A.P.F.F. npo Intervention of the APFF at the Forum on Minority Issues of the UN Human Rights Council Geneva, 24-25 November 2015 Mister President, The aim of the « Association pour la Promotion de la Francophonie en Flandre » (Association for the Promotion of French Culture in Flanders - APFF) in participating in the eighth session of the Forum on Minority Issues is to denounce the lack of protection of national minorities in Belgium, as well as the shortcomings in the fight against linguistic discrimination which hampers access to civil and criminal justice for people belonging to these minorities. In 2001, the Council of Europe singled out Belgium as one of the countries which « have significant minorities, which ought to be protected, and whose rights are not officially recognised » (Recommendation 1492). The following year, the Council of Europe recommended that Belgium ratify the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities « without further delay », ensuring that all minorities identified by the Venice Commission be duly recognised as such (Resolution 1301). Among these minorities are the 310,000 francophones who live in Flanders and represent 5% of the population. It must be noted that Belgium has still not ratified the Framework Convention of the Council of Europe, nearly 15 years after signing it. Indeed, Flanders does not want to acknowledge a francophone minority on its territory. In the Flemish coalition agreement, it also reaffirmed that it would not ratify the convention on minorities. Neither has Belgium ratified Protocol No. 12 to the European Convention on Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, which prohibits any form of discrimination including discrimination based on language. It must be noted that Protocol No. 12 was approved by all relevant parliaments (federal and federated) with the exception of the Flemish Parliament. In opposing the ratification of these two instruments of international law, Belgium, and more specifically Flanders, is eluding controls on matters it considers sensitive or even taboo, allowing it to pursue with impunity the process of forced assimilation of the francophone minority in Flanders. In Belgium, the legal framework of the non-discrimination principle is set out in the law of 10 May 2007 whose aim is to the fight against several forms of discrimination, including discrimination based on language. However, we must deplore that, over eight years after the entry into force of the law, the public institution specialised in dealing with discrimination based on language has still not been created. Victims of linguistic discrimination are therefore left to fend for themselves, all the more so as Belgium still does not have a national Institute of Human Rights (NHRI) in conformity with the Paris Principles. The Belgian State could be held accountable for its shortcomings with regards to the non-ratification of the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities and its failure to create a specialised agency to fight against linguistic discrimination. (continued overleaf) Association for the Promotion of the French Culture in Flanders • A.P.F.F. npo Secretariat : Spreeuwenlaan 12 • B-8420 De Haan • Belgium Phone : +32 (0)59.23.77.01 • Fax : +32 (0)59.23.77.02 GSM : +32 (0)479.35.50.54 • E-mail : apff@francophonie.be Site : http://www.francophonie.be/ndf