A/58/255 United Nations General Assembly Distr.: General 7 August 2003 Original: English Fifty-eighth session Item 119 (b) of the provisional agenda* Human rights questions: human rights questions, including alternative approaches for improving the effective enjoyment of human rights and fundamental freedoms Effective promotion of the Declaration on the Rights of Persons Belonging to National or Ethnic, Religious and Linguistic Minorities** Report of the Secretary-General Summary The Declaration on the Rights of Persons Belonging to National or Ethnic, Religious and Linguistic Minorities was adopted by the General Assembly in 1992. With a view to continuing the promotion of the implementation of the Declaration, the General Assembly, in its resolution 56/162, invited the Secretary-General, inter alia, to make available, at the request of Governments concerned, qualified expertise on minority issues, including the prevention and resolution of disputes, to assist in existing or potential situations involving minorities, and to report to the General Assembly at its fifty-eighth session on the implementation of that resolution, including examples of good practices in the field of education and the effective participation of minorities in decision-making processes. * A/58/150. ** This document was submitted after the deadline established by the Documents Management Section, in order to reflect updated information. 03-47950 (E) 240903 * 0 3 4 7 9 5 0 *