E/CN.4/2004/18/Add.3 page 16 (c) The Special Rapporteur recommends the establishment, as a matter of priority, of a national commission on displaced populations, which should have a double mandate: to conduct an in-depth study of the economic, social and security situation of the displaced populations and to propose solutions and measures to remedy problems that have been identified. Special attention should be given to the housing, health, working and education conditions of the displaced populations. The commission should comprise four elements: government representatives (particularly representatives of the principal ministerial departments concerned); members of the democratic opposition; representatives of the main human rights and civil society organizations; and representatives of the displaced populations; (d) The adoption of a general act prohibiting racial discrimination, and the establishment of a national commission to combat racism and discrimination with a view to promoting democratic and interactive multiculturalism with the participation of the indigenous, Afro-Colombian and Roma communities and of civil society, particularly human rights organizations and the democratic opposition, and representatives of the main religions and spiritual traditions; (e) The Government of Colombia should declare that it recognizes the competence of the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination to examine individual complaints of racial discrimination under article 14 of the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination; (f) The Government should launch an intellectual and ethical strategy with a view to eradicating the deep-rooted racist and discriminatory culture and attitudes and building democratic and interactive multiculturalism based on solidarity. This strategy should be based on the following measures: (i) The writing and teaching of the history of Colombia that gives appropriate coverage to the history of the indigenous peoples, Afro-Colombians, the Roma community, and Colombians of European origin. The Government is invited to base its efforts in this area on the series of regional histories published by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, particularly the history of Africa, the history of Latin America and the history of the Caribbean; (ii) The creation of a Colombian national identity, unitary in its foundation and multi-ethnic and multicultural in its composition and expression; (g) The Government is invited to consider the possibility of granting special status to the island of San Andrés with a view to guaranteeing its cultural and linguistic identity and strengthening the participation of its indigenous population (the Raizales) in the management and economic development of the island; (h) In general, the Government should involve the communities concerned in the preparation of development projects and in decisions that concern them. It should also

Select target paragraph3