ICERD AND ITS MONITORING BODY a significant pattern of racial discrimination evidenced in social and economic indicators; and significant flows of refugees or displaced persons resulting from a pattern of racial or encroachment on the lands of minority communities. U rgent procedures are to respond to problems requiring immediate attention to prevent or limit the scale or number of serious violations of the Convention. Criteria for initiating an urgent procedure could include, for example, the presence of a serious, massive or persistent pattern of racial discrimination; or a situation that is serious where there is a risk of further racial discrimination. Under these procedures the Committee examines a situation without any periodic report from the state party concerned. In the past CERD considered the cases of the conflicts in the former Yugoslavia and in the Great Lakes Region in Africa. A number of other urgent situations were taken up under the urgent procedures, including Australia s amendment of its Native Title Act that was considered to be racially discriminatory against indigenous peoples in Australia. NB: The early-warning measures and urgent procedures may only be implemented by members of CERD. NGOs seeking to have such measures implemented may do so by contacting a CERD member and requesting him or her to do so. Follow-up by an NGO to any action taken is also to be done through a CERD member or members. The most recent significant development in the work of CERD was in August 2000, when CERD organized a two-day discussion on a thematic issue — discrimination against Roma — which was the first of its kind in the Committee s 30-year-long history. This initial thematic discussion of CERD was a landmark in many ways. First, it led to the production of a General Recommendation32 outlining a number of measures that governments of relevant states parties to ICERD should take to improve the situation of the Roma. In this respect attention should be drawn to the fact that production of a General Recommendation usually begins with the submission of a draft by a member, and that it is not a result of a discussion. Second, in view of maximizing its access to the existing research, information and experience, CERD has invited to the thematic discussion regional institutions as well as other UN bodies and agencies, in particular experts from the Sub-Commis- 10 sion on the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights and the Commission on Human Rights Special Rapporteur on Contemporary Forms of Racism. The Committee has also received and taken due account of detailed information, as well as first-hand accounts and insight from NGOs, in particular the groups concerned, i.e. Roma organizations, by holding an informal meeting using its official meeting time and inviting their written submissions. While the thematic discussion was an innovation in CERD s work, it was not innovative in the UN treaty monitoring mechanisms as a whole. Several other treaty monitoring bodies had already held thematic sessions for a number of years, and successfully developed methods of involving NGOs in meaningful ways in those thematic discussions. With the success of its initial thematic session on discrimination against Roma, it is expected that the CERD practice of holding thematic sessions will also be institutionalized in the future and that it will become an effective part of the work undertaken by the Committee. D. Impact of ICERD on states Since the entry into force of ICERD, changes in various countries have been attributed to the positive impact of the Convention. These include: ● amendments to national constitutions to include provisions prohibiting racial discrimination; ● systematic reviewing of existing laws and regulations leading to the amendment of those which tend to perpetuate racial discrimination, or the passing of new laws to satisfy the requirements of the Convention; ● making incitement to acts of racial discrimination and racial violence a punishable offence; ● legal guarantees and enforcement procedures against discrimination relating to the security of persons, political rights, employment, housing, education, or access to areas and facilities intended for use by the general public; ● educational programmes aimed at promoting good relations and tolerance between racial and ethnic groups; ● creation of institutions and agencies to deal with problems of racial discrimination and to protect the interests of indigenous groups; and, ● governments seeking technical assistance from the UN in such matters as anti-discrimination legislation and remedies to victims. ICERD: A GUIDE FOR NON-GOVERNMENTAL ORGANIZATIONS