A public consultation on caste in Great Britain and equality law has been launched by the UK Government and will take place on 18 July 2017. A joint appeal and website, urging relevant actors to fill in the consultation questionnaire and offering guidance, has been launched by several human rights organisations in the UK – including the Dalit Solidarity Network UK (DSN-UK).

casteintheuk.org – offers information and guidelines on how to fill out the questionnaire

Caste discrimination occurs in diaspora communities from caste affected countries living in the UK, and is currently not adequately addressed. Rights campaigners have therefore been working for years to ensure that the Government take action to implement the caste clause of the UK Equality Act, as agreed by the UK Parliament in 2013. According to The Government Equalities Office (GEO) the consultation is to seek views from people on how best to ensure that there is appropriate legal protection against caste discrimination.

“We want to hear from members of those communities who may encounter caste discrimination in their daily lives as well as the wider public, businesses, service providers educational and other institutions, and public authorities…This government does not believe or accept that categorising or treating people by reference to their origins, in particular their caste, is acceptable,” GEO said.

DSN-UK has published an appeal on their website, copied below, please help spread this information to all relevant actors and support the fight against caste discrimination in the UK.

From dsnuk.org:

Help us outlaw caste-based discrimination in the UK – complete the public Consultation on Caste in Great Britain and Equality Law before 18 July 2017!

Several organisations and renowned academics have come together and created a website www.casteintheuk.org providing guidance on the questionnaire and the caste Consultation document, both of which contain complex legal terms and words. We do not want this to be a barrier to anyone wanting to respond to the survey.

Caste-based discrimination does exist here in the UK, acknowledged by both Parliament and the Government. It should be outlawed as any other form of discrimination. The government needs to hear from the UK residents – of South Asian origins and others – as to how individuals and groups should be protected against discrimination on caste grounds.

Our Guidelines provide a list of useful suggestions and tips to filling in the survey questions. We encourage all UK residents to take part in the Consultation and make sure that you strongly agree to add caste to the Equality Act 2010 in Question 16.

Frequently Asked Questions provide further information on questions you may have in relation to the Consultation.

How can you make this public Consultation successful?

  • WE urge all UK residents to take part in the Consultation.
  • GO TO orgthat has most helpful tips to fill in the public Consultation survey.
  • URGE everyone you know living in the UK to take part in the Consultation.
  • USE your Twitter handle and Facebook page to disseminate more widely
  • ENCOURAGE your media contacts to read our websiteto know more about the campaign
  • If you are a journalist or broadcaster –  report about it in your media outlet.
  • Contact us anytime at info@casteintheuk.orgif you need more information.

Preferred hashtag: #casteintheuk at Twitter @Casteintheuk

Facebook facebook.com/CasteintheUK/

Contact email: info@casteintheuk.org

Web: www.casteintheuk.org

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