A/HRC/41/55 Discrimination are made punishable by law. The Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination has recommended that the criminalization of forms of racist expression be reserved for serious cases, to be proven beyond reasonable doubt, that the application of criminal sanctions be governed by the principles of legality, proportionality and necessity, and that less serious cases should be dealt with using non-criminal sanctions.66 37. The International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination requires States parties to declare illegal and prohibit, inter alia, organizations that promote and incite racial discrimination (art. 4 (b)). This includes taking action to prohibit such organizations from using nationalist populist fervour to attempt to mainstream their extreme ideologies or racial, ethnic or religious hatred and intolerance. Legislation alone is not sufficient. Article 6 of the Convention makes clear that effective protection from and remedies for racial discrimination are just as important as formal provisions. 38. The obligations under article 4 (b) of the Convention have a direct bearing on the recruitment practices addressed in the present report, because neo-Nazi recruitment per se promotes and incites racial discrimination. In light of the firm recognition in international human rights law and principles of the need to ensure the best interests of the child, and to extend to children the special protections necessary to ensure their full enjoyment of human rights,67 States must be especially vigilant in the prevention of child recruitment by neoNazi and related groups. 39. Unfortunately, sometimes Member States use concerns about racist or intolerant speech as a pretext for illegitimately quashing expression that is compliant with human rights. The Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination has observed with concern that broad or vague restrictions on freedom of speech have been used to the detriment of groups protected by the Convention. The Special Rapporteur endorses the Committee’s strong position that measures to monitor and combat racist speech should not be used as a pretext to curtail expressions of protest at injustice, social discontent or opposition. 68 Overly broad defamation and slander laws that target minority religious groups, political opponents, academics, human rights defenders or others appropriately exercising their freedom of expression should not be tolerated. The Special Rapporteur also strongly condemns attempts by public and private actors to co-opt the language of equality and non-discrimination as a means of stifling legitimate expression. Similarly, she further condemns attempts by public and private actors to use the language of freedom of expression or association as a means of, or cover for, violating the rights of others to equality and non-discrimination. 40. The Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination has highlighted that, although article 4 has operated as the principle vehicle for the prohibition of racist speech, the Convention contains other provisions essential for fulfilling the objectives articulated in that article. Article 4 expressly invokes article 5, which guarantees the right to equality before the law and the right to be free from racial discrimination in the enjoyment of rights, including freedom of expression. Article 6 requires the provision of effective remedies for violations of rights enshrined in the Convention, as indicated above, and article 7 underscores the importance of education in promoting equality and tolerance. 41. In the Durban Declaration, the participants at the World Conference against Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia and Related Intolerance condemned the persistence and resurgence of neo-Nazism, neo-Fascism and violent nationalist ideologies based on racial or national prejudice (para. 84). They also condemned political platforms and organizations based on, among other things, doctrines of racial superiority and related discrimination, as well as legislation and practices based on racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance, highlighting that they were incompatible with democracy and 66 67 68 10 General recommendation No. 35, para. 12. See also Human Rights Committee, general comment No. 34, paras. 22–25 and 33–35. See, for example, Universal Declaration of Human Rights (art. 25 (2)) and the Convention on the Rights of the Child. General recommendation No. 35, para. 20.