A/74/215 I. Introduction 1. The present report is submitted pursuant to General Assembly resolution 72/184, in which the Assembly requested the Secretary-General to submit a report including information on activities undertaken by Member States, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), the Special Rapporteur of the Human Rights Council on minority issues, relevant United Nations entities and other relevant stakeholders to enhance the implementation of the Declaration on the Rights of Persons Belonging to National or Ethnic, Religious and Linguistic Minorities and to ensure the realization of the rights of persons belonging to national or ethnic, religious and linguistic minority groups, with a focus on the international legal and institutional framework for the protection of the rights of all such persons. 2. In the report, general developments at the United Nations are highlighted and selected areas of action are enumerated, noting human rights challenges faced and the measures taken by Member States, national human rights institutions and various United Nations actors to address concerns at both the global and national levels. The report is based on the findings and reports of various United Nations bodies and mechanisms and on the written replies received from Member States and other stakeholders to a note verbale sent by OHCHR on behalf of the Secretary-General. 1 3. Global consensus on the principles set out in the Declaration notwithstanding, persons belonging to minority groups continue to be targeted by very serious human rights violations in an increasingly widening range of contexts, such as State sanctioned “ethnic cleansing”, the rise in the persecution of religious and ethnic minority groups, increased levels of hate crimes and hate speech that portrays minority groups and non-nationals as existential threats to nation States. Around the world, there is an upsurge in xenophobia, racism and intolerance affecting minority groups, including rising anti-Semitism, anti-Muslim hatred and persecution of Christians. Social media and other forms of communication are being exploited as platforms for bigotry, neo-Nazism and white supremacy movements. Public discourse is being used for political gain, with use of incendiary rhetoric that stigmatizes and dehumanizes minority groups, refugees, women and anyone who is seen as “Other”. Those are not isolated phenomena or the result of the loud voices of a few people on the fringe of society. Hate is moving into the mainstream – in liberal democracies and authoritarian systems alike – and with each broken norm, the pillars of our common humanity are weakened. In the foreword to the United Nations strategy and plan of action on combating hate speech, the Secretary-General noted that the United Nations had a long history of mobilizing the world against hatred of all kinds through wide ranging action to defend human rights and advance the rule of law; indeed, the very identity and establishment of the Organization were rooted in the nightmare that ensued when virulent hatred was left unopposed for too long. II. Key developments at the United Nations and the international legal and institutional framework for the protection of the rights of all persons belonging to national or ethnic, religious and linguistic minority groups A. Human rights of minority groups 4. The United Nations human rights system has two types of mechanisms, bodies based on the Charter of the United Nations and those based on treaties. Both formulate __________________ 1 2/15 The submissions received are on file with OHCHR and available for consultation. 19-12558