After almost two years of delay, the final report on discrimination based on work and descent containing a set of draft principles and guidelines has finally been published as an official UN document. This is an important milestone in gaining international recognition for caste-based discrimination, one of the biggest, yet most overlooked human rights problems globally.
When the Human Rights Council meet for the 11th time between 2-18 June, IDSN recommends that the issue of caste discrimination be addressed, in particular the human rights situation of Dalit women. Members of the Council are also urged to acknowledge the positive role played by the High Commissioner on Human Rights during her recent visits to two caste-affected countries, Nepal and India.
The discrimination and abuse against the 200 million Dalits in India, which prevented many Dalits from exercising their right to vote in the election process, will continue to be one of the major challenges that the ruling Congress Party will face as election fever settles.
With the election of Norway into the UN Human Rights Council, NGOs are urging the Norwegian Government to make the fight against the inhumane practice of caste discrimination one of their main priorities.
Read the May newsletter here with all the latest news on caste-based discrimination from the IDSN network.
In a press release issued by the World Council of Churches and the Lutheran World Federation it is highlighted that the issue of caste discrimination should have been included in the final outcome document of the UN Durban Review Conference.
In statements at the UN Racism Conference yesterday states and NGOs put caste discrimination on the agenda, while India objected
Those, for whom the Racism Conference should have been a platform for dialogue, are being relegated to the margins in the final outcome document
260 million people worldwide suffer from caste discrimination and are being silenced by the Durban Review Conference, which claims to aim at protecting all victims affected by discrimination and contemporary forms of racism. To break this silence, Human Rights Watch, IDSN, NCDHR and other human rights organizations, have issued a joint position paper calling on the conference to address this crucial issue.
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