A/HRC/40/30 men. She cautioned that the country’s immigration policy was deeply connected to racial inequality. She was deeply concerned about the policy in the anti-terrorism “Prevent” Programme, which mandated civil servants, social workers, caregivers, educators and others to make life-altering judgments on the basis of vague criteria, in a climate in which entire religious, racial and ethnic groups were presumed to be enemies. 27 60. The Special Rapporteur on racism, in her annual report to the Human Rights Council (A/HRC/38/52), underlined that the relationship between racial and religious discrimination was complex. For example, religious minorities might also be racially or ethnically distinct in ways that made them vulnerable to racial discrimination that was formally achieved through religious preferences. Racist and xenophobic speech and violence against racial and other minorities, and against refugees and migrants in particular, had escalated in the wake of the decision by the United Kingdom to leave the European Union, or “Brexit”, and in national elections in Europe, North America and Australia. 61. At the regional level, the OHCHR Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific continued to advocate for the rights of migrants detained in Australian offshore processing centres in Manus, Papua New Guinea, and Nauru. Some migrants belonging to minority groups, such as the Hazara or Rohingya, are not recognized as citizens in their own country and face a high threat of violence if they are deported. 62. The MINUJUSTH Human Rights Unit continued to monitor the impact of policies and laws adopted by several States hosting Haitian migrants, which have resulted and are likely to continue resulting in significant numbers of deportations and spontaneous returns to Haiti. These States include the Dominican Republic,28 the Bahamas and the United States. Deportations and spontaneous returns of Haitians have increased since the adoption of those policies and laws. For example, ongoing tensions between the Dominican population and Haitian migrants have prompted many Haitians to flee their host country out of fear of violence. In August 2018, the National Regularization Plan for Foreigners, adopted in November 2013 by the Government of the Dominican Republic, was terminated after two extensions. Thousands of Haitians residing in the Dominican Republic are now awaiting the outcome of their applications to regularize their situation. I. Minorities and statelessness 63. A number of United Nations human rights mechanisms and various field presences raised issues related to stateless minorities. Statelessness is a human rights issue disproportionately affecting minorities around the world. According to a UNHCR report on statelessness, more than 75 per cent of the world’s known stateless persons were members of minority groups as at 2017.29 64. In his report to the Human Rights Council (A/HRC/37/66), the Special Rapporteur on minority issues noted that statelessness would be a thematic priority for his mandate. In his 2018 report to the General Assembly (A/73/205), which was dedicated to the issue, he highlighted that stateless minorities were often doubly vulnerable. The discriminatory denial or removal of citizenship could have long-lasting and extreme consequences for their enjoyment of other rights or their access to various services. In addition, women belonging to minorities might be further discriminated against in relation to the acquisition, change or retention of nationality and the conferral of nationality on their children. 65. The Special Rapporteur on minority issues dedicated the eleventh session of the Forum on Minority Issues,30 held in November 2018, to the topic of statelessness, a minority issue. During the two-day meeting, participants aimed to identify the main challenges faced by persons belonging to minorities in the context of statelessness and to promote dialogue and cooperation in order to identify effective solutions. 27 28 29 30 See www.ohchr.org/EN/NewsEvents/Pages/DisplayNews.aspx?NewsID=23074&LangID=E. As at 2013, the Dominican Republic was hosting approximately 458,000 Haitians. UNHCR, “‘This is our home’: stateless minorities and their search for citizenship” (2017). Pursuant to Human Rights Council resolutions 6/15 and 19/23. 13