The Durban World Conference Against Racism // New Zealand Human Rights Commission

International Human Rights

The Durban World Conference Against Racism

The Durban Review Conference 2009

The Durban Review Conference was held in Geneva, Switzerland, 20-24 April 2009. It evaluated progress towards the goals set by the Durban Declaration and Programme of Action issued at the World Conference against Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia and Related Intolerance in Durban, South Africa, in 2001.

For full details of the Durban Review Conference visit the Conference website.

The purpose of the Durban Review Conference was:

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 assessment of contemporary manifestations of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance; through an inclusive, transparent and collaborative process, and identification of concrete measures and initiatives for combating and eliminating all manifestations of these phenomena;
To assess the effectiveness of the existing Durban follow-up mechanisms and other relevant UN mechanisms dealing with the issues of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance in order to enhance them;
To 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;
To identify and share good practices achieved in the fight against racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance.

The Durban Review Conference produced an Outcomes Document which endorsed the Durban Declaration and Programme of Action, reviewed progress in its implementation and identified further actions that needed to be taken.

The Race Relations Commissioner attended the Durban Review Conference as a National Human Rights Institution representative, and contributed to discussions on the role of National Human Rights Institutions in combating racism and racial discrimination.

In preparation for the conference, the Commission undertook a review of the Declaration and Programme of Action in terms of developments in New Zealand since 2001 and future priorities.

Review of New Zealand Follow-Up to Durban 2001

The review outlined New Zealand follow up to the 2001 Durban Declaration and Programme of Action, including identification of priorities by the Human Rights Commission in 2002, an international race relations roundtable in 2004, inclusion of key elements of the Programme of Action in the comprehensive status report on human rights in New Zealand in 2004 and adoption of the New Zealand Action Plan for Human Rights in 2005.

It noted developments in relation to the revised mandate of the national human rights institution and its new initiatives in the field of race relations, processes for reconciliation and redress for past injustices, establishment of the Office of Ethnic Affairs, the adoption of a settlement strategy and action plan for migrants and refugees, initiatives by the New Zealand Police, developments in indigenous language maintenance and Māori and Pacific media, interfaith dialogue and the adoption of a new school curriculum.

It found that overall New Zealand had made significant progress in addressing race relations issues since the Durban Conference in 2001.

It identified as priorities for the future the continuation of treaty settlements, strengthening of relationships between the government and Māori, promoting Māori and Pacific economic development, further reducing economic and social inequalities experienced by Māori and Pacific peoples, reducing the high rate of Māori imprisonment, addressing domestic violence against women and children, ensuring the proper treatment, wellbeing and safety of temporary migrant workers and international students, developing a national languages policy and implementing strategies for the maintenance of Māori. Pacific and other community languages, and producing a new action plan for human rights by 2010.

New Zealand Follow Up to the Durban Review Conference

The Race Relations Commissioner produced a report on the Durban Review Conference, including the discussions held by National Human Rights Institutions and media coverage of the conference in New Zealand. A further report on New Zealand Follow Up to Durban Review Conference was published in September 2009. This review identified the following additional areas for follow up in New Zealand in response to the Outcomes Document from the Durban Review Conference:

strengthening implementation of the Convention on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination
protecting human rights in the context of anti-terrorism
protecting the rights of migrant workers
collecting reliable data on hate crime
working with sporting codes against racial discrimination in sport