The United Nations Human Rights Council on Tuesday (July 13) highlighted the global “scourge” of systemic racism and ordered an independent investigation into police violence incited by races around the world.
In a resolution proposed by a group of African countries, the committee severely condemned “the continuing racial discrimination and violence committed by many law enforcement officials against Africans and people of African descent.”
The text was passed without a vote, condemning “systemic racism in law enforcement and criminal justice systems” and stressing the need to bring violators to justice.
It ordered the establishment of an “international independent expert mechanism” to “promote racial justice and equality in the context of law enforcement around the world.”
The resolution follows a condemning report published last month by Michelle Bachelet, the head of human rights at the United Nations, which called for the immediate abolition of systemic racism against blacks.
The report was submitted after a call for publication last year after George Floyd, a white American police officer, was murdered by a white police officer. She told the committee on Monday that “the legacy of slavery is urgently needed”.
In her report on global systemic racism, Bachelet also called on countries to face up to colonial history and racial discrimination policies and systems, and seek “compensatory justice.”
‘root cause’
The report emphasized systemic racism in policing and detailed information on at least 190 Africans and people of African descent who died at the hands of law enforcement officers—almost all of whom were in the Americas and Europe.
To help solve this problem, the new panel of experts called for in Tuesday’s resolution will be required to examine the “root causes of systemic racism, excessive use of force, and racial profiling in law enforcement and criminal justice systems”.
It will also investigate other police violations that “may lead to disproportionate and extensive interactions between law enforcement officials and Africans and people of African descent.”
These experts will be appointed by the chairman of the board for a three-year term. They will be urged to conduct country visits and consult with states, affected communities and individuals.
They will also “investigate the government’s response to peaceful anti-racist protests” and “any links between the supremacist movement and actors within the law enforcement and criminal justice systems.”
Their main tasks will be to promote racial justice and equality in law enforcement agencies around the world, the influence of the “colonial legacy and the transatlantic slave trade of enslaved Africans”, and the accountability and redress of victims.
‘Repair damage’
Human rights groups welcomed the “milestone resolution” but accused some “former colonial powers” of trying to weaken it.
Although the resolution was passed by consensus, the European Union, the United Kingdom and other countries expressed doubts about the need to establish another investigative agency, suggesting that it would be wiser to make better use of existing UN mandates that are already investigating similar issues.
John Fisher, director of the Geneva office of Human Rights Watch, said in a statement: “Although some countries, many of which are former colonial powers, oppose the establishment of this mechanism, we are very pleased to see it finally passed by consensus. “
He called on these countries to “participate constructively… and work hard to deal with their harmful heritage and seek to repair their far-reaching damage.”
The American Civil Liberties Union also urged the United States to particularly accept the new mechanism.
“We call on the Biden administration and the U.S. Congress, as well as state and local governments with more than 18,000 law enforcement agencies, to cooperate fully with the new UN human rights agency,” said Jamil Dakwar, head of the American Civil Liberties Union’s human rights program. Say. ,.
“It’s time for us to redouble our efforts to deal with slavery and Jim Crow’s legacy and take bold action to repair the damage.”
