PROTECTING MINORITY RIGHTS – A Practical Guide to Developing Comprehensive Anti-Discrimination Legislation e. Build across society awareness, knowledge, valuing of and respect for equality, diversity, equal treatment legislation, non-discrimination and mutual understanding. f. Build, among groups experiencing discrimination and intolerance, knowledge about the rights and remedies established under the equal treatment legislation, capacity to exercise these rights, and trust in the equality bodies. g. Develop standards and provide information, advice, guidance and support to individuals and institutions in the public and private sectors on good practice for promoting and achieving equality and preventing discrimination and intolerance. h. Promote and support the use of positive action to remedy inequality in the public and private sectors. i. Support the implementation of the general duty on all authorities to promote equality and prevent discrimination in carrying out their functions …, establish standards for its implementation and, where appropriate, enforce them. j. Take part in the consultation procedures for new policy, legislation and executive acts, monitor existing policy, legislation and executive acts and make recommendations for the modification or introduction of policy, legislation or executive acts. k. Promote and contribute to the training of key groups in relation to equality and non-discrimination. l. Monitor the implementation of their recommendations. m. Track decisions made by courts and other decision-making bodies. n. Promote and support the ratification of relevant international treaties and the implementation and dissemination of such treaties and of the relevant standards, case law and reports emanating from intergovernmental organisations; take part in the proceedings of and with relevant intergovernmental organizations, take their recommendations into account and monitor their implementation. o. Cooperate with and support organisations with similar objectives to those of the equality body. Develop shared understanding on key issues in relation to equality and conclude cooperation agreements with such organisations.767 As set out in chapter V of part two and chapter II of part six of the present guide, many of these competences are directly linked to States’ proactive equality and implementation obligations.768 The Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance has stressed the crucial role equality bodies may play in this respect: awareness-raising and sensitizing rights holders;769 and gathering and publishing monitoring data and statistics, which may support the development and implementation of policies and help evidence patterns of discrimination capable of giving rise to an inference of discrimination in concrete cases.770 To ensure that equality bodies can fulfil their promotion and prevention mandate effectively, it is important that barriers to data collection be identified and addressed, and the existence, availability and work of equality bodies be well publicized among potential users.771 To ensure their effectiveness, the European Commission against Racism and Intolerance concludes that equality bodies should have “powers to obtain evidence and information”.772 This should include powers to: (a) “require the production of files, documents and other material for inspection, examination and making copies thereof”; (b) “conduct on-site inspections”; (c) “question persons”; and (d) “apply for an enforceable 110 767 Ibid. 768 In particular, relating to the development of equality policies and strategies; awareness-raising, education and training on equality; monitoring of equality and non-discrimination; and consultation. 769 A/71/301, paras. 30–34. 770 Ibid., paras. 35–37. 771 Ibid., paras. 12 and 48–52. 772 Council of Europe, European Commission against Racism and Intolerance, “ECRI general policy recommendation No. 2”, para. 21.