A/RES/52/109
Page 2
Having examined the report of the Special Rapporteur of the Commission on Human Rights on
contemporary forms of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance,3 including its
conclusions and recommendations,
Deeply concerned that, despite continued efforts, racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related
intolerance, as well as acts of violence, persist and even grow in magnitude, incessantly adopting new
forms, including tendencies to establish policies based on racial, religious, ethnic, cultural and national
superiority or exclusivity,
Deeply concerned also that those advocating racism and racial discrimination misuse new
communication technologies, including the Internet, to disseminate their repugnant views,
Noting that the use of such technologies can contribute to combating racism, racial discrimination,
xenophobia and related intolerance,
Conscious of the fundamental difference between, on the one hand, racism and racial discrimination
as governmental policy or resulting from official doctrines of racial superiority or exclusivity and, on the
other hand, other manifestations of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance that
are increasingly visible in segments of many societies and are perpetrated by individuals or groups, some
of which manifestations are directed against migrant workers and members of their families,
Noting that the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, in its general
recommendation XV (42) of 17 March 19934 on article 4 of the International Convention on the
Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination,5 holds that the prohibition of the dissemination of
ideas based on racial superiority or racial hatred is compatible with the right to freedom of opinion and
expression as outlined in article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights6 and in article 5 of the
Convention,
Conscious that impunity for crimes motivated by racist and xenophobic attitudes plays a role in
weakening the rule of law and tends to encourage the recurrence of such crimes,
Emphasizing the importance of creating conditions that foster greater harmony and tolerance within
societies,
1. Takes note with appreciation of the report of the Special Rapporteur of the Commission on
Human Rights on contemporary forms of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related
intolerance;3
3
See A/52/471.
4
See Official Records of the General Assembly, Forty-eighth Session, Supplement No. 18 (A/48/18),
chap. VIII, sect. B.
5
Resolution 2106 A (XX).
6
Resolution 217 A (III).
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