A global call for concrete action for the elimination of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance and the comprehensive implementation of and follow-up to the Durban Declaration and Programme of Action A/RES/78/234 Stressing that law enforcement officials, in the performance of their duties, shall respect and protect human dignity and maintain and uphold the human rights of all persons, Recognizing the multiple and aggravated forms of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance, which may exacerbate individuals’ experiences with police violence, Recognizing also that racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance, as well as apartheid, have deep negative impacts on the enjoyment of human rights, and therefore require a united and comprehensive response from States, Expressing concern at the disruption to economies and societies caused by the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, and its negative impact on the enjoyment of human rights around the world, disproportionately affecting certain individuals, including those facing racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance, which the pandemic has highlighted and exposed, including underlying deep and long-standing structural inequalities and fundamental problems in various areas of social, economic, civil and political life, and its exacerbation of existing inequalities, and recalling that systemic and structural racism and racial discrimination further exacerbate inequality in access to health care and treatment, leading to racial disparities in health outcomes and a higher ra te of mortality and morbidity among individuals and groups facing racial discrimination, Noting with concern the disproportionate impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the existing inequalities within our societies and regretting that, in that context, persons belonging to racial and ethnic minorities and to other groups, including Asians and people of Asian descent, especially women and girls, have been victims of racist violence, threats of violence, discrimination and stigmatization, Recalling the three Decades for Action to Combat Racism and Racial Discrimination previously declared by the General Assembly, and regretting that the Programmes of Action for those Decades were not fully implemented and that their objectives have yet to be attained, Noting that 10 December 2023 will mark the seventy-fifth anniversary of the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights 9 and that 25 June 2023 marked the thirtieth anniversary of the adoption of the Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action, 10 and stressing in this regard the importance of fully integrating the matter of combating racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance into these commemorations and their implementation, Stressing in this respect the need to also address negative stereotypes, stigmatization and the assigning of identity based on race as essential in the fight against racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance, Reiterating that all human beings are born free and equal in dignity and righ ts and have the potential to contribute constructively to the development and well -being of their societies, and that any doctrine of racial superiority is scientifically false, morally condemnable, socially unjust and dangerous and must be rejected, toget her with theories that attempt to determine the existence of separate human races, Underlining the intensity, magnitude and organized nature of slavery and the slave trade, including the transatlantic slave trade, and the associated historical injustices, as well as the untold suffering caused by colonialism and apartheid, and that Africans and people of African descent, Asians and people of Asian descent and __________________ 9 10 23-26238 Resolution 217 A (III). A/CONF.157/24 (Part I), chap. III. 3/11