National Human Rights Committee (NHRC) vice-chairman Dr Mohamed bin Saif al-Kuwari met with Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance of the UN Human Rights Council, Tendayi Achiume.
The meeting dealt with means of co-operation on issues of common interest and activating mechanisms for transferring experiences and expertise, especially about best practices to eliminate all forms and manifestations of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia, and related intolerance.
During the meeting, an introductory presentation was delivered about NHRC, its objectives, legal nature, mechanisms of work and methods of receiving complaints and ways to resolve them as well as the role of human rights education in promoting tolerance and eliminating racism, racial discrimination and related intolerance and respect for cultural diversity as a means of preventing racism and racial discrimination were also reviewed.
In the same context, officials reviewed the NHRC’s role in urging the State to accede to international conventions and covenants on human rights, as well as making recommendations on national legislation related to the protection and promotion of human rights culture.
The committee pointed out that Qatar is exerting great efforts to combat contemporary forms of racism through its commitments to implement the Durban Declaration and Programme of Action in the context of spreading human rights awareness, respecting the rights of others, promoting solidarity in society and establishing a culture of tolerance and peace.
The Special Rapporteur is an independent human rights expert appointed by the UN Human Rights Council.
The Special Rapporteur has been mandated to focus on incidents of contemporary forms of racism and racial discrimination against Africans and people of African descent, Arabs, Asians and people of Asian descent, migrants, refugees, asylum-seekers, persons belonging to minorities and indigenous peoples.
It focuses also on situations where the persistent denial of individuals belonging to different racial and ethnic groups of their recognised human rights, as a result of racial discrimination, constitutes gross and systematic violations of human rights, the scourges of anti-Semitism, Christianophobia, Islamophobia in various parts of the world, and racist and violent movements based on racism and discriminatory ideas directed at Arab, African, Christian, Jewish, Muslim and other communities. (QNA)
Source:gulf-times.com
