The Working Group on the UPR reviewed India in November 2022 and the outcome report was adopted at the Human Rights Council 52 March session in 2023. This report includes recommendations on Dalits, caste, hate speech, racism, water and sanitation, women and girls' rights and many more.
The impact on women of caste-based hate speech in the internet, so- cial media, and technology spheres
"In South Asia (and amongst South Asian diaspora communities) caste may be a strong, possibly unacknowledged, factor. Caste discrimination involves violations of civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights. While often outlawed, a lack of implementation of legislation and caste-bias within justice systems leave victims without protection in many countries. Dalits (people from the most oppressed or so-called lowest caste communities) may be excluded from some jobs and concentrated in lowest paid and hardest work.7 Being from a minority religion is also often a marker of vulnerability in South Asia, with some communities facing systemic discrimination within and beyond the workplace. Most homeworkers and factory workers in the leather footwear sector in Tamil Nadu, South India, for example are from Dalit and/or Muslim communities, and may face barriers to training and promotion which are invisible to outsiders.8 Gender, caste and religious difference may operate together to create barriers to homeworkers’ access to remedy and social dialogue. Dalit women homeworkers, for instance, may face very unequal power relations and discrimination in discussions with subcontractors or suppliers. They may have had less access to schooling. These multiple barriers explain why complaints and grievance mechanisms are rarely accessed by homeworkers. These barriers can be reduced by bringing homeworkers together, so that they discuss issues and collectively find solutions, and awareness-raising and capacity-building activities, giving them a collective voice through their own organisations and elected representatives. Key Questions: • What issues of gender, caste and religious discrimination do you need to consider in your production chain? • Consider gender, caste and religious composition of teams engaging with homeworkers, to ensure that information is reliable and to avoid pitfalls of hidden power dynamics. Working with a local NGO which is sensitive to issues of gender, caste and religion may help navigate these issues (see Recommended Civil Society Organisations page 22). Dalit Solidarity Network UK is a source of advice for businesses on measures to address the risks of economic exploitation and caste-based discrimination throughout their supply chains."
The report is focused on contemporary forms of slavery affecting persons belonging to ethnic, religious and linguistic minority communities. In that context, the Special Rapporteur identifies the main causes of contemporary forms of slavery affecting these groups and the main manifestations, such as chattel slavery; forced and bonded labour; domestic servitude; sexual slavery; child and forced marriage; and child labour.
A unique event organised by the Norwegian Human Rights Fund brought together, activists, experts, trade unions and several international NGOs, including Human Rights Watch, IDSN and OSF. In a session dedicated to addressing caste-based discrimination, the exploitation of Dalit women in work settings, was raised by speakers at the global Women at Work conference in Nepal, stressing the urgent need to address the situation.
IDSN participated actively in the 51st session of the UN Human Rights Council, highlighting the need to tackle caste discrimination through participation at key events, interactive dialogues and oral statements.
Khabar Lahariya or Waves of News is an all-women newsroom in northern India. Its co-founder, Kavita Bundelkhandi, learned to write when she was 12. Many of her staff are from marginalised backgrounds and include survivors of domestic abuse and violence.
Voices represented in Indian media are overwhelmingly upper-caste and male. Now Dalit-led media, taking inspiration from Dr. Ambedkar’s legacy and Black liberation movements, is bringing their experiences to light with grace and humor — both at home and in the diaspora.
Jeyasre Kathiravel’s death exposed the epidemic of violence facing workers making clothes for the UK high street. Will a groundbreaking agreement improve their lot?
A campaign by a dalit women-led trade union following the rape and murder of a member has been successful in making the global fashion brand H&M, along with Eastman Exports and Natchi Apparels, Dindigul, to ensure there is no gender-based violence against women workers in factories from where it sources its garments.
IDSN Response to EU Call for Evidence in the framework of the drafting of an EU forced labour Instrument
GA report of the Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief – UNGA77
Joint submission by IDSN, DSN Finland, DSN Norway, ARISA and IMADR.
Joint stakeholder submission by PDSN, CLJ PHF, RADHA, Hari Welfare Association, PDO, AF, PILER and IDSN.
The UN Special Rapporteur on Extreme Poverty, Olivier de Schutter, presented to the Human Rights Council his visit report to Nepal, which took place from 29 November to 9 December 2021.
IDSN and the UN OHCHR Minority section brought together an experts’ round table discussion to mark the 30th Anniversary of the UN Minority mandate.
A new-born Indian can expect to live for 69 years, just three years short of the world average. But disparities in life expectancy - the average number of years that a person can expect to live - among India's social groups have lingered and widened, according to two new studies.
Despite holding posts, experience as decision makers was not encouraging as discrimination continued, they say.