centralised system of governance based on ideological frameworks designed by those in the majority, at the detriment of ethnic minorities. As an example he highlighted how hate speech and hate crime in Southern Africa straddled along identification processes of boundary making and was often fraught with unmarked social forms of violence. He suggested measures to prevent atrocities against minorities including pluralistic engagement of cultural particularities and a clear acknowledgement of the different ethnicities, including their languages. He emphasised that recent studies continue to show that radio plays a key role in development processes in Africa because of its popularity owing to low literacy levels. He also highlighted how radio can be abused to fan and stock tensions including ethnic violence but also how it can be a tool for minorities to speak out and protect their rights in a democracy. Finally, he concluded by supporting the strengthening of civil society organisations designed to fight for the rights of ethnic minorities, the creation of regional and international structures for ethnic minorities to lobby the international community and the adoption of clear structured media policies. Discussion The following issues were raised during the discussion under Item IV: - The importance of taking appropriate measures to prohibit hate speech and incitement to violence, including in the media and social media, and provide for appropriate penalties for perpetrators. - The need for firmly countering the perpetration of biased and/or stereotyped representations of specific minority groups and putting more efforts in measures aimed at countering prejudices. To this end the crucial role of education has been recognised. - The need for more attention to the situation and perspectives of young people as they are key actors to promote understanding, tolerance and mutual respect across communities. - The necessity to ensure institutional attention to minority issues in all social, political, economic, measures based on the principles of inclusion and consultation in order to guarantee their participation at all levels of politics and in decision-making bodies. - The importance to recognize that all conflict prevention measures are bound to fail if minorities and their concerns are not included in and represented from the outset. - The need for the UN to take the lead on initiatives aimed at preventing violence and atrocity crimes and to act as the focal point for early warning mechanisms and initiatives. The tasks of the Office of the Special Advisor on the Prevention of Genocide have been described as crucial in this respect. - The UN Human Rights Up Front initiative has been identified as a potential mechanism to enhance collaboration and strengthen communication among all actors involved in detecting early signs of violence and as a guide to develop specific prevention measures. 13