A/HRC/11/36/Add.3 page 17 anecdotal accounts of victims of racial profiling in stop and search operations by the police were heard, including a testimony by an African American Member of Congress victim of such an incident. 54. Several organizations expressed concern at the National Special Entry-Exit Registration Program (NSEERS), put in place in 2002. The special registration program required male non-citizens over the age of 16 and from 25 countries to register with local immigration authorities. Twenty-four of these countries have a majority Muslim population.32 While the initial requirements of re-registration after 30-days and one year of continuous presence in the United States have been suspended,33 the program continues to be considered by civil society as discriminatory on the basis of national origin and religious background. 55. Civil society organizations expressed criticisms regarding recent attempts to address the issue. The Guidance Regarding the Use of Race by Federal Law Enforcement Agencies issued by the Department of Justice was criticized, particular because it “does not cover profiling based on religion, religious appearance or national origin; does not apply to local law enforcement agencies; does not include any enforcement mechanism; does not require data collection; does not specify any punishment for federal officers who disregard it; contains a blanket exception for cases of ‘threat to national security and other catastrophic events’ and ‘in enforcing laws and protecting the integrity of the Nations’ borders’”.34 B. Hate crimes 56. Interlocutors highlighted that the main weakness of federal hate crimes legislation is the dual requirement that needs to be met for the Federal Government to be able to investigate and prosecute a case: bias-motivated violence and relation to a federally protected activity. In cases that do not meet these requirements, the jurisdiction lies at the state level. However, many states lack the capacity and resources to thoroughly investigate and prosecute such crimes. In this regard, a Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act designed to strengthen the role of the Federal Government in the investigation and prosecution of such crimes and to expand the grounds for protection was approved in the House of Representatives and the Senate in 2007. However, it was withdrawn after an expression by the White House that the President would veto the bill, which was seen as “unnecessary and constitutionally questionable”.35 32 The 25 countries are Afghanistan, Algeria, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Egypt, Eritrea, Indonesia, Iran (Islamic Republic of), Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, the Libyan Arab Jamahirya, Morocco, Oman, North Korea, Pakistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, the Sudan, Syrian Arab Republic, Tunisia, the United Arab Emirates and Yemen. 33 See press release by the Department of Homeland Security, “NSEERS 30-Day and Annual Interview Requirements to be Suspended”, available at http://www.dhs.gov/xnews/releases/ press_release_0306.shtm. 34 Amnesty International. Threat and Humiliation. 35 http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/legislative/sap/110-1/hr1592sap-h.pdf.