women, religious discrimination, forced marriages, sexual abuses, enforced disappearances and language discrimination against the the Uyghurs. Mr. Ibragimov recommended various measures to be taken and implemented by the government of China and UN organizations to improve the protection of persons belonging to the Uyghur community in China.4 Mr. Mehmet Polatel focused on the socio-economic participation related to problems encountered by Armenians in Turkey. In this respect, he referred to existent barriers for persons belonging to non-Muslim minorities related to public employment, such as appointments to administrative offices, the judicial system and security forces. He also pointed out the limitations related to the right to education of Armenians in Turkey in that minority schools receive no public funds and depend solely on donations. Mr. Polatel concluded with pointing to the numerous property disputes as well involving Armenian communal organizations resulting in the confiscation and seizure of their properties. He presented relevant recommendations to the government to address the detailed problems and emphasized the importance of the adoption of an international treaty on minority rights.5 Ms. Laxme Das raised the issue of discrimination faced by Dalit women and girls in Bangladesh. She pointed to the various discriminatory practices related to the “untouchability” of the Dalits, including their exclusion from education, which results in illiteracy of most Dalit women. Dalit women, due to their position in the caste system, are often victims of regular abuse, sexual harassment, rape, gang rape, forced conversion, forced marriage, as well as bonded labour or slavery like conditions. Ms. Das equally noted that women in Dalit communities have limited access to local services like maternal health, family planning or other health services. Pregnant mothers and children suffer from malnutrition due to lack of information, which are the main causes of maternal death. Ms. Das concluded by submitting several recommendations to the government of Bangladesh to bring about the urgently needed change to the life of Dalit women and girls in Bangladesh.6 Interactive Dialogue7 In the interactive dialogue part, participants raised numerous concerns related to minority issues and presented various initiatives. The concerns raised included references to the torture, persecution, detainment and forced displacement of persons belonging to minorities; the fact that persons belonging to minorities, including women, suffer from discriminatory laws and lack of access to education; that minority languages are marginalized and that the policy of cultural and linguistic assimilation is often applied; the growing hate speech and systematic and structural discriminatory policies against persons belonging to minorities; the fact that minority religious sacred sites and properties are purposefully destroyed. As for the initiatives presented, among others, participants noted the importance of the inclusion of persons belonging to minorities and addressing their concerns with an intersectional approach; the relevance of providing access to quality education, economic opportunities and work for women belonging to minorities; the need for addressing challenging ingrained stereotypes against minorities and persons belonging to them; the importance of supporting access to security welfare for persons with disabilities belonging to minorities through enforceable labour legislation; the value of a strengthened role given to independent national human rights institutions; the importance of national legislation to protect minorities 4 The integral version of the statement of Mr. Farkhat Ibragimov can be consulted here. The integral version of the statement of Mr. Mehmet Polatel can be consulted here. 6 The integral version of the statement of Ms. Laxme Das can be consulted here. 7 Interventions in the interactive dialogue part of item 1 on “Challenges to inclusion and equality: barriers to the social and economic participation of persons belonging to minority groups” can be consulted on the UN WebTV here. 5 5