E/CN.4/1996/72/Add.3 page 45 A. VICTIMS PROTECTED Victims of offences with racist or religious motivations may be a person designated individually or a group of persons recognizable on account of their origin or membership (or non-membership) of a particular ethnic group, nation, race or religion. This enumeration makes it possible to protect not only persons of colour or believers of a particular religion (Christians, Muslims, Jews, etc.), but also those who are designated by their nationality (anti-French "racism", for example) or by their membership of a particular regional group (such as Basques or Corsicans). B. (1) VARIETY OF REMEDIES AVAILABLE Ordinary remedies Victims may, within the periods allowed by the law, institute criminal proceedings against the perpetrators of any of these offences using the traditional means available to any victim of an offence: Issuing of a summons, whereby direct application may be made to the criminal courts without a preliminary examination, the person identified as having committed the offence being served notice by a marshal; Lodging of a complaint directly with the Government Procurator, or with the police for transmittal to the Procurator, who will consider the merits of the complaint and decide what action must be taken; Institution of criminal indemnification proceedings: during the criminal proceedings, the victim may claim indemnification for injury caused to him or her by the offence; Filing of a complaint with the examining magistrate to institute indemnification proceedings. The Government Procurator's Office may itself institute criminal proceedings. (2) Special role of associations combating racism The legislature has sought to give associations which combat racism a special role in instituting criminal proceedings. Victims are very often not aware of their rights or not prepared to lodge a complaint. The intervention of an association, aside even from the case in which the association itself claims to have suffered injury, offers them assistance and support. It also allows class actions to be brought when several persons are victims of the same offence. Associations authorized to act Article 48-1 of the 1881 Act, resulting from the Act of 1 July 1972, authorizes associations proposing under their statutes "to combat racism" to exercise the rights granted to the claimant for criminal indemnification. The