Human Rights Council 24th session
Agenda Item 9
ID with the WG of Experts on People of African Descent
GENEVA, 24 September 2013
Mr. President,
Members of the Working Group of Experts on People of African Descent,
The three National Human Rights Institutions are accredited with A status by the International Coordinating Committee of National Institutions for the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights.
The NHRIs in the UK broadly welcome the report of Working Groupof Experts on People of African Descent (the Group) and thank the Group’s visit to London and Liverpool.
The three NHRIs welcome the emphasis that more action is taken to tackle evidence of unlawful discrimination. We advocate that there is proper consideration of the needs of people with different protected characteristics as the positive obligations placed on public bodies require and that appropriate action is taken where inequalities are identified.
The Equality and Human Rights Commission welcomes the focus of the report on stop and search powers and will continue to prioritise their scrutiny of the use, and in particular unequal use of stop and search. In its recent report, the Commission has found that where police forces take firm action to reduce race disproportionality, and /or overall usage of stop and search, they succeed without prejudice to falling crime levels. Whilst there has been areduction in the overall use of stop and search, we remain concerned that Black people continue to be disproportionately affected by these powers.
The NHRIs are concerned that reform of social security benefits in the United Kingdom could have a disproportionate effect on individuals living in the most deprived areas across the UK. We concur with Ms. Shepherd that such reform should not lead to a situation which would potentially give rise to racial discrimination against people of African descent
Therefore, we recommend the UK and all of those involved in the implementation of welfare reform monitor and mitigate the equality and human rights impact of these measures to ensure that their cumulative impact does not breach human rights. In Scotland, EHRC and SHRC have developed a projectfor integrated impact assessments to build equality and human rights into the development of policies and practices across the public sector in Scotland. Additionally the EHRC are working with HM Treasury on a project to develop ways of modeling cumulative impact of spending decisions
We also concur with the Group's concerns around the high numbers of Black people entering the criminal justice system. Analysis also underlines that Black people are far more likely to fear being a victim of crime than White people. They are also particularly worried about being a victim of racial hate crime. The Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission has recently concluded an investigation into racist hate crime in Northern Ireland, examining preventative measures undertaken by the Northern Ireland Executive and the response of key criminal justice agencies to incidents and crimes. The Commission has made numerous recommendations for action to ensure that signal incidents and racist hate crimes are effectively addressed
The NHRIs also note the Group's concerns around educational experiences for Black African pupils. In particular, we notethat Black pupils are less likely to have good attainment levels and are more likely to be excluded than their white peers.
In Scotland, the SHRC is coordinating a public process to develop Scotland’s first National Action Plan for Human Rights (SNAP). The commitments in SNAP are currently the subject of negotiation, involving Government, other public and private bodies, civil society and marginalised rights holders. SNAP will be launched on 10 December 2013 and will represent an agreed roadmap with clear indicators and independent monitoring for the implementation of human rights standards, including the elimination of racial discrimination.
The NHRIs thank Ms. Shepherd and the Group for their detailed report. Its recommendations are far reaching and will be given detailed consideration by the three NHRISs as they continue their work in the area of race equality.
Yours sincerely,
Equality and Human Rights Commission
Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission
Scottish Human Rights Commission