PART ONE: STATE OBLIGATIONS TO ENACT COMPREHENSIVE ANTI-DISCRIMINATION LAW PART ONE that “the goal is legitimate and the requirement does not exceed the level required for its realisation” (art. 7 (3) (2)). Chapter III of the Law concerns the Commission for Protection against Discrimination, which is established under article 14 as a legal entity and “an autonomous and independent body”. Articles 15–22 set out the institutional mandate and requirements of the Commission, including its budget, composition, and rules regulating the appointment, dismissal and removal of members. Chapter IV of the Law sets out the procedure for bringing applications before the Commission, including rules regulating the burden of proof. It includes details of the powers of the Commission to collect data and inspect documents and premises. Chapter V of the Law concerns court protection. Under article 32, any individual who has experienced discrimination is afforded the right to “file an application before the competent civil court”. Actions for protection against discrimination of public interest (actio popularis) are permitted under article 35, while article 40 establishes the right of interested third parties to intervene in cases before the courts. Article 37 regulates the burden of proof in discrimination cases, which shifts to the defendant once a prima facie case of discrimination has been presented. Article 38 provides that the rules of evidence in discrimination cases should follow the Code of Civil Procedure. The use of “statistical data and/or data obtained through situation testing” is explicitly permitted under this provision. Article 39 exempts individuals initiating a discrimination claim from paying court fees, which shall be borne by the State. Finally, chapter VI sets out the penalties for violations of the Law and chapter VII contains transitional and final provisions. D. Other national law developments While progress towards the adoption of comprehensive anti-discrimination legislation has been more limited in other regions of the world, there are clear indications that States are increasingly participating in and driving the growing international consensus on the need for such law. Equality law reform efforts are ongoing in several jurisdictions. In 2018, for instance, Tunisia adopted legislation prohibiting all forms of racial discrimination, and a bill prohibiting discrimination on a broader range of grounds has recently been proposed by a group of Members of Parliament.104 In Bangladesh, a draft act on the elimination of discrimination has been proposed by the National Human Rights Commission105 and is currently with the Ministry of Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs for review.106 In 2020, Hong Kong, China passed the Discrimination Legislation (Miscellaneous Amendments) Ordinance, which expanded the scope of protection against discrimination provided under its (ground-specific) equality ordinances.107 In Australia, conversations relating to the consolidation of the State’s federal equality instruments108 into a single equality act have been ongoing since at least 2011109 and the Australian Human Rights Commission has recently led discussions on further reform of federal anti-discrimination law.110 In Argentina, a coalition of civil society organizations is working to promote the adoption of a national comprehensive anti-discrimination law, following success in securing a law in Buenos Aires (Law No. 5261) in 2015. 104 CCPR/C/TUN/CO/6, paras. 15–16. 105 Muhammed Yeasin, “NHRC sends draft to govt”, Independent (Dhaka), 21 April 2018. Available at www.theindependentbd.com/ post/146679. 106 Solidarity Group for Bangladesh, “Human rights in Bangladesh: a mid-term assessment of implementation during the UPR 3rd cycle” (2020). Available at www.ohchr.org/Documents/HRBodies/UPR/NGOsMidTermReports/JointsubmissionSolidarityGroup_Bangladesh.pdf. 107 Sex Discrimination Ordinance, 1995; Disability Discrimination Ordinance, 1995; Family Status Discrimination Ordinance, 1997; and Race Discrimination Ordinance, 2008. 108 Racial Discrimination Act, 1975; Sex Discrimination Act, 1984; Disability Discrimination Act, 1992; and Age Discrimination Act, 2004. 109 See, for instance, Australian Human Rights Commission, Consolidation of Commonwealth Discrimination Law (Sydney, 2011). 110 Australian Human Rights Commission, “Free and equal: an Australian conversation on human rights – discussion paper: priorities for federal discrimination law reform” (Sydney, 2019). 13