A/75/211 elsewhere. While the seafaring or nomadic ways of life may have been largely abandoned, they are still cognizable as ethnic minorities by descent or lineage oriented, as well as sometimes their own languages and unique cultures linked to social structures, traditions and identity; (f) Individuals, even though not a member of an ethnic group by descent, may freely choose to belong to it and enjoy its culture with other members of the community. Many of the French-speaking Huguenots who went to South Africa in the seventeenth century adopted the Afrikaans language and can be considered ethnically Afrikaners; (g) Citizenship is not a requirement to being an ethnic minority. Whether a national minority can only be made up of nationals is not settled. IV. Concluding remarks and recommendations 71. Minority issues are increasingly visible in the work of the United Nations. Unfortunately, this is also owing to the greater vulnerability of and inequalities experienced by minorities during the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as other growing phenomena, such as the rise of hate speech on social media against minorities, the resulting incidents of hate crime and even the increasing numbers – in the millions – of people who belong to minorities who are liable to become stateless in the near future. The Special Rapporteur has acted in a proactive way in these areas, but obviously more needs to be done so that these human rights issues are better understood and addressed. 72. On a more positive note, the Special Rapporteur has highlighted the success of initiatives, such as the regional forums, on thematic priorities of his mandate to promote the implementation of the Declaration on the Rights of Persons Belonging to National or Ethnic, Religious and Linguistic Minorities and in overcoming the obstacles that prevent persons belonging to minorities from achieving the full and effective realization of their human rights. 73. The Special Rapporteur has proposed a conceptual framework for clarifying the scope and significance of the four categories of minorities – national or ethnic, religious and linguistic – recognized in four United Nations instruments, in order to avoid inconsistencies, uncertainties and contradictions, which can result in failure to properly address and promptly respond to the protection of the human rights of all of these categories of minorities. Recommendations 74. The Special Rapporteur again calls upon UNHCR, the Secretary General, the General Assembly and the Human Rights Council – as a matter of urgency, in view of the scale of a crisis emerging in Assam and other parts of India, with millions of members of minorities at risk of being deemed foreigners, being subjected to new legislation that excludes Muslim minorities from gaining access to certain pathways to citizenship acquisition and possibly finding themselves stateless – to consider engaging immediately in discussions with India and taking global action in order to protect the human rights of some of the world’s most vulnerable, and avoid growing instances of hate speech and violence directed towards Muslim minorities in what could become a threat to regional peace and security. 75. The Special Rapporteur also reiterates his invitation to OHCHR, United Nations entities and Member States to continue to support and collaborate with 20-09835 19/20