A/HRC/RES/37/14
5.
Calls upon States to undertake initiatives to ensure that persons belonging to
national or ethnic, religious and linguistic minorities are aware of and able to exercise their
rights as set out in the Declaration on the Rights of Persons Belonging to National or
Ethnic, Religious and Linguistic Minorities and in other international human rights
obligations and commitments, and recommends that all measures taken with a view to
implementing the Declaration be, to the fullest extent possible, developed, designed,
implemented and reviewed with the full, effective and equal participation of persons
belonging to national or ethnic, religious and linguistic minorities;
6.
Urges States, while bearing in mind the theme of the tenth session of the
Forum on Minority Issues, and with a view to enhancing the implementation of the
Declaration and to ensuring the realization of the rights of persons belonging to national or
ethnic, religious and linguistic minorities, including minority youth, to take appropriate
measures by, inter alia:
(a)
Taking legislative, policy or practical measures to ensure that minority youth
have equal access to education of equal quality, delivered in an inclusive environment that
fosters greater achievement for all;
(b)
Providing, wherever possible, minority youth with adequate opportunities to
learn their own language or to have instruction in their own language, while ensuring that
minorities also receive instruction in official languages;
(c)
Refraining from adopting policies or education strategies segregating
students into different educational institutions or classes based on their minority status;
(d)
Reviewing any legislation, policy or practice that has a discriminatory or
disproportionately negative effect on minority youth, bearing in mind that the full
enjoyment of human rights by young persons empowers them to contribute as active
members of society to the political, civil, economic, social and cultural development of
their country;
(e)
Promoting the representation of minority youth in decision-making processes
at the local, national and international levels, especially processes concerning youth and
minority policies;
(f)
Also promoting the adequate representation of persons belonging to national
or ethnic, religious and linguistic minorities, including minority youth where applicable, in
national and local institutions, including municipalities, schools and police forces;
(g)
Ensuring the full and effective participation of minority youth in economic
life, as appropriate, without discrimination based on language, religion or ethnicity,
including by developing training and professional orientation programmes and ensuring
that such programmes are made available in minority languages;
(h)
Supporting activities that can help to develop a spirit of community,
including efforts to engage minority youth through sport and culture;
(i)
Ensuring protection of minorities, including minority youth, on an equal basis
with all other civilians, taking into account their specific vulnerabilities during and after
conflict;
(j)
Enabling intercultural and interreligious dialogue among youth for the
recognition and promotion of and respect for diversity, including as a critical tool for
fostering mutual understanding, the promotion of peace, sustainable development, peaceful
coexistence, conflict prevention, reconciliation processes and mutual understanding in postconflict societies;
(k)
Facilitating the participation, as appropriate, of persons belonging to national
or ethnic, religious and linguistic minorities, including minority youth, in the design,
establishment and implementation of comprehensive transitional justice strategies;
(l)
Countering any advocacy of national, racial or religious hatred that
constitutes incitement to discrimination, hostility or violence, including on the Internet, and
adopting and implementing measures to criminalize incitement to imminent violence based
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