A/67/326 Mauritania, which have accepted his requests for visits. He will visit the Plurinational State of Bolivia from 4 to 10 September 2012. 7. Following his appointment, the Special Rapporteur also renewed the request to visit South Africa. He also requested visits to Algeria, Botswana, Morocco, Poland, Spain and Tunisia. 8. The Special Rapporteur would like to acknowledge the invitation extended by the Government of Honduras. While he has not yet been able to honour that invitation, the Special Rapporteur hopes that he will be able to do so in the course of his mandate. B. Other activities 9. The Special Rapporteur participated in the high-level thematic debate on the achievement of the goals and objectives of the International Year for People of African Descent, held in New York on 6 December 2011, at the closure of the Year. He also attended the first meeting of the Special Procedures of the Human Rights Council and the Special Mechanisms of the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights, organized by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), in cooperation with the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights, in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, from 18 to 19 January 2012. The meeting aimed at exploring ways to improve cooperation and coordination in promoting and protecting human rights in Africa. 10. On 21 March 2012, on the occasion of the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, the Special Rapporteur issued a joint press release with the Independent Expert on minority issues, which stressed that racism is still fuelling violence and conflict. 11. On 8 April 2012, on the occasion of International Roma Day, together with a group of United Nations human rights experts, the Special Rapporteur issued a joint press statement which called for implementation of effective policies and programmes to protect and promote Roma rights in all countries with Roma populations, and encouraged Governments to build stronger and positive relations with Roma communities and non-governmental organizations, and to consult fully with them when shaping sustainable solutions to the problems faced by Roma communities. 12. On 2 August 2012, on the occasion of the Roma Holocaust Remembrance Day, a joint press release was issued by the Special Rapporteur and the Independent Expert on minority issues calling for increased awareness and action to tackle the issues of hostility and discrimination against Roma and address the persistent prejudices that fuel racism and intolerance against them. 13. On 28 August 2012, the Special Rapporteur will participate in a thematic discussion on racist hate speech organized by the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination during its eighty-first session, held in Geneva, Switzerland, from 6 to 31 August 2012. 12-46982 5