ACFC/56DOC(2016)001 and cultural practices and backgrounds, and who often live in the country as citizens, whether naturalised or by birth.82 It is essential that all segments of society, majorities and minorities alike, are addressed in order for integration strategies to effectively facilitate the formation of societal structures where diversity and respect for difference are acknowledged and encouraged as normal, through recognition, mutual accommodation and active engagement on all sides.83 b) Protection from hostility and hate crime 55. Article 6(2) contains the obligation of states parties to protect all persons against violence and discrimination on ethnic grounds, in other words not only persons belonging to national minorities. Minorities cannot thrive in a society in which diversity is not tolerated or even serves as a pretext for hate crimes and discrimination. This is why it is vital that all states parties strive to apply and achieve the aims of Article 6 of the Framework Convention fully, even those states parties that have explicitly declared that they have only ratified the Framework Convention out of solidarity. 56. The Advisory Committee considers that ethnically based violence must be recognised as an especially nefarious form of violence that concerns and threatens society as a whole, and must thus be resolutely opposed and prevented. In order to address hate crime in a comprehensive manner, criminal codes must contain appropriate provisions that criminalise hate speech, threats and violence based on ethnic grounds as well as public incitement to violence and hatred. In addition, racial motivation must be considered an aggravating circumstance of any offence and law enforcement agents should be appropriately trained to ensure that racially or ethnically motivated attacks and discrimination are identified and recorded, as well as duly investigated and punished through targeted, specialised and prompt action. 57. Fear of discrimination or even violent attack may discourage persons belonging to national minorities from enjoying their right to free self-identification. The downplaying of ethnically based violence as “hooliganism” or the usual wrongdoings of youth can lead to perceptions of tacit approval of such actions by law enforcement agents and thereby dramatically weaken efforts to promote respect and dialogue among different groups. In order to protect individuals from such attacks, it is therefore of equal importance that any such incidents are promptly and unequivocally condemned by senior public figures and community leaders at all levels, and that appropriate messages are communicated to the public through the media and government information channels. 58. The Advisory Committee refers in this context to other bodies with the specific mandate and expertise to address issues related to racial discrimination and protection from hate crime.84 It notes in particular the role of the European Commission against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI) in assessing the applicability and effectiveness of anti-discrimination tools and mechanisms, whose monitoring work and reports are central for a systematic 82. See consecutive Opinions on Liechtenstein, for example. 83. The OSCE HCNM has taken a similar approach. The Ljubljana Guidelines on Integration of Diverse Societies, adopted in 2012, define integration as a process that requires all members of society to accept and create a shared sense of belonging to a given state and common public institutions. See the Ljubljana Guidelines on Integration of Diverse Societies, OSCE HCNM, November 2012. 84. See in particular the UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination and the OSCE/ODIHR hate crime reporting initiative. 22