A/HRC/23/56/Add.1 I. Introduction 1. At the invitation of the Government, the Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance visited the Plurinational State of Bolivia (La Paz, Sucre and Santa Cruz) from 4 to 10 September 2012. He held extensive meetings with authorities from the executive, legislative and judicial branches. 2. In addition to meetings with Government and State institutions at the national, regional, departmental and local levels, the Special Rapporteur met with the Office of the Ombudsman (Defensoría del Pueblo) and the Permanent Council of the National Committee against Racism and All Forms of Discrimination. He also had extensive meetings with representatives of political parties, civil society organizations, indigenous communities and organizations, Bolivians of African descent (Afro-Bolivians), victims of racism and racial discrimination, as well as with other relevant groups and individuals. 3. The visit to Bolivia by the Special Rapporteur had a special significance, given that it was the first official visit to the country by a Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance. In addition to the information collected during his visit on the country’s progress in the fight against racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance, the Special Rapporteur was informed of and built upon the recommendations made by other mandate holders who had visited Bolivia, as well as those made by relevant human rights mechanisms. He also followed upon on the relevant recommendations and commitments made by the Government during the seventh session of the universal periodic review, in February 2010. 4. The Special Rapporteur wishes to express his sincere gratitude to the Government of the Plurinational State of Bolivia for its full cooperation and openness in the preparation and conduct of the visit. He also wishes to express his appreciation to the United Nations country team in Bolivia and the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) in Bolivia for their assistance and support, as well as to the different civil society interlocutors that cooperated with him throughout the visit. The conclusions and recommendations made in the present report were based on the broad discussions and exchanges with Bolivia-based interlocutors and the Special Rapporteur’s own analysis. He hopes that they will contribute to determining concrete ways and means of addressing the challenges raised in the report in an effective and human rights-compliant manner. II. General background A. Social and political context 5. The Plurinational State of Bolivia is a landlocked country, bordering Brazil, Peru, Chile, Argentina and Paraguay. After 300 years of colonialism, Bolivia proclaimed its independence in 1809. In 1825, the Republic of Bolivia was established. 6. The Constitution of the Plurinational State, adopted in 2009, acknowledges Bolivia as a unitary, plurinational and secular State, formally known as the Plurinational State of Bolivia. It recognizes the coexistence of 36 different indigenous nations and peoples, and states that the country is founded on political, economic, legal, cultural and linguistic pluralism. The Constitution declares 36 indigenous languages, as well as Spanish, as official languages. 3