A/72/165 realizing their rights to equality before the law, non-discrimination and a fair trial. At the sentencing stage, minorities often face a greater likelihood of imprisonment, longer terms of imprisonment or a sentence of life imprisonment without possibility of parole, and a greater likelihood of imposition of the death penalty. 18. Globally, minorities face discrimination and a lack of representation within the administration of criminal justice. Measures to eliminate discrimination and ensure equality before the law are more likely to be effective if taken by adopting a minority rights-based approach, which includes ensuring the effective participation of minorities in all aspects of the criminal justice process and administration of justice. This includes the recruitment, retention and progression of minorities, including at the most senior levels, in all positions connected with the criminal justice system. Furthermore, minorities must be included in designing laws and policies and advising on procedures to further ensure that such instruments do not have a disproportionate impact on minorities. 5. 2016: Minorities in situations of humanitarian crises (A/71/254) 19. According to the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, the scale of global humanitarian needs is higher than ever. As at December 2015, there were an estimated 125 million people in need of humanitarian assistance worldwide. Although there are no exact data on how many minorities are affected by crises and where, during the course of her mandate the Special Rapporteur has observed that minorities can be disproportionately affected, whether directly or indirectly, owing to their minority status, during the crisis itself or in the aftermath when seeking protection. 20. Belonging to a minority group can be a direct factor leading to displacement in the context of conflict. Indeed, and regrettably, many contemporary conflicts are based on superiority ideologies in which targeting minorities is one of the key drivers of the conflict. Even outside fully fledged armed conflicts, discrimination against minority groups in societies may reach such levels that it results in hate based crimes and leads to internal displacement. In the report, the Special Rapporteur looks at the specific challenges or discrimination that minorities may face during or after potential displacement or disruption owing to a humanitarian crisis or disaster, even when the trigger of that displacement or changed situation is not directly linked to their affiliation to that minority group. Analysing both natural and human-caused disasters, she indicates that minority communities may be more vulnerable to disasters, insofar as they may be both inadequately prepared for such emergencies and disproportionately affected by them. 21. Furthermore, minority communities are also less likely to be equal beneficiaries of adequate humanitarian aid and rehabilitation when or after disasters strike, a discrepancy that often then extends to the rehabilitation phase, thereby keeping minorities socially and economically behind in their longer -term recovery from such events. 22. The Special Rapporteur stresses, therefore, that the humanitarian syste m needs to make a concerted effort to ensure that the responses meet the needs of people who are hard to reach, including the specific needs of minority communities. Efforts need to take into account the vulnerability of minorities to displacement and multiple forms of discrimination during crises, as well as the specific challenges facing minorities affected by crises owing to their very situation as minorities. Overall, the Special Rapporteur notes that responsible emergency preparedness and response efforts that incorporate a minority rights approach, ensuring that minority voices can raise their concerns and opinions regarding relief and recovery efforts, 6/22 17-12138