A/HRC/16/39 component of the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq. The workshop, which was conducted in Beirut with the support of the OHCHR Regional Office, served to strengthen mainstreaming capacity of United Nations country teams through the provision of, inter alia, case studies to serve as models in integrating human rights into development programming, with a special focus on vulnerable groups and minorities. 17. The workshop also aimed at achieving a greater and shared understanding of definitions, standards and mechanisms with regard to the protection of the rights of persons belonging to minorities as applicable to the realities of the region. It helped to strengthen strategies, including in programming, with a view to address the situation of minorities by field colleagues and to improve the participation of minorities in the work of country teams. C. Third session of the Forum on Minority Issues 18. The High Commissioner provided a summary of the highlights of the second annual session of the Forum, held in November 2009, in her previous report. At that time, the Forum considered minorities and effective political participation. The third annual session of the Forum, to be held on 14 and 15 December 2010, will be dedicated to the issue of minorities and effective participation in economic life; OHCHR will also organize a preparatory briefing for minority representatives prior to the session. The Forum will continue to offer an opportunity for participants to share practical experiences and suggest concrete strategies, which will be captured in recommendations that can be implemented at the international, regional and national levels through active engagement by all actors concerned. The recommendations of the Forum are submitted to the Council by the independent expert on minority issues, who is mandated to guide the work of the Forum. D. Country engagement activities 19. In pursuing implementation under its six thematic strategies, namely (a) countering discrimination, (b) combating impunity, (c) securing economic, social and cultural rights, (d) protecting human rights in the context of migration, (e) protecting human rights in situations of armed conflict, and (f) strengthening human rights mechanisms, OHCHR relies on all divisions of the Office and its field presences. Involvement at the country level through its regional and country offices and its presence within human rights components of United Nations peacekeeping missions allows OHCHR to achieve its goal of providing thematic expertise for capacity-building, fact-finding, advocacy and other activities to advance the protection of human rights. 20. With regard to the specific issue of minority rights, a number of field presences have contributed to activities addressing key concerns of minorities in various regions: for example, a representative of the OHCHR Europe regional office in Brussels participated in the nineteenth meeting of the Steering Committee of the Decade of Roma Inclusion, held from 29 September to 1 October 2010 in Prague, an initiative launched in 2005 by the World Bank together with the Open Society Institute and a number of European States. The meeting focused on the need for inclusive policies to break the cycle of Roma social exclusion. 21. The issue of the Roma was also raised by the High Commissioner in a widely published article entitled “Roma: the other Europeans”, in which she referred to the rise in anti-Roma sentiments despite the efforts made by certain European States and international and regional organizations to combat discrimination against the Roma. The economic recession has forced many Roma to leave their communities of origin in their quest for better work opportunities. As a result, discriminatory practices and violence against them 6