III. RECOMMENDATIONS

Nationally, concerned governments must act to uphold their own constitutional principles and international treaty obligations and work toward the full enjoyment of rights by all citizens, regardless of caste or descent. Globally, the international community must take advantage of the opportunity this World Conference represents to make progress on one of the world's most severe and forgotten abuses. Specifically,

· All governments, and in particular those of countries whose citizens suffer from caste or descent-based discrimination and abuse, should ratify and fully implement the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination;

· All governments should support efforts to implement the resolution on discrimination based on work and descent adopted by the U.N. Subcommission on the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights in August 2000;

· Concerned governments should extend invitations to the special rapporteur on racism to investigate caste-based discrimination and other forms of discrimination based on descent in their respective countries;

· All governments should ensure that caste-based and similar discrimination against marginalized populations is explicitly addressed in the declaration and programme of action of the WCAR, and any follow-up plan of action thereafter;

· Dalits in South Asia, Buraku people in Japan, and other populations in similar situations should be explicitly acknowledged as groups of people who have been subject to perennial and persistent forms of discrimination and abuse on the basis of their descent;

· Concerned governments should:

1. Establish a program and timetable to enforce the abolition of "untouchability," segregation, or similar practices.
2. Enact and fully enforce laws aimed at ending abuses associated with caste, such as child labor, bonded labor, land reform, manual collection of human waste, and forced prostitution or similar practices.
3. Monitor and publicize the extent to which existing laws to end caste discrimination have been implemented.
4. Allocate adequate funds for programs for the socio-economic and educational support of communities that have faced discrimination on the basis of caste or descent.
5. Ensure greater participation by the affected communities in civil administration, especially the administration of justice, including in key institutions such as the police and judiciary.
6. Ensure that all necessary constitutional, legislative, and administrative measures, including appropriate forms of affirmative action, are in place to prohibit and redress discrimination on the basis of caste, and that such measures-including those already instituted in Japan and India-are continued until discrimination is eliminated.
7. Launch nationwide public awareness campaigns regarding legal prohibitions on discrimination on the basis of caste or descent. This campaign should explain in simple terms what actions are legally prohibited and what recourse is available to victims of discrimination and abuse.
8. Provide political and financial support for programs of the United Nations and regional bodies to assist countries seeking to eradicate caste discrimination.

· United Nations development agencies should pay particular attention to caste violence and caste discrimination, assess the impact of their existing programs with regard to caste, and develop programs and strategies designed to curb abuse and encourage accountability.