E/2001/27 E/CN.6/2001/14 Annex II Summary submitted by the Moderator of the panel discussion on gender and all forms of discrimination, in particular racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance (Ibra Deguène Ka) (agenda item 4 (b)) 1. At its 11th meeting, on 13 March 2001, the Commission held a panel discussion followed by a dialogue on gender and all forms of discrimination, in particular racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance, one of the thematic issues before the Commission. The panellists were: Françoise Gaspard (France), member on the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women and Senior Lecturer, École des hautes études en sciences sociales, Paris; Pragna Patel (United Kingdom), community-case worker at Southall Black Sisters Legal Advice Centre; Philomena Essed (Netherlands), Senior Researcher, Amsterdam Research Institute for Global Issues and Development Studies, University of Amsterdam, and Visiting Professor, University of California at Irvine; and Mely G. Tan (Indonesia), Chairperson of the Research Institute, Atma Jaya Catholic University, Jakarta, and Lecturer, Graduate School, Institute of Police Sciences of the National Police Force, Jakarta. The panel was moderated by Ibra Deguène Ka (Senegal). 2. Participants in the panel discussion and dialogue indicated that the outcome of the dialogue would provide a contribution to the forty-fifth session of the Commission on the Status of Women and to the World Conference against Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia and Related Intolerance, to be held from 31 August to 7 September 2001 at Durban, South Africa. They stressed the crucial importance of taking account of the intersectionality of gender-based and other forms of discrimination, including on the basis of race and other factors, such as age and disability, and the importance of addressing discrimination in multidimensional ways so as to address the discrimination suffered by all. It was pointed out that racism affected women and men differently, and that differences existed among women in their experience of racism. It was emphasized that certain forms of racism, racial discrimination and xenophobia were directed against women because of their gender. Examples included sexual violence against women during armed conflict, in detention and in refugee 64 camps, the forced sterilization of indigenous women and trafficking in women and girls. 3. Participants stressed the need for Governments to make clear that all forms of discrimination, including racial discrimination, was against the law through, inter alia, public campaigns and human rights education in schools and for specific sectors, such as law enforcement personnel, as well as in other contexts. 4. It was noted that the situation of migrant women and women and girls who had been trafficked was usually highlighted when the double burden of genderbased and racial discrimination was discussed. The point was made that in parts of the developing world, the majority of the female population experienced racial and ethnic discrimination, and that the situation of indigenous women and girls and those belonging to well-established national and ethnic minorities should also be taken into account. Special consideration and efforts should be made to view these women not as victims but as actors in efforts to combat racism. 5. Gender-based and racial discrimination affected women in various contexts, including in relation to domestic violence, the impact of immigration laws and in the context of the criminal justice system. Multiple disadvantages were created or perpetuated, with women being unable to access the criminal justice system and being subject to discriminatory policing practices, which was sometimes exacerbated by unsettled immigration status and fear of deportation. It was agreed that gender-based differences needed to be acknowledged in the development and formulation of policies and programmes, in particular in relation to the criminal justice system and immigration and asylum laws and policies. 6. Globalization and structural adjustment programmes were considered to have potential negative consequences for women, especially those affected by discrimination on the basis of race, age, disability or other status. These factors could result in poverty, which disproportionally affected marginalized