A/HRC/41/54/Add.2
strong partnerships with various branches of Government on account of the trust these
communities have been able to build with government actors over many generations. The
Special Rapporteur commends the strong commitment the Government has shown to
supporting Jewish communities and urges it to adopt a similar approach with other religious
communities in the United Kingdom.
70.
Despite progress made, stakeholders highlighted that more concrete measures were
needed to effectively combat racially and religiously motivated hate crime. Some of the key
issues that were mentioned during consultations included the following: addressing underreporting; improving accountability by closing the gap between reported cases and
successful prosecutions; publishing data that allows for end-to-end tracking of hate crime
cases; and providing support to victims of racist hate crime. In light of these issues, the
Special Rapporteur wishes to refer the government authorities to the recommendations
made by the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination
(CERD/C/GBR/CO/21-23, para. 16).
71.
Concerns about the adverse impact of immigration and border enforcement policies
on racial equality were particularly prominent in Northern Ireland. Groups expressed
concern that increased immigration checks following Brexit could lead to racial profiling
by immigration officials in the border areas. They noted that even a policy that committed
to no routine passport checks in the common travel area might result in routine checks of
racial and ethnic minorities as a result of impermissible profiling. In addition, stakeholders
expressed concern that increased immigration status checks may deter migrants from
reporting crime against them and from accessing public services, such as health, housing
and education, to which they are entitled.
IV. Conclusion and recommendations
72.
The Special Rapporteur notes with satisfaction that the Government of the
United Kingdom has shown some leadership in key areas for the achievement of racial
equality, especially within the legislative framework, which prohibits racial
discrimination and intolerance. The Race Disparity Audit too represents an
achievement that has the potential to move the United Kingdom forward in fulfilling
its legal obligations to uphold substantive racial equality under international and
domestic law.
73.
Notwithstanding these achievements, the Government has much work to do in
addressing structural forms of racial discrimination and inequality. Although the
Special Rapporteur acknowledges that differences exist between the various nations
that constitute the United Kingdom, she stresses that all over the country persons
belonging to racial and ethnic minorities have poorer outcomes in many areas of life.
74.
In light of the observations and findings described above, the Special
Rapporteur calls on the United Kingdom authorities and other key stakeholders to
adopt the following concrete measures aimed at eliminating and preventing racism,
racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance:
(a)
Ensure that the principles and provisions of the International
Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination are directly and
fully applicable throughout the entire territory of the United Kingdom. To this end,
the Government should:
(i)
Incorporate the Convention into domestic law;
(ii)
Accept the individual communications procedure under article 14 of the
Convention;
(iii) Withdraw its interpretative declaration under article 4 of the
Convention;
(b)
Urgently bring into force sections 9 (5) (a) and 14 of the Equality Act
2010 on caste-based and dual discrimination;
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