Statement by Canada Forum on Minorities, November 12, 2009 Thank you Madame Chair. Canada would like to thank the UN Independent Expert on Minority Issues, Gay McDougall, for coordinating this forum. We appreciate having the opportunity to hear from such high calibre panellists, and to engage in fruitful discussion on minority issues. In October 2009, Canada was pleased to host a visit by the UN Independent Expert on Minority Issues. At the end of her visit, the Independent Expert said that Canada had developed “an impressive constitutional and legislative framework at the federal and provincial levels that require adherence to the core principles of equality and non-discrimination for all”, and that Canada “is a leader among nations in fashioning a state policy of multiculturalism. Canada looks forward to the Independent Expert’s presentation of the report on her visit to Canada at the UN Human Rights Council in March 2010. The participation of minorities in the political process is an important issue for Canada. We share the view of the Independent Expert that political participation and representation of minorities is a key component of decision-making bodies and institutions at federal, provincial and municipal levels. Increasing numbers of minority groups are being represented in political assemblies in Canada. From 1993 to 2006, the percentage of visible minorities in Canada's parliament increased from 9.4% to 16.2%. During the same period, the number of elected representatives with visible minority background also increased from 13 to 24. While this progress is welcome, the levels of representation are still below those of the total population. Canada recognizes that various barriers may be impacting the civic and political integration of minorities, including: language, size and territorial concentration of a group, organizational density, their overall sense of belonging, potential internal divisions, unfamiliarity with Canadian political culture and level of interest in political life. Among efforts to reduce barriers to participation of minorities in the political process, Elections Canada has re-focused its efforts on three primary areas: 1) Information and Communications, 2) Accessibility, and 3) Research.