- the issue of lack of awareness of certain minority communities of their rights. Ms Rita Izsák-Ndiaye, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Minority Issues, provided some concluding remarks, noting the prejudice and racism that are often the underlying root causes that prevent criminal justice systems from effectively guaranteeing the rights of minorities. Much needs to be done to improve policies and regulations, to reach out to minorities with scholarships and affirmative action programs to ultimately increase their representativeness in the criminal justice agencies, to collect disaggregated data and study patterns of discrimination, and to encourage an objective portrayal of minorities in the media. The Special Rapporteur highlighted the importance of education from an early age about tolerance and respect between communities, to create societies with a culture of listening and talking to each other, and ensuring that fear does not distort our vision and leave us trapped in simplified narratives and generalizations. It is vital to rebuild everyone’s trust and faith in each other and in institutions. Mr Joshua Castellino, Chairperson of the eighth session of the Forum on Minority Issues, concluded the session. He acknowledged the many voices that have expressed the challenges they face within the criminal justice system, often deploring how forces of law have failed to protect their dignity and their worth, and have indeed sometimes been complicit in the root causes of the suffering of such communities. He welcomed the contribution of experts and noted the importance of implementation of existing standards around the world. He also noted the voice of Member States, which have offered insights from their practice, and their support for more robust and inclusive criminal justice systems. He hoped the Forum would generate positive outcomes, starting with acceptance by stakeholders and society of the need for change that includes all segments of a State’s population. He also suggested that collaborative solutions to achieve this change might be more likely to work than isolated ones. 11