combating those phenomena and, in this context, calls upon States to give importance, if appropriate, to textbook and curriculum review and amendment, so as to eliminate any elements that might promote racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance or reinforce negative stereotypes, and to include material that refutes such stereotypes;
128.
Urges States, if appropriate in cooperation with relevant organizations, including youth organizations, to support and implement public formal and non-formal education programmes designed to promote respect for cultural diversity;
Human rights education for children and youth
129.
Urges States to introduce and, as applicable, to reinforce anti-discrimination and anti-racism components in human rights programmes in school curricula, to develop and improve relevant educational material, including history and other textbooks, and to ensure that all teachers are effectively trained and adequately motivated to shape attitudes and behavioural patterns, based on the principles of nondiscrimination, mutual respect and tolerance;
130.
Calls upon States to undertake and facilitate activities aimed at educating young people in human rights and democratic citizenship and instilling values of solidarity, respect and appreciation of diversity, including respect for different groups. A special effort to inform and sensitize young people to respect democratic values and human rights should be undertaken or developed to fight against ideologies based on the fallacious theory of racial superiority;
131.
Urges States to encourage all schools to consider developing educational activities, including extracurricular ones, to raise awareness against racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance,
inter alia by commemorating the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (21 March);
132.
Recommends that States introduce, or reinforce, human rights education, with a view to combating prejudices which lead to racial discrimination and to promoting understanding, tolerance and friendship between different racial or ethnic groups, in schools and in institutions of higher education, and support public formal and non-formal education programmes designed to promote respect for cultural diversity and the self-esteem of victims;
Human rights education for public officials and professionals
133.
Urges States to develop and strengthen anti-racist and gender-sensitive human rights training for public officials, including personnel in the administration of justice, particularly in law enforcement, correctional and security services, as well as among health-care, schools and migration authorities;
134.
Urges States to pay specific attention to the negative impact of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance on the administration of justice and fair trial, and to conduct nationwide campaigns, amongst other measures, to raise awareness among State organs and public officials concerning their obligations under the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination and other relevant instruments;
135.
Requests States, wherever appropriate through cooperation with international organizations, national institutions, non-governmental organizations and the private sector, to organize and facilitate training activities, including courses or seminars, on international norms prohibiting racial discrimination and their applicability in domestic law, as well as on their international human rights obligations, for prosecutors, members of the judiciary and other public officials;
136.
Calls upon States to ensure that education and training, especially teacher training, promote respect for human rights and the fight against racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance and that educational institutions implement policies and programmes agreed by the relevant authorities on equal opportunities, anti-racism, gender equality, and cultural, religious and other diversity, with the participation of teachers, parents and students, and follow up their implementation. It further urges all educators, including teachers at all levels of education, religious communities and the print and electronic media, to play an effective role in human rights education, including as a means to combat racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance;
137.
Encourages States to consider taking measures to increase the recruitment, retention and promotion of women and men belonging to groups which are currently under-represented in the teaching profession as a result of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance, and to guarantee them effective equality of access to the profession. Particular efforts should be made to recruit women and men who have the ability to interact effectively with all groups;
138.
Urges States to strengthen the human rights training and awareness-raising activities designed for immigration officials, border police and staff of detention centres and prisons, local authorities and other civil servants in charge of enforcing laws, as well as teachers, with particular attention to the human rights of migrants, refugees and asylum-seekers, in order to prevent acts of racial discrimination and xenophobia and to avoid situations where prejudices lead to decisions based on racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia or related intolerance;
139.
Urges States to provide or strengthen training for law enforcement, immigration and other relevant officials in the prevention of trafficking in persons. The training should focus on methods used in preventing such trafficking, prosecuting the traffickers and protecting the rights of victims, including protecting the victims from the traffickers. The training should also take into account the need to consider human rights and child- and gender-sensitive issues and it should encourage cooperation with non-governmental organizations, other relevant organizations and other elements of civil society;
2. Information, communication and the media, including new technologies
140.
Welcomes the positive contribution made by the new information and communications technologies, including the Internet, in combating racism through rapid and widereaching communication;
141.
Draws attention to the potential to increase the use of the new information and communications technologies, including the Internet, to create educational and awarenessraising networks against racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance, both in and out of school, as well as the ability of the Internet to promote universal respect for human rights and also respect for the value of cultural diversity;
142.
Emphasizes the importance of recognizing the value of cultural diversity and of putting in place concrete measures to encourage the access of marginalized communities to the mainstream and alternative media through,
inter alia, the presentation of programmes that reflect their cultures and languages;
143.
Expresses concern at the material progression of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance, including their contemporary forms and manifestations, such as the use of the new information and communications technologies, including the Internet, to disseminate ideas of racial superiority;
144.
Urges States and encourages the private sector to promote the development by the media, including the print and electronic media, including the Internet and advertising, taking into account their independence, through their relevant associations and organizations at the national, regional and international levels, of a voluntary ethical code of conduct and self-regulatory measures, and of policies and practices aimed at:
(a) Combating racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance;
(b) Promoting the fair, balanced and equitable representation of the diversity of their societies, as well as ensuring that this diversity is reflected among their staff;
(c) Combating the proliferation of ideas of racial superiority, justification of racial hatred and discrimination in any form;
(d) Promoting respect, tolerance and understanding among all individuals, peoples, nations and civilizations, for example through assistance in public awareness-raising campaigns;
(e) Avoiding stereotyping in all its forms, and particularly the promotion of false images of migrants, including migrant workers, and refugees, in order to prevent the spread of xenophobic sentiments among the public and to encourage the objective and balanced portrayal of people, events and history;
145.
Urges States to implement legal sanctions, in accordance with relevant international human rights law, in respect of incitement to racial hatred through new information and communications technologies, including the Internet, and further urges them to apply all relevant human rights instruments to which they are parties, in particular the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, to racism on the Internet;
146.
Urges States to encourage the media to avoid stereotyping based on racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance;
147.
Calls upon States to consider the following, taking fully into account existing international and regional standards on freedom of expression, while taking all necessary measures to guarantee the right to freedom of opinion and expression:
(a) Encouraging Internet service providers to establish and disseminate specific voluntary codes of conduct and selfregulatory measures against the dissemination of racist messages and those that result in racial discrimination, xenophobia or any form of intolerance and discrimination; to that end, Internet providers are encouraged to set up mediating bodies at national and international levels, involving relevant civil society institutions;
(b) Adopting and applying, to the extent possible, appropriate legislation for prosecuting those responsible for incitement to racial hatred or violence through the new information and communications technologies, including the Internet;
(c) Addressing the problem of dissemination of racist material through the new information and communications technologies, including the Internet, inter alia by imparting training to law enforcement authorities;
(d) Denouncing and actively discouraging the transmission of racist and xenophobic messages through all communications media, including new information and communications technologies, such as the Internet;
(e) Considering a prompt and coordinated international response to the rapidly evolving phenomenon of the dissemination of hate speech and racist material through the new information and communications technologies, including the Internet; and in this context strengthening international cooperation;
(f) Encouraging access and use by all people of the Internet as an international and equal forum, aware that there are disparities in use of and access to the Internet;
(g) Examining ways in which the positive contribution made by the new information and communications technologies, such as the Internet, can be enhanced through replication of good practices in combating racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance;
(h) Encouraging the reflection of the diversity of societies among the personnel of media organizations and the new information and communications technologies, such as the Internet, by promoting adequate representation of different segments within societies at all levels of their organizational structure.
