A/HRC/44/57/Add.2 Annex Report of the Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance on her visit to the Netherlands I. Introduction 1. The Special Rapporteur extends her gratitude to the Government of the Netherlands for its invitation to conduct an official country visit from 30 September to 7 October 2019. She also thanks the Government for its assistance before, during and after her visit. 2. During her eight-day visit, the Special Rapporteur travelled to The Hague, Amsterdam, Rotterdam and Leiden. She met with numerous national government and parliamentary representatives in The Hague, as well as with the National Ombudsman and representatives of the Netherlands Institute for Human Rights. In addition, the Special Rapporteur met with municipal authorities in Rotterdam and Amsterdam. 3. During her mission, the Special Rapporteur was able to visit a prison facility and the Rotterdam immigration detention centre. Regretfully, and despite her best efforts, she was not able to access the central reception centre for asylum seekers in Ter Apel. 4. In addition to engaging with government representatives, the Special Rapporteur conducted several consultations with stakeholders, including members of civil society; academics; people of African descent; members of religious communities; lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex persons; migrants, refugees and asylum seekers; members of the Roma, Sinti and Traveller communities; representatives of student groups; and individuals who had been victims of racism, discrimination and related intolerance. She sincerely thanks everyone who took the time to meet with her and who shared their perspectives on the state of racial equality in the Netherlands. 5. Although the Special Rapporteur aimed, through her visit, to gain a broad view of the state of racial equality in the Netherlands, she was, regrettably, unable to visit areas beyond the State’s European territories. Accordingly, she was not able to be physically present in the non-European constituent countries of the Netherlands (Aruba, Curaçao and Sint Maarten) nor in the special municipalities of Bonaire, Sint Eustatius and Saba. The Special Rapporteur notes that her analysis of the issues facing these territories and municipalities relies on desk research, information received from the authorities, information previously published by the United Nations and the Council of Europe, and submissions and information received by the Special Rapporteur from organizations and individuals familiar with the human rights situations in those places. II. Overview: the “Dutch paradox” 6. The Netherlands has a population of over 17.5 million people. This population is ethnically and racially diverse, a result of the State’s colonial past, periods of labour and other migration, and the arrival of different groups involuntarily displaced by conflict and natural disasters. A number of its cities sit firmly at the centre of international commerce and international law. Almost a quarter of the population comprises people who were born abroad or who were born in the Netherlands and have at least one parent who was born abroad. This diversity means that equality, non-discrimination, tolerance and inclusion are issues of the utmost importance to the well-being of the Netherlands. 7. The State’s formal commitments to equality, non-discrimination and tolerance are impressive. Many government officials who met with the Special Rapporteur affirmed their commitment to these principles, often citing article 1 of the Constitution as a fundamental guiding principle for their work. Authorities described the national identity as multicultural, multiracial and proudly committed to tolerance and inclusion, not only in the contemporary period, but throughout the country’s long history. 2