Organizer 1
Juliet Namuli B. Haveland
Adviser
Ministry of Local Governement and Regional Developement
P.O.Box 8112 Dep, N-0032 Oslo, Norway

Tel: +47 22 24 70 86
Fax: +47 22 24 95 48
Email:juliet.haveland@krd.dep.no







Workshop description:
A comparison between proposed anti-discrimination legislation in Sweden, Denmark and Norway, in light of process of member states in the European Union implementing the Council Directive 2000/43/EC Implementing the principle of equal treatment between persons irrespective of racial or ethnic origin. The workshop will concentrate on the following themes: 1) The scope of applicability of the proposed anti-discrimination legislation. 2) The definition of ethnic discrimination. 3) Sanctions and other compensating incentives for the victims of ethnic discrimination. 4) Bodies with a purpose to promote equal treatment. About their powers and role in enforcing the anti-discrimination legislation. 5) The obligations under the UN Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (ICERD), with a focus on the methods on how to implement ICERD into national law, legal protection against racist speech (hate speech) and legislation that regulates organisations and organised activities which promote and incite ethnic discrimination. 6) The possibilities for coordination of the Nordic anti-discrimination legislation through the Nordic Council and the advantages and disadvantages of such coordination.


Goals of the workshop:
1)To provide a forum for exchange of knowledge, information, points of views for academics, researchers, policy makers and non-governmental organisations. 2) To share experiences and to indentify the strategies that provide for the most effective protection against ethnic discrimination.




Policy relevance and topic: Implementing the principle of equal treatment in order to provide for equal opportunities for all to participate in the society.


How international comparisons are included: The workshop is a comparison of the anti-discrimination legislation in Sweden, Denmark and Norway. In addition we have included participants from Canada and the Netherlands with experince from anti-discrimination legislation.


Reference to concerns with policy-making and best practice: The three countries have choosen three different paths in respect of anti-discriminatoin legislation and three different model for bodies to promote equal treatment.There is a need to evaluate these three different strategies in order to identify the solutions that can provide for the most effective protection against ethnic discrimination.


Presenters / participants /other information
Prof. Dr. jur Ole Espersen,
University of Copenhagen, The Law faculty, Denmark.

Prof. Dr. jur Gudrun Holgersen, University of Bergen, The Law faculty, Norway.

Judge Marianne Tejning, at City of Stockholm Stipendiary Magistrates Court, (Tingsrätten), Sweden.

Research Fellow Ronald Craig, Norwegian Institute for Human Rights, Norway.

Adviser Guri Hestflått, Centre for Combating Ethnic Discrimination, Norway.




Summary:
A comparison between proposed anti-discrimination legislation in Sweden, Denmark and Norway, in light of process of member states in the European Union implementing the Council Directive 2000/43/EC Implementing the principle of equal treatment between persons irrespective of racial or ethnic origin.



Date: 10 September


(1 session is 3 hours)
Number of sessions: 1

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