A/HRC/7/36 page 12 66. The President of the Human Rights Council, Ambassador Doru Romulus Costea, paid a visit to the Working Group and mentioned his satisfaction at having been invited to address the Working Group for the first time. He stressed that his presence was meant to emphasize that the Council considered that human rights issues were not confined to the Council. He believed that the Council had a duty to remain seized of the meetings of other bodies to ensure that the work of the Council was enriched by their outcomes. He highlighted the importance of the issues being addressed by the Working Group. 67. The President further expressed his pleasure at the fact that several non-governmental organizations had been able to participate in that important session. Furthermore, he mentioned the need to share information that would enable proper coordination of the various follow-up mechanisms to Durban. In so doing, he recognized the efforts of the Secretariat. 68. The President of the Council also stressed the complicated process under way related to the review of mandates. He believed that much would be learned from the exercise. 69. The President of the Council concluded by reminding the room that that year was the sixtieth anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and that all had to prove that United Nations mechanisms work better and more efficiently. 70. There was general acknowledgement and thanks for the presence of the President of the Council at the Working Group’s session. Several panellists conveyed to the President their view that the Working Group had become an important reference point for people of Latin America and it was of utmost relevance to them as they looked to the Durban review process. With a host of emerging challenges for people of African descent, it was mentioned that it was important that that forum received more support for the participation of non-governmental organizations so that the voice of the victims was soundly represented in discussions. 71. Other comments reinforced the mandate of the Working Group; other panellists thanked the President of the Council and also stressed that Durban represented, for millions of people, one of the most important achievements by the United Nations in recent times, as it tackled such issues as slavery, colonialism and the problems faced by people of African descent around the world. The Durban Programme of Action had made concrete advancements and the process had established key mechanisms such as the Working Group of Experts on People of African Descent, the single most important mechanism, which had to be strengthened to enhance its work. 72. The Chairperson-Rapporteur of the Working Group, Ambassador Kasanda, expressed his satisfaction that the Council intended to review the Working Group’s mandate. (b) Millennium Development Goals 73. Marcelo Paixao, panellist for the Working Group on People of African Descent, made his presentation on the Brazilian experience in fighting racism and promoting racial equality. He stated that Brazilian public policy regarding racial equality faced problems of implementation because of a lack of support by important sectors of civil society, particularly among the white middle class, and some difficulties of comprehension present in many sectors of State bureaucracy.