ties. However, this does not imply, in any way, a right under international law to exercise jurisdiction over these persons on the territory of another State without that State’s consent. II. State obligations regarding persons belonging to national minorities 5. States should guarantee the right of everyone, including persons belonging to national minorities, to equality before the law and to equal protection under the law. In this respect, discrimination based on belonging to a national minority or related grounds is prohibited. Achieving substantive equality may require special measures and such measures should not be regarded as being discriminatory. 6. States should respect and promote the rights of persons belonging to national minorities, including the right freely to express, preserve and develop their cultural, linguistic or religious identity free from any attempts at assimilation against their will. 7. States should promote the integration of society and strengthen social cohesion. This implies that persons belonging to national minorities are given an effective voice at all levels of governance, especially with regard to, but not limited to, those matters which affect them. Integration can only be achieved if persons belonging to national minorities, in turn, participate in all aspects of public life and respect the rules and regulations of the country they reside in. 8. States should not unduly restrict the right of persons belonging to national minorities to establish and maintain unimpeded and peaceful contacts across frontiers with persons lawfully residing in other States, in particular those with whom they share a national or ethnic, cultural, linguistic or religious identity, or a common cultural heritage. III. Benefits accorded by states to persons belonging to national minorities abroad 9. States may extend benefits to persons residing abroad, taking into account the aforementioned principles. Such benefits may include, inter alia, cultural and educational opportunities, travel benefits, work permits and facilitated 6 Recommendations on National Minorities in Inter-State Relations