Statement of Baku Conference "Caucasus Youth for Culture of Peace, Tolerance and Interethnic Understanding"

Reply-To: [email protected]
Sender: [email protected]
From: MINELRES moderator <[email protected]>
Date: Mon, 20 Aug 2001 19:20:53 +0300 (EEST)
Message-Id: <[email protected]>
Subject: Statement of Baku Conference "Caucasus Youth for Culture of Peace, Tolerance and Interethnic Understanding"

From: MINELRES moderator <[email protected]>

Original sender: Nadir Kamaldinov <[email protected]>

Statement of Baku Conference "Caucasus Youth for Culture of
Peace, Tolerance and Interethnic Understanding"


International Conference:
Caucasus Youth for Culture of Peace, Tolerance and Interethnic
Understanding
Baku, June 27-30, 2001
 
The aim of the conference, in the line with the Preamble of the UN
Charter, in particular its provision "to practice tolerance and live
together in peace with one another as good neighbors", was to create
conditions for Caucasus youth to engage to open dialogue about the
role of young leaders in the development of peaceful relationships and
good neighborhood in the name of peace. The conference was held in
preparation for World Conference against Racism, Racial
Discrimination, Xenophobia and Related Intolerance, which is to be
held in Durban, Africa from 31st August to 7th September 2001. The
result of the conference was adoption of statement to the World
Conference against Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia and
Related Intolerance. In addition, avenues for the struggle of youth
organizations against discrimination were outlined and ideas of
collaboration developed. Was decided to establish international
organization called "Caucasus Youth Against Discrimination" and
prepare program of action against all forms of discrimination. The
Conference was attended by 40 young people from the Caucasus Region.
 
Statement
of International Conference:
Caucasus Youth for Culture of Peace, Tolerance and Interethnic
Understanding
Baku, June 27-30, 2001
 
Introduction
 
We, representatives of youth nongovernmental organizations of
Caucasus, have gathered in Baku, June, 27-30, 2001 to discuss problems
of racism and racial discrimination in our region. According to an
item of 1 International Convention on liquidation of all forms of
racial discrimination concept "racism and racial discrimination" in
our understanding covers any forms of discrimination, xenophobia and
the intolerance, the races based on attributes, colors of a skin, a
patrimonial, national or ethnic origin. In this connection the special
attention was given position of national, ethnic and language minority
in Caucasus. During our discussions we have confirmed determination of
nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) of Caucasus to struggle with all
forms of racism and racial discrimination. The efforts undertaken by
the governments and a society on struggle against the phenomena of
racism, discrimination, xenophobia and intolerance, are insufficient
and should be increased.

We are disturbed especially with attempts of open declaration in mass
media and even in structures of public authority of different levels
of doctrines of the ethnic or religious superiority, incompatibility
and exclusiveness. We express special concern with the number of
unresolved internal armed conflicts in our region both proceeding
regular and rough infringements of human rights in zones of conflicts.
We appeal to the international community, the governments of our
countries and all forces participating in conflicts to use the best
efforts for the immediate eradication of infringement on human rights,
first of all discrimination and prosecutions to an ethnic attribute,
for achievement of steady political settlement, for returning refugees
and the internal displaced persons in places of their former residing
at maintenance of a guarantee of safety.

We are deeply concerned with that the official policy of some the
countries of region is used as the tool of elimination from public and
political life of the whole groups of the population. We condemn laws
and the policy, inducing any and discriminatory restrictions on the
basis of language and mastery of a language; resolutely we call
government to reconsider such laws and practice.

We count, that to intergovernmental organizations, such as the United
Nations, OSCE and the Council of Europe, retains a key role in
struggle against racism and racial discrimination. Recommendations
prescribed below were discussed and developed on working groups and
plenary sessions.
 
RECOMMENDATIONS
 
1. Racism and racial discrimination concern to the gross infringements
of human rights in the modern world and are qualified as infringement
international human rights norms. We call the governments and
societies of our countries to condemn these phenomena most decisively,
to struggle with them in all lawful ways and to take urgent measures,
to put it end and to bring to guilty to court.

2. Racism and racial discrimination renders the negative influence
mainly on racial, ethnic, national, religious and language minority,
including regional minority (in particular, " minority inside
minority"), radical small peoples, refugees, migrants, persons without
citizenship and without documents. Special concern is caused, in this
connection, by a politics of any non-recognition of citizenship of
inhabitants of the states, any restriction of access to reception of
citizenship and any restrictions of their rights.
 
Legal protection of persons undergone discrimination
 
We appeal to the governments and societies of Caucasus countries to:
 
3. Provide all victims of discrimination with the right of
compensation for damage, regardless of race, color of skin, language,
religion, political and other opinions, of national either social
origin, or of other conditions.

4. Provide adequate sanctions against guilty of racist actions.

5. Lead an expert assessment of current legislation to reveal
discriminatory positions. To provide conformity of all projects in
accordance with new laws, rules and administrative procedures of the
international standards on non-discrimination and to establish the
mechanism of supervising and guaranteeing conformity of laws, rules
and administrative procedures to the international obligations of the
country both the conventional norms and standards in the field of
human rights.

6. Ensure effective means of judicial protection for all victims of
racism and racial discrimination.

7. Take concrete measures for maintenance of that workers of
law-enforcement bodies, in particular polices, addressed with the
persons concerning the least protected groups, fairly, without
discrimination.
 
Education
 
We highlight that in our societies are soaked with profound ignorance
of roots and reasons of racism and discrimination, ethnic problems,
culture and a history of various groups and the nationalities living
in our region, with lack of comprehension of multicultural values,
which causes steady stereotypes, biased racial prejudices.

We express our concern that the public opinion in our region is
dominated with etnocentric categories, which enhances segregation of
people on the basis of ethnic ancestry and interferes with
comprehension of transcultural values. This is promoted by absence of
the adequate specialized educational programs.
 
We appeal to the governments and societies of Caucasus states to:
 
Accept urgent and effective measures in the field of education and
works with youth for overcoming the prejudices conducting to racial
discrimination and racism, in particular:

- impart knowledge of cultural variety and promote positive
illumination of this theme in children's education, prevent formation
of destructive stereotypes, disinformation and tearing away which may
result in displays of racism and discrimination;
- promote and give financing to the specialized curriculums which
address preventive maintenance and overcoming of racism and teach
youth to respect cultural variety;
- promote human rights courses into the national program of an initial
and average comprehensive school that all pupils knew the rights and
understood their value;
- involve young people, in particular from minorities and socially
isolated groups, in development and realization of educational
programs;
- include legal protection education in programs of professional
training for teachers.

Recognize important role of NGOs in education of human rights in
general and on problems of racism in particular, and to assist and
support, including financially, to national and international projects
on struggle against racism and racial discrimination.
 
Mass media
 
We are deeply concerned that many journalists and mass media
representatives, including intelligentsia, create and fix negative
stereotypes concerning ethnic and/or confessional minorities and the
least protected groups, provoke hatred and enmity in relation to them.
 
We appeal to the governments and communities of Caucasus to:
 
- support educational institutions where teaching journalism is
conducted, in development and introduction of special rates on
specificity of work in multiethnic and multicultural societies,
- support and encourage development and perfection of professional
skills building programs for mass media representatives, particularly
on questions of human rights and struggle against racism,
 
We appeal to Mass-Media to:
 
- create thorough picture of a society, objectively and harmoniously
representing a society in its cultural, ethnic and religious variety
and using various sources of the information, including
representatives of minority
- avoid the stereotyped image of representatives of cultural, ethnic
or religious communities, including abstaining from a mention of
belonging of the person to this or that ethnic group, in particular at
illumination of the criminal chronicle,
- pay attention a society to how intolerance is dangerous and also to
promote deeper understanding and a recognition of value of all forms
of variety, in particular, revealing underlying reason of the racist
statements made during interviews, reports, debatable programs etc,
- cooperate with NGO which conduct monitoring racism questions in Mass
Media,
- promote creation of a database of successful examples of struggle
against racism,
- study ways of use of the Internet for struggle against racial
discrimination and racism.
 
We invite youth of Caucasus to join to Caucasus Youth Movement against
Racism and to take part in preparation and to implementation of the
Program of Actions which will be developed at the World Conference in
Durban.
 
With My Best Regards,
 
Nadir Kamaladdinov,
 
Director of Resource Center on National Minorities (RCNM)
Address: 121-82, Mir-Jalal St., Baku 370147, Azerbaijan Republic
Phone: +99450 3288326; +99412 683839
Fax: +99412 988804
E-mail: [email protected]
Website: www.rcnm.org
 
-- 
==============================================================
MINELRES - a forum for discussion on minorities in Central&Eastern
Europe

Submissions: [email protected]  
Subscription/inquiries: [email protected] 
List archive: http://www.riga.lv/minelres/archive.htm
==============================================================