The UK should take steps to curb racist hate speech and xenophobic rhetoricsaid this Friday the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discriminationfollowing the recent riots that shook that country.
The Committee expressed concern about persistent hate crimes, hate speech and xenophobic incidents on various platforms, including by politicians and public figures.
The panel of experts also expressed grave concern about recurring racist acts and violence by far-right extremist and white supremacist individuals and groups. targeting ethnic and ethnoreligious minorities, migrants, refugees and asylum seekers.
Knife attack
The acts of violence referred to by the Committee occurred in late July and early August this year, when riots broke out across the UK after a knife attack was reported at a dance class in Southport, leaving three girls dead and injuring ten more people.
The riots were fueled by the misinformation shared on social media about the suspect.
In addition to calling for provisions to be taken, the UN Committee urged the UK authorities to implement comprehensive measures to curb racist hate speech and xenophobic rhetoric that has even been used by political and public figures.
He stressed the need for Conduct thorough investigations and apply strict sanctions for racist hate crimes.
He also called for establishing Effective resources for victims and their families.
According to press reports, British courts have Hundreds of sentences have been handed down those who participated in the riots, including some people who fueled the disorder through online posts.
Excessive use of force
The Committee also expressed concern about the disproportionate impact of Police stop and search practicesincluding body searches, on ethnic minorities, especially children.
He also warned about the excessive and lethal use of force by law enforcement officers and stressed the lack of accountability and inadequate support for victims’ families, all of which disproportionately affects people of African descent and other ethnic minorities.
Experts also expressed concern about the institutional racism in the police and criminal justice system.
Reporting mechanism
The Committee urged the United Kingdom to establish a complaints mechanism independent to investigate allegations of racial discriminationstop and search practices, body searches and excessive use of force by police.
Those responsible for such abuses must be prosecuted and punished and decisive action must be taken to eliminate racial discrimination in the police and criminal justice system, the committee insisted.
The findings on the UK were drawn up by the Committee following a four-year review of the country.
The 18 international experts appointed to the Committee receive their mandates from the Human Rights Council UN staff. They are not UN staff and do not receive remuneration for their work.
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