E/CN.4/1997/71 page 26 88. It was further stated that, despite programmes, “the State Department remains mid-1993, papers filed with the case show 6.7 per cent Black. Only 1.4 per cent of service were Black”. years of affirmative action a very white institution. As of 87.6 per cent were White and the diplomats in the senior foreign 89. The Special Rapporteur has received no reply from the Government of the United States of America. 2. Communication dated 28 May 1996 90. The Special Rapporteur transmitted allegations of poor police conduct in coloured communities. A national tribunal, meeting in Chicago on 26 October 1995 to give a hearing to victims of police misconduct, made a statement from which the following extracts are taken. “After reviewing the testimony and documentation we are convinced that the evidence supports a conclusion that police violence and corruption on the local, state and federal levels, particularly within communities of colour and poor communities, are at the foundation of a gross and consistent pattern of human rights violations in the United States. “As judges with expertise in human rights violations, we are familiar with documented reports of police violence and corruption dating back at least to the creation of the United States. The evidence that we have reviewed suggests that the police violence chronicled throughout history has not abated. Indeed, in the words of one witness, 'it is unremitting'. “Our concern is heightened by the testimony of some of the witnesses perpetuating the view that police misconduct should be punished because the victim was 'innocent', that is, not engaged in any criminal conduct. Yet the police abuses reported far exceeded any actions that could be justified based on criminal conduct of any of the victims. The documentation of criminalization of youth of colour, particularly Black and Latino, reviewed prior to the Tribunal and during it, support the conclusion that police are often able to avoid discipline and punishment because their victims are young, poor and of colour. “In addition to the criminalization of youth of colour and the poor, the testimony raised a number of significant issues, including the following: 1. Police across the United States have engaged in beatings, harassment, physical torture and murder of individuals. 2. Police across the United States have been involved in frame-ups, calculated efforts to discredit witnesses and complaints, and the destruction of key evidence.