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The human rights situation of Roma worldwide, with a particular focus on the phenomenon of anti-Gypsyism 2015, para. 36
- Paragraph text
- Statelessness also disproportionately affects Roma, who despite being born in or having long-standing ties to a country, speaking the local language and having no other country of citizenship, often have no access to nationality. Lack of documentation also hampers not only Roma political participation, but also access to services, thereby reinforcing the vicious circle of poverty and marginalization. An NGO report to the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights on Ukraine indicated that up to 40 per cent of Roma in the Odessa region lack at least one of the documents necessary to access a range of services. In the Russian Federation, lack of personal documentation prevents Roma from accessing employment, social allowances and health care, and from voting or accessing education in some schools due to discriminatory practices of school authorities. In 2004, the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination expressed concern about allegations concerning discrimination faced by Roma with regard to birth registration and access to schools for their children in Brazil.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on minority issues
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
The human rights situation of Roma worldwide, with a particular focus on the phenomenon of anti-Gypsyism 2015, para. 40
- Paragraph text
- Exclusion from public and political life must therefore be seen as both a cause and a consequence of the lack of enjoyment of economic and social rights, including lack of education opportunities, poverty, substandard living conditions and language barriers. The Special Rapporteur also underlines how the widespread fragility of Roma individuals' legal status impedes political participation. For example, in the Middle East, some Dom individuals are reportedly unable to pay hospital fees when their children are born, so no birth certificate is issued and the possibility of securing citizenship is denied.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on minority issues
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Poverty
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
Rights of linguistic minorities 2013, para. 81
- Paragraph text
- Minority communities are not homogenous and it is important to understand the challenges facing those, including women, children and the elderly, whose needs, perceptions and expectations may vary. Older people, who may be first-generation immigrants, may have stronger linguistic and cultural ties than young people who have been brought up and educated in their country of residence. They may face greater challenges in learning and adapting to the national language and require culturally sensitive, affordable and accessible assistance.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on minority issues
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Older persons
- Persons on the move
- Women
- Youth
- Year
- 2013
Paragraph
Minority rights-based approaches to the protection and promotion of the rights of religious minorities 2013, para. 54
- Paragraph text
- In numerous States, the recognition of a number of personal status law codes locks religious minorities into systems of laws that may have negative implications for the enjoyment of their rights. Such laws may not allow them, for example, to marry outside their religion. They may oblige them to accept the polygamy of their partner, and they may disinherit them should one of their siblings choose to convert into a particular religion. Such laws may rob them of the opportunity to gain custody of their children on grounds of their remarriage, or their children might automatically be taken away from them at particular ages if they are divorced. Some laws may give religious minorities no option to apply for divorce or may force them to make enormous financial sacrifices in order to obtain a divorce.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on minority issues
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Harmful Practices
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Ethnic minorities
- Families
- Year
- 2013
Paragraph
Rights of linguistic minorities 2013, para. 48
- Paragraph text
- Restrictions on minority languages in the field of education are particularly sensitive and can be the cause of grievances. The 1992 Declaration on Minorities states that wherever possible minorities have the right to learn or to have instruction in their mother tongue (art. 4, para. 3). Indeed, the commentary to the Declaration states that “denying minorities the possibility of learning their own language and of receiving instruction in their own language, or excluding from their education the transmission of knowledge about their own culture, history, tradition and language, would be a violation of the obligation to protect their identity” (E/CN.4/Sub.2/AC.5/2005/2, para. 28). Where official State languages are the only languages used in schools, minority children whose first language is their minority language are placed at a disadvantage from the earliest years of school, since they are often less proficient in the State language and are likely to fall behind.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on minority issues
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Education
- Equality & Inclusion
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Ethnic minorities
- Year
- 2013
Paragraph
Rights of linguistic minorities 2013, para. 30
- Paragraph text
- The rights of individuals freely to use, learn and transmit their languages in public and in private without discrimination are well established in international human rights law and are understood to have group or collective dimensions. The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, in article 2, requires States to ensure that the human rights of all individuals within their territory and subject to their jurisdiction will be ensured and respected without distinction of any kind including on the basis of language. Article 19 guarantees freedom of expression and the right to impart or receive information and ideas of all kinds in the medium or language of one’s choice. Article 27 reads: “In those States in which ethnic, religious or linguistic minorities exist, persons belonging to such minorities shall not be denied the right, in community with the other members of their group, to enjoy their own culture, to profess and practise their own religion, or to use their own language.” The Convention on the Rights of the Child requires, under article 30, that children belonging to minorities have the right to use their own language.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on minority issues
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Civil & Political Rights
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Ethnic minorities
- Year
- 2013
Paragraph
Minority rights-based approaches to the protection and promotion of the rights of religious minorities 2013, para. 48
- Paragraph text
- Religious minorities - like all minorities - should be able to educate their children about their beliefs, practices, history and culture. Positive practices result in educational environments that are welcoming and appropriate to those from diverse religious communities. However, the educational rights of religious minorities are routinely violated around the world. Minority children may be ridiculed and humiliated by school authorities. School texts may exclude reference to religious minorities or misrepresent historical facts about them. In extreme cases, such texts cruelly stereotype them, falsify their religious texts, or accuse them of being politically suspect. Religious minorities may be denied meaningful access to tertiary education owing to their religious affiliation, thus denying them access to some professions.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on minority issues
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Education
- Equality & Inclusion
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Ethnic minorities
- Year
- 2013
Paragraph
Rights of linguistic minorities 2013, para. 49
- Paragraph text
- Many minorities have poor access to education, and frequently education is not in their mother tongue. Literacy levels for some minorities are often low compared to the average. The parents of minority children may be unable to assist their children or engage fully with the education process if they are not proficient in the official language. Where mother-tongue languages are orally transmitted or taught informally in the home, children may not obtain adequate language education allowing them to be fully literate in either their mother tongue or the national language, with consequences for cultural and language transmission and reproduction. Some minorities have reported that entrance examinations for higher education are only in the national language, which places them at a disadvantage and results in fewer minorities progressing to higher education.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on minority issues
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Education
- Equality & Inclusion
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Ethnic minorities
- Families
- Year
- 2013
Paragraph
Rights of linguistic minorities 2013, para. 61
- Paragraph text
- Minorities have the right to name their children in minority languages, and no undue restriction should be placed upon that right or the official recognition of minority names in birth registration or other official documents. Restrictions on the use of certain names or scripts have been reported and constitute a breach of the rights of minority groups to enjoy their language, culture and identity. Where historical restrictions have been imposed and subsequently repealed, legal and administrative measures may be required to ensure that those affected may legally register and use their preferred spoken and written names. Birth registration and other relevant forms should, wherever possible, be available in the languages spoken by large minority populations.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on minority issues
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Civil & Political Rights
- Equality & Inclusion
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Ethnic minorities
- Year
- 2013
Paragraph
Minority rights-based approaches to the protection and promotion of the rights of religious minorities 2013, para. 88
- Paragraph text
- The creation of a culture of human rights and of respect and equal enjoyment of rights by all is key. This requires ongoing and concerted efforts as the religion-belief landscape in all societies is continuously in flux. Continued efforts are required that are focused especially, but not exclusively, on children and young adults who will shape the future of interfaith understanding and acceptance. Educational, political, policy and legal actors need to be engaged and responsive to those trends and respond to them in a concerted and active manner.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on minority issues
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Education
- Equality & Inclusion
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Youth
- Year
- 2013
Paragraph
Priorities for the work of the Independent Expert and the twentieth anniversary of the Declaration on the Rights of Persons Belonging to National or Ethnic, Religious and Linguistic Minorities 2012, para. 21
- Paragraph text
- The independent expert will therefore pay special attention to the rights of and challenges faced by linguistic minorities. She will examine the problems as well as seeking to identify positive practices from all regions. For example, the use of models of bilingual education, commencing in the early years of schooling and including textbooks in minority languages, has been demonstrated to help children to become proficient in their mother tongue as well as national languages, maintain their ethnic and linguistic identity, and to help minority pupils to achieve positive education outcomes and fulfil their potential to participate effectively in wider society.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on minority issues
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Education
- Equality & Inclusion
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Ethnic minorities
- Year
- 2012
Paragraph
Priorities for the work of the Independent Expert and the twentieth anniversary of the Declaration on the Rights of Persons Belonging to National or Ethnic, Religious and Linguistic Minorities 2012, para. 27
- Paragraph text
- The independent expert welcomes the work of her predecessor relating to the rights and status of some persons belonging to specific communities in all regions that find themselves denied or deprived of citizenship, legal rights to remain, or recognition as legitimate minority groups. In many cases individuals, including children belonging to such groups who may have been born in their country of residence are rendered stateless. The independent expert will continue to raise the issues of specific affected communities. In cases where individuals have lived in a country for a period commensurate with their establishing well-developed community, social, economic and familial ties with that country, every consideration should be given by the State to granting them citizenship or legal rights to remain and all of their human rights as individuals and members of a minority group.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on minority issues
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Civil & Political Rights
- Equality & Inclusion
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Ethnic minorities
- Year
- 2012
Paragraph
The role of minority rights protection in promoting stability and conflict prevention 2011, para. 35
- Paragraph text
- The Secretary-General has stated that respecting the rights of children, of women, and of all minorities is at the core of the Charter of the United Nations; it is both a moral obligation and an economic imperative. Discrimination and injustice threaten the goals for peace, security and sustainable development. Preserving minority languages and nurturing ethnic cultures and traditions lays the foundations for lasting stability.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on minority issues
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Ethnic minorities
- Women
- Year
- 2011
Paragraph
13 shown of 13 entities