Declaration by the Council and the representatives of the Governments of the Member States, meeting within the Council of 16 December 1997 on respecting diversity and combating racism and xenophobia
Date: 1997-12-16
Institutions: Council of the European Union, Representatives of the Governments of the Member States
Subjects: anti-discriminatory measure, cultural cooperation, fundamental rights, racial discrimination, xenophobia

3.  1.  98

EN

Official  Journal  of  the  European  Communities

C  1/1

I

(Information)

COUNCIL

Declaration  by  the  Council  and  the  representatives  of  the  Governments  of  the  Member  States,
meeting  within  the  Council

of  16  December  1997

on  respecting  diversity  and  combating  racism  and  xenophobia

(98/C  1/01)

Europe,  characterized  by  solidarity  and  a  rich  cultural
mix,  is  founded  on  respect  for  diversity  and  on  tolerance.

All  Member  States,  with  the  support  of  the  partners  in
civil,  social,  political  and  cultural  life,  are  continuously
striving  to  build  and  maintain  a  Europe  based  on  demo(cid:220)
cratic  principles  and  on  the  diversity  of  its  cultures  and
languages,  a  Europe  where  social  justice  is  promoted  and
the  rights  of  minorities  are  protected.

In  today’s  Europe  there  are,  however,  still  racist  and
xenophobic  attitudes  which  contribute  to  the  disruption
of  social  cohesion  in  the  Member  States  despite  all  the
efforts  being  made  to  counter  such  phenomena.

These  attitudes  have  their  basis  in  cultural  and  socio(cid:220)
economic  factors,  but  are  exacerbated  by  a 
lack  of
recognition  of  diversity  and  of  understanding  of  others.

Europe  has  to  fight  all  forms  of  racism  and  xenophobia
and  take  action  in  order  to  achieve  the  ideal  of  a  Union
founded  on  respect  for  other  people  and  on  tolerance.  In
this  task,  education  must  contribute  to  improving  the
ability  to  live  together  and  cooperate  with  one’s  fellow
human  beings.

The  Council  and  the  representatives  of  the  Governments
of  the  Member  States,  meeting  within  the  Council:

- WELCOME  the  European  Commission’s  initiative  in
proclaiming  1997  "European  Year  against  Racism’.
They  note  that  this  initiative  has  prompted  numerous

measures  at  every  level  of  society,  which  have  all
helped  to  increase  awareness  of  the  wealth  that  lies  in
cultural  diversity,

- STRESS  that  efforts  deployed  within  the  Member
States  must  be  intensified  so  that  Europe’s  citizens,
from  earliest  childhood,  acquire  greater  under(cid:220)
standing  of  and  greater  respect  for  other  people.
They  consider  that  education  in  respect  and  tolerance
forms  an  important  part  of  the  education  of  every
young  European,

to 

- STRESS  the  importance  of  the  role  of  education,
which  endeavours  at  all  ages  and  at  all  levels  of
education 
increase  understanding  and  mutual
respect  among  young  people  by  helping  them  to
come  into  contact  with  other  cultures  with  an  open
mind  and  to  approach  diversity  in  a  positive  manner.
School,  which  along  with  the  family  is  the  first  place
in  which  young  people  learn  social  skills,  must  be
supported  in  its  efforts  to  impart  democratic  values.

The  Council  and  the  representatives  of  the  Governments
of  the  Member  States,  meeting  within  the  Council,
confirm  the  Resolution  of  23  October  1995  and  consider
that  it  is  of  paramount  importance  to  make  the  safe(cid:220)
guarding  of  the  values  inherent  in  cultural  diversity  a
fully  integrated  part  of  all  education.  Consequently  they
wish  to  join  in  the  initiatives  against  racism  taken  by  the
United  Nations  by  proclaiming  21  March  each  year  a
"Festival  of  cultural  differences’ 
in  educational  estab(cid:220)
lishments.