PROTECTING MINORITY RIGHTS – A Practical Guide to Developing Comprehensive Anti-Discrimination Legislation organizations in all areas of its work”.747 Such participation must be effective748 and “meaningful”,749 and take place “at all the stages of the monitoring process”.750 The Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance has emphasized the importance of “engagement and partnership with civil society organizations working on issues of non-discrimination and equality”.751 Such organizations play a crucial role in monitoring, reporting and awareness-raising on discrimination and can support the discharge of these functions by equality bodies.752 In their guidance, the European Commission and the European Commission against Racism and Intolerance also highlight the importance of participation by civil society organizations, alongside the engagement of other key stakeholders, including discriminated groups, and the relevant institutions of government.753 It is incumbent upon equality bodies to put in place the necessary mechanisms to facilitate participation.754 PARTICIPATION OF MINORITIES IN EQUALITY BODIES Since the 2000s, the Equality Ombudsman of Sweden has played a catalytic role in leading public discussion to advance understanding of historic discrimination against Roma. It has done so through a range of methods, including strengthening information-gathering, creating consultative platforms for Roma inclusion in the work of the Equality Ombudsman so that Roma community leaders could participate in work to challenge discrimination against Roma, as well as by taking legal action to challenge cases of discrimination. In 2004, “the then Office of the Ombudsman against Ethnic Discrimination stressed that discrimination against Roma was serious and that there was a lack of awareness of the State’s historical responsibility for much of this discrimination”.755 In a report from 2011, the Equality Ombudsman noted: “The discrimination and structural obstacles that anti-Gypsyism represents in one area of society have an impact on rights in other areas and thus have consequences for society as a whole. Discrimination of Roma in the housing market is affecting Roma children’s chances of uninterrupted school attendance, which also affects their chances of an education on equal terms. This in turn affects their chances of entering the labour market.”756 In 2014, these long-term efforts bore fruit with the publication of a major government study, acknowledging deep, long-term exclusion and discrimination of Roma in Sweden.757 4. Access to equality bodies As discussed further in sections I.C.1 and I.A.2(d) of part two of the present guide, accessibility forms an essential element of the rights to equality and non-discrimination.758 In its general comment No. 2 (2014), the Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities emphasized the role of independent mechanisms, including equality bodies, in ensuring the adoption of accessibility standards and monitoring their application.759 106 747 Guidelines on independent monitoring frameworks and their participation in the work of the Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, para. 20. 748 Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, general comment No. 6 (2018), para. 73 (m). 749 Guidelines on independent monitoring frameworks and their participation in the work of the Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, para. 20. 750 Ibid. 751 A/71/301, paras. 10 and 46. 752 Ibid., para. 46. 753 Council of Europe, European Commission against Racism and Intolerance, “ECRI general policy recommendation No. 2”, para. 37; and Commission Recommendation (EU) 2018/951 of 22 June 2018 on standards for equality bodies, recommendation 1.3. 754 Council of Europe, European Commission against Racism and Intolerance, “ECRI general policy recommendation No. 2”, para. 37. 755 Sweden, Ministry of Culture, The Dark Unknown History: White Paper on Abuses and Rights Violations against Roma in the 20th Century (Stockholm, 2015), p. 15. 756 Ibid., p. 16. 757 Ibid. 758 See further sections I.C.1 and I.A.2(d) of part two of the present guide. 759 Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, general comment No. 2 (2014), paras. 24, 33 and 48.