13th Session, Geneva, 19 and 20 November 2020 others such as political opponents, critics, and human rights defenders, while limiting the possibilities for information-sharing, which is also protected under international law. The Rabat Plan of Action notes with concern that perpetrators of hate speech against minorities which constitutes incitement to discrimination, hostility or violence prohibited in Article 20 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights are not always or systematically prosecuted and punished. At the same time members of minorities can de facto be persecuted through the abuse of vague domestic legislation, jurisprudence and policies. It also outlines a six-part test in order to determine whether the threshold of incitement to hatred is met or not. In his first report to the UN Human Rights Council in March 2018, the Special Rapporteur on minority issues Dr Fernand de Varennes, presented the issue of hate speech, xenophobic rhetoric and incitement to hatred against minorities as one of the thematic priorities of his mandate, by building and further expanding the work carried out by his predecessors on this particular area (see report A/HRC/28/64). The Forum will also discuss the valuable contributions by other Special Procedures mandate holders, treaty bodies and human rights mechanisms, including their relevant recommendations. It is also essential to point to the rise of hate speech in social media against minorities in the context of COVID-19. The Special Rapporteur on minority issues flagged on 30 March 2020 that “The coronavirus outbreak endangers the health of all of us, with no distinction as to language, religion or ethnicity’’. In this regard, the #Faith4Rights toolkit includes peer-to-peer learning exercises on minority rights, specifically in responding to pandemics and incitement to hatred. In May 2020, the UN Guidance Note on Addressing and Countering COVID-19 related Hate Speech recommended to social media and tech companies to ensure that their hate speech policies “involve an evaluation of the social and political context, the status and intent of the speaker, the content and extent of dissemination, as well as the likelihood of harm on users and the public” (six-part threshold test of the Rabat Plan of Action). General Objectives The Forum on Minority Issues aims to provide a platform for promoting dialogue and cooperation on issues pertaining to national or ethnic, religious and linguistic minorities, as 3