MEPs: The EU must act now to help end one of the biggest human rights issues in the world
PRESS RELEASE: Brussels, March 1, 2011 (IDSN) --- MEPs stated that EU action must be taken to help end caste discrimination, affecting 260 million people worldwide. The statements came during a hearing on caste discrimination in South Asia, at the European Parliament Monday afternoon. This was also the message delivered by Dalit rights advocators at the hearing, who informed MEPs that concerted action to combat caste discrimination through EU development work, trade agreements and political dialogues, must be taken if development goals in caste-affected countries including India, Bangladesh, Pakistan and Nepal, are to be achieved and human rights respected.
Read the IDSN February newsletter
The latest IDSN newsletter once again underlines that caste discrimination is a serious international human rights issue.
IDSN Annual Report 2010
The IDSN 2010 Annual Report is now published and ready for download.
UN report with strong Dalit focus
A new report from the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights on the activities of her office in Nepal contains numerous references to Dalits and caste discrimination.
UPR: Many caste references in Nepal review
More than 20 states referred to caste discrimination in their interventions during the Universal Periodic Review of Nepal. The Nepali government has expressed its support for a number of the recommendations made on 25 January in Geneva.
UN Special Rapporteur “particularly concerned” about Dalit human rights defenders in India
In a statement concluding her January visit to India, UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders, Margaret Sekaggya, raised particular concern for the situation of Dalit human rights defenders and noted widespread deficiencies in implementation of laws to protect human rights defenders.
Gordon Brown shocked at living conditions of Dalits after visit to a poor neighbourhood in Delhi
Former British prime minister Gordon Brown recently visited a project in India that seeks to end discrimination against dalits – and was shocked at the living conditions he saw in the poor Delhi neigbourhood - Bhalswa.
Read the IDSN January Newsletter
The IDSN January 2011 newsletter includes news that: Campaigners for Dalit rights finished 2010 on a strong note with lots of activities around Human Rights Day on 10 December and participation in various international events. In India, terrible atrocities against Dalits continued to make headlines, and in Nepal, the efforts to include strong provisions against caste discrimination in the constitution gained further momentum. The United Kingdom move closer to making caste discrimination illegal, as government commissioned research provided evidence of this form of discrimination in British society.
Evidence of Caste Discrimination in the UK revealed
A study just released on caste discrimination in the UK finds evidence of caste discrimination in work, provision of services, education, and harassment and violence as a result of caste discrimination.
Nepal: NDC and OHCHR analyse Untouchability Bill
The National Dalit Commission of Nepal (NDC) and the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights in Nepal (OHCHR-Nepal) have called for improvements in a draft bill on caste discrimination.