Mister Chairperson, Distinguished delegates and participants, Ladies and Gentlemen, It is a great honour for me to hereby open the eighth session of the Forum on Minority Issues on “minorities in the criminal justice system”. I would like to warmly welcome Mr. Joshua Castellino, who has kindly accepted the important task of chairing this session of the Forum. Mr. Castellino - your extensive experience on the issues to be discussed will contribute to making this Forum a success. I also welcome and thank Ms. Rita Izsák, the Special Rapporteur on minority issues, who, as in previous years, has provided important guidance to the work of this Forum, and assisted in the preparation of its annual sessions. I would also like to welcome representatives of Member States, United Nations specialized agencies, representatives of human rights mechanisms, international and regional organizations, national human rights institutions, as well as non-governmental organizations, academics and experts. Every year, this Forum discusses some of the key challenges and issues affecting minorities globally, in a spirit of open dialogue and mutual respect and understanding. These discussions cannot be meaningfully addressed without the full and effective participation of minorities themselves. I am thus very pleased that this Forum provides such an opportunity and therefore I would like to extend a warm welcome to those of you here today representing your communities. I am confident that your deep understanding of the important issues at stake on the ground will be an essential contribution to this year’s Forum’s discussions. Twenty years have passed since United Nations Member States made a commitment to confront the global challenges facing minorities around the world, through the establishment of the Working Group on Minorities: the first dedicated United Nations