A/HRC/47/CRP.1 28 June 2021
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A/HRC/47/CRP.1 28 June 2021 English only Human Rights Council Forty-seventh session 21 June–9 July 2021 Agenda items 2 and 9 Annual report of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights and reports of the Office of the High Commissioner and the Secretary-General Racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related forms of intolerance follow-up to and implementation of the Durban Declaration and Programme of Action Promotion and protection of the human rights and fundamental freedoms of Africans and of people of African descent against excessive use of force and other human rights violations by law enforcement officers Conference room paper*,** Summary The murder of George Floyd on 25 May 2020 and the ensuing mass protests worldwide have marked a watershed in the fight against racism. Responding to this situation, the Human Rights Council met in an urgent debate and adopted resolution 43/1. In that resolution, the Council requested the High Commissioner to prepare a comprehensive report on systemic racism, violations of international human rights law against Africans and people of African descent by law enforcement agencies, especially those incidents that resulted in the death of George Floyd and other Africans and people of African descent, to contribute to accountability and redress for victims; to examine government responses to anti-racism peaceful protests, including the alleged use of excessive force against protesters, bystanders and journalists, to be submitted to the Council at its forty-seventh session. Pursuant to that mandate, the High Commissioner submitted her report (A/HRC/47/53) to the Human Rights Council. She will also present this present conference room paper to expand on the analysis contained in that report. The report of the High Commissioner includes an agenda towards transformative change for racial justice and equality. The objectives of that agenda, contained in the annex to the report are to reverse cultures of denial, dismantle systemic racism and accelerate the pace of action; end impunity for human rights violations by law enforcement officials and * Reproduced as received, in the language of submission only. ** The present paper should be read in conjunction with the report of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights submitted to the Human Rights Council at its forty-seventh session under the same title (A/HRC/47/53). A/HRC/47/CRP.1 close trust deficits in this area; ensure that the voices of people of African descent and those who stand up against racism are heard and that their concerns are acted upon; and acknowledge and confront legacies, including through accountability and redress. In her report, the High Commissioner calls upon States to translate this agenda into action plans and concrete measures developed through national dialogues and with the meaningful participation of people of African descent to address the specific histories, lived experiences and current realities in each State. The Office of the High Commissioner looks forward to working with States and the Human Rights Council to implement this agenda, including by: strengthening assistance to States and other stakeholders; documenting and following up on specific incidents; consulting and partnering with victims, survivors and affected communities; and providing guidance for relevant racial justice processes in States, for which additional resources are required. The High Commissioner also recommends that the Human Rights Council sustain its close engagement on these issues and establish a specific, time-bound mechanism, or that it strengthen an existing mechanism by providing it with additional capacity, in order to advance racial justice and equality in the context of law enforcement in all parts of the world, including by examining relevant patterns, incidents, policies and processes, such as those highlighted by the High Commissioner in her report and in the present conference room paper. 2 A/HRC/47/CRP.1 Contents Page I. Introduction and methodology ......................................................................................................... 4 II. Reversing cultures of denial, dismantling systemic racism and accelerating the pace of action ...... 6 A. Systemic racism, enslavement, the transatlantic trade in enslaved Africans and its context of colonialism .......................................................................................................................... 6 B. Contemporary manifestations of systemic racism against Africans and people of African descent ..................................................................................................................................... 7 C. Contributing factors to the persistence of systemic racism ...................................................... 16 D. Agenda Towards Transformative Change for Racial Justice and Equality – The Way Forward - STEP UP: Stop denying and start dismantling ........................................................ 23 III. Ending impunity for human rights violations by law enforcement officials and closing trust deficits 27 A. Introduction ............................................................................................................................. 27 B. People of African descent, law enforcement and the criminal justice system ......................... 27 C. Accountability and redress for violations by law enforcement against Africans and people of African descent .................................................................................................................... 42 D. Promising initiatives ................................................................................................................ 54 E. Agenda Towards Transformative Change for Racial Justice and Equality - The Way Forward - PURSUE JUSTICE: End impunity and build trust ................................................. 55 IV. Ensuring that the voices of people of African descent and those who stand up against racism are heard and that their concerns are acted upon .................................................................................... 60 A. Introduction ............................................................................................................................. 60 B. Government responses to peaceful anti-racism protests .......................................................... 62 C. Broader context of harassment, surveillance, intimidation and violence against human rights defenders ........................................................................................................................ 71 D. Agenda Towards Transformative Change for Racial Justice and Equality - The Way Forward - LISTEN UP: People of African descent must be heard .......................................... 72 V. Confronting legacies, including through accountability and redress ................................................ 78 A. Introduction ............................................................................................................................. 78 B. Illustrative local, national and regional initiatives for accountability and redress ................... 78 C. Agenda Towards Transformative Change for Racial Justice and Equality - The Way Forward - REDRESS: Confront past legacies, take special measures and deliver reparatory justice ....................................................................................................................................... 91 VI. Conclusions ...................................................................................................................................... 95 3 A/HRC/47/CRP.1 I. Introduction and Methodology 1. The murder of George Floyd on 25 May 2020 in Minnesota, the United States of America (United States), the mass protests that ensued in many countries and the conviction and verdict against one responsible law enforcement officer1 represent a seminal point in the fight against impunity for racism. 2. The worldwide mobilization of people calling for racial justice has forced a long- delayed reckoning with racial discrimination and has shifted debates towards a focus on the systemic nature of racism and the institutions that perpetrate it. Most visibly, there were widespread protests calling for an end to systemic racism and police brutality against Africans and people of African descent.2 Prompted by this groundswell, on 17 June 2020 the Human Rights Council held an urgent debate on current racially inspired human rights violations, systemic racism, police brutality and violence against peaceful protests. During the urgent debate, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights stated that the killing of George Floyd has come to symbolize the systemic racism that harms millions of people of African descent, and called on all States and stakeholders to do more to address systemic and structural racial discrimination impinging on the human rights of people of African descent.3 Citing an op-ed by senior United Nations (UN) officials who were African or of African descent, Deputy Secretary General Amina Mohammed said that not enough can ever be said about the deep trauma and intergenerational suffering that has resulted from the racial injustice perpetrated through centuries, particularly against people of African descent. To merely condemn expressions and acts of racism is not enough. We must go beyond and do more.4 3. Ahead of the debate, on 8 June, family members of victims of