THE North West Migrants Forum and its partners in the Committee on the Administration of Justice have welcomed a United Nations recommendation urging the Northern Ireland Executive to adopt measures to tackle paramilitary racist violence and intimidation against ethnic minorities and migrants.
CAJ Immigration Solicitor Úna Boyd and CAJ-NWMF Joint Project Research and Campaigns Worker Shannon Doherty made a number of submissions to the UN’s Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (UNCERD).
These focussed on three key areas:
- Reforms of the Human Rights Act (HRA) and Northern Ireland post-Brexit safeguards
- Racial profiling within the (UK/Ireland) Common Travel Area (CTA)
- The State response to paramilitary racist violence and intimidation in Northern Ireland
Following an examination of the NWRC/CAJ submissions, the committee has addressed them in its final observations.
On the issue of paramilitary violence, it recommends that Northern Ireland’s Government adopts “robust measures to prevent and combat paramilitary racist violence and intimidation against ethnic minorities and migrants in Northern Ireland”.
It has also urged it to “systematically collect information on these acts of intimidation and ensure that cases of paramilitary racist violence and intimidation are promptly and effectively investigated, prosecuted and punished with appropriate sanctions and that victims have access to effective protection and redress”.
ATTACKS
The recommendation follows a series of recent attacks which saw businesses set alight in Belfast and racist graffiti daubed on homes in areas including Ballykelly. Around 40 people have now been charged in Northern Ireland in connection with the recent disturbances.
The committee added that while it noted the efforts being made to tackle paramilitarism in Northern Ireland, it remained concerned about reports of paramilitary groups and individuals perpetrating acts of racist violence and intimidation to deter persons belonging to ethnic minorities and migrants from taking up housing or establish business in certain areas.
It also aired concerns about information indicating that victims do not always report these acts for fear of reprisals and that the response by the authorities and the police has been “ineffective”.
On the issue of racial profiling the committee said it remains concerned that the use of stop and search powers by law enforcement officials continue to have a disproportionate impact on persons belonging to ethnic minorities, in particular those of African and Asian descent and especially young men and children.
Members said they were also concerned about reports of racial profiling practices by immigration officers during custom checks when travelling between Northern Ireland and other parts of the United Kingdom and Ireland and reports on the misuse of terrorism legislation to stop and search, with a disproportionate impact on ethnic minorities.
By way of recommendation the committee urged the government to take “effective steps to ensure that stop and search powers are used in a lawful, non-arbitrary and non-discriminatory manner on the basis of reasonable suspicion”.
Welcoming the findings, Úna Boyd of the Committee On The Administration of Justice it was time to start putting the recommendations into practice.
Ms Boyd said, “There is no place for denial now that the UN has called out paramilitary racist violence and intimidation in Northern Ireland, it is time for concerted action.
“Stormont’s current Tackling Paramilitarism plan doesn’t even mention racist violence and intimidation, this needs to change.”
GRATEFUL
Echoing the calls, Shannon Doherty of NWMF/CAJ added that she was grateful to the committee for making such clear recommendations.
“The North West Migrants Forum represents and works with people who have been the victims of hate crimes and housing intimidation,” Ms Doherty said.
“These incidents not only inflict suffering on the victims, but also undermine the values enshrined in human rights legislation – respect for human dignity, freedom, and equality.
“We are grateful that the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination has made clear recommendations that reflect the issues we raised with them.
“We call on the NI Executive to fully consider the implications of these observations and take urgent steps to action these expert recommendations.”
READ THE FULL UNCERD REPORT HERE: https://nwmf.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/CERD-final-report.pdf