THE REVIEW PROCESS


The anti-racism Review Conference to be held in Geneva, Switzerland 20-24 April 2009 will evaluate progress towards the goals set by the World Conference against Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia and Related Intolerance held in Durban, South Africa in 2001.   

The 2001 conference produced the http://www.unhchr.ch/pdf/Durban.pdf Durban Declaration and Programme of Action, which provided an important new framework for combating racism and intolerance with a wide range of action-oriented measures. 

Objectives
Regional meetings in Latin America, Africa, Asia and Europe in 2008 will provide inputs to the international conference, which aims to:

review progress and assess implementation of the Durban Declaration and Programme of Action by all stakeholders at the national, regional and international levels, including assessing contemporary manifestations of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance, through an inclusive, transparent and collaborative process and identify concrete measures and initiatives for combating and eliminating all manifestations of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance in order to foster the implementation of the Durban Declaration and Programme of Action;

assess the effectiveness of the existing Durban follow-up mechanisms and other relevant United Nations mechanisms dealing with the issue of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance in order to enhance them;

promote the universal ratification and implementation of the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination and proper consideration of the recommendations of the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination;

identify and share good practices achieved in the fight against racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance.

Who may participate in the review process
Member States of the UN and as observers, Inter-governmental organizations, specialized UN agencies and non-governmental organizations (NGOs). 

NGOs in consultative status with the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) and those accredited to participate in the 2001 conference and its follow-up mechanisms may participate in the regional meetings and the 2009 Review Conference. NGOs not in those categories may apply for participation.
(http://portal.ohchr.org/portal/page/portal/OHCHRHomePage http://www2.ohchr.org/english/issues/racism/DurbanReview/ngo.htm)


Role of the United Nations
The UN General Assembly decided in 2006 (A/RES/61/149) to convene a Review Conference in 2009 to assess the implementation of the Durban Declaration and Programme of Action. It requested the Human Rights Council to prepare for the Review Conference.  The Human Rights Council decided to constitute itself into the Preparatory Committee for the Conference, and its work is open to the participation of all Member States and observers. 

At the request of the Preparatory Committee, the UN Secretary-General designated the High Commissioner for Human Rights as Secretary-General of the Review Conference, whose role is to ensure it is held successfully and in accordance with the wishes of the Member States. The High Commissioner’s Office is facilitating and supporting the entire review process, including the inter-governmental working group which prepares the outcome document of the Review Conference.  

 
For more information, please contact Rupert Colville, OHCHR’s Spokesperson at +41 (0) 22 917 9767 or email: mailto:press-info@ohchr.org press-info@ohchr.org








































IN1/RC2009/170608

































ABOUT OHCHR
The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), a part of the United Nations Secretariat, has been given a unique mandate to promote and protect all human rights. Headquartered in Geneva, the Office is also present in some 50 countries. Headed by the High Commissioner for Human Rights, a position established by the General Assembly in 1993 to spearhead the United Nations’ human rights efforts, OHCHR takes action based on the unique mandate given it by the international community to guard and advocate for international human rights law. For more information please visit http://www.ohchr.org www.ohchr.org

On Human Rights Day 2007, the United Nations and OHCHR launched a year-long UN system-wide advocacy campaign to mark the http://www.ohchr.org/EN/UDHR/Pages/60UDHRIntroduction.aspx 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), under the theme:  “Dignity and justice for all of us”.