A/70/212 drop charges, which are linked to a combination of their gender and minority status. 96 In some countries of Eastern and Central Europe and Central Asia, parental attitudes can limit minority children’s access to justice: girls in particular are expected to remain silent about problematic family situations. 97 68. Minorities may be at higher risk generally of being victims of ordinary crime, or may need access to justice and reparation particularly in relation to hate crimes motivated by their minority status. 98 Yet, many jurisdictions lack definitions and working protocols for the recording, investigation and prosecution of hate crimes. This leads to the rapid erosion of minorities’ trust in justice. Responding effectively to hate crimes can assist in rebuilding trust. 69. States must ensure that members of marginalized minority communities are made aware of their rights as victims and of mechanisms specifically designed to facilitate their access to justice. Targeted assistance programmes for minority victims, dealing with emotional trauma, participation in the criminal justice process, and receiving reparation and rehabilitation, should be developed in cooperation and consultation with the minority community, publicized through minority media and in minority neighbourhoods, and provided in minority languages. 99 70. Police, prosecutors, judges and lawyers should demonstrate sensitivity and cultural familiarity when questioning or taking testimony from minority victims. For instance, the Special Rapporteur has been a witness to the questioning of a Roma woman who had been sterilized without her consent, and faced serious cultural and religious challenges in explaining her experience to the authorities. The rude response of the authorities imposed additional suffering, thereby deepening the impact of the original violation. The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) publication entitled “The status and role of prosecutors: a United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime and International Association of Prosecutors guide ” recommends that protocols be established to guide prosecutors when dealing personally with those who require special assistance, so as to ensure their full participation in the criminal process. 100 2. Witnesses 71. Courts must not assign lesser credibility to the testimony of minority witnesses on the basis of prejudices about the minority; owing to differences in appearance, dress, body language or demeanour; or owing to a differen t use of language which, __________________ 96 97 98 99 100 15-12578 Communication IND 4/2014. See also, regarding women of African descent, A/HRC/27/68 (WGPAD report on access to justice, 2014), para. 59. UNICEF, Insights, issue 1/2014: “Child rights in Central and Eastern Europe and Central Asia: promoting equitable access to justice for all children”, p. 10. European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights, EU-MIDIS Data in Focus Report: Minorities as Victims of Crime (Vienna, 2012; and A/HRC/28/64. United Nations Office for Drug Control and Crime Prevention, “Handbook on Justice for Victims”, 1999, p.12 (available from https://www.unodc.org/pdf/criminal_justice/UNODC_ Handbook_on_Justice_for_victims.pdf); report of the Independent Expert on Minority Issues, on institutional attention to minorities, A/67/293 (2012), para. 95; and OSCE Recommendation 17 on Policing in Multi-Ethnic Societies. See also, e.g., European Dialogue, Ethni c Minorities and Access to Justice in the Russian Federation, 2006, p. 17. UNODC, “The status and role of prosecutors: a United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime and International Association of Prosecutors Guide”, Criminal Justice Handbook Series, 2014, p. 70. 19/27