Media advisory European Parliament urges the EU to fight discrimination The elected representatives of half a billion Europeans from 28 countries are seriously concerned about caste discrimination. On 10 October the European Parliament will debate and vote on a resolution that urges EU institutions to take action on this important global human rights issue. Copenhagen (IDSN)/4 October 2013 - The EU must step up its efforts to eliminate caste discrimination, one of the world’s most serious human rights issues that affects hundreds of millions of people across the globe and causes almost unimaginable human suffering. This is the message from the European Parliament (EP) whose members represent the world’s largest trans-national democratic electorate. Next week, the EP will adopt a strongly worded resolution on caste discrimination, condemning the numerous human rights violations committed against and other caste-affected groups. The resolution expresses serious concern about social exclusion, poverty, and violence against women. The draft resolution calls on EU institutions to recognise and address caste discrimination on par with other grounds of discrimination such as ethnicity, race, religion, gender and sexuality; to include the issue in EU legislation and human rights policies; and to raise it at the highest level with governments of caste- affected countries. The driving force behind the resolution, the EP’s Committee on Development, has drafted six questions on caste discrimination for the European Commission to answer as part of the debate. These questions refer to a possible comprehensive EU policy on caste discrimination, and how the EU addresses caste discrimination in various contexts, including in development cooperation with affected countries. The European Parliament’s concern about caste discrimination and its call on EU institutions to address the issue corresponds well with the attitude of the general European population. In an opinion survey conducted in 2011 in seven EU member countries, 67 per cent of the respondents agreed that the should act to eliminate caste discrimination. No less than 76 per cent believed that the should take action on the issue. The draft resolution includes a call for the EU to promote the struggle against caste discrimination within the UN system, especially the Human Rights Council. It also calls for a stronger focus on caste-based inequalities in the post-2015 global development agenda. The upcoming resolution mentions numerous states where caste discrimination exists, including and its neighbours in South Asia as well as countries in Africa and the Middle East, underlining that this is a global human rights issue. The resolution text has been well received by human rights campaigners in caste-affected countries: “It encourages the EU to engage with many of the countries in South Asia and Africa where discrimination is prevalent. We support all countries to work together to develop a world free of caste discrimination,” said Paul Divakar, General Secretary of the National Campaign on Dalit .

Download the motion for a resolution on caste discrimination here >> Click here for the oral questions on caste discrimination >>

The debate on the resolution and the oral questions is scheduled for Thursday 10 October at 08.30 and will be webcast on EuroparlTV. The vote will take place on the same day between 12.00 and 14.00. Tweets from the debate and the vote will be sent out using #ependcaste

Notes for editors

Media interviews Ms Rikke Nöhrlind, IDSN Coordinator, tel. +45 2970 0630, [email protected] Ms Manjula Pradeep, Director, Navsarjan Trust, India, tel. + 91 9898515090, [email protected] Both will be available for interviews in Strasbourg on Wednesday 9 and Thursday 10 October.

Photos For high quality photos of Dalits in South Asia, please contact IDSN on +45 6043 3433 or [email protected] – available for licensing from the award winning photographer Jakob Carlsen. See examples here >>

Background on caste discrimination Caste systems divide people into unequal and hierarchical social groups. The ensuing caste-based discrimination involves massive violations of civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights, including rape and murder. Those at the bottom of the caste system are considered ‘lesser human beings’, ‘impure’ and ‘polluting’ to other caste groups. They are known to be ‘untouchable’ and are often forcibly assigned the most dirty, menial and hazardous jobs. Many are subjected to forced and bonded labour. Caste discrimination affects an estimated 260 million people around the world. The majority of victims of this form of discrimination live in South Asia where they are known as Dalits. Similarly affected groups are found in a number of African countries, Japan, Yemen and in diaspora communities of South Asian origin in Europe, North America and Asia.

The European Parliament and caste discrimination The European Parliament has spoken out strongly on the issue on numerous occasions, most notably in December 2012 when a resolution on caste-based discrimination in India condemned the high number of human rights violations committed against Dalits – including sexual violence against Dalit women - and deplored the lack of intervention by the authorities in acts of communal violence against them. The EP has referred to the issue on several other occasions, including a resolution on violence against women in India in January 2013 that included references to caste discrimination and the situation of Dalit women.

Further information For further information on caste discrimination, see www.idsn.org or contact Maria Brink Schleimann, IDSN Communications Officer, at +45 6043 3433 / [email protected]