2000/750/EC: Council Decision of 27 November 2000 establishing a Community action programme to combat discrimination (2001 to 2006)

Council Decision
of 27 November 2000
establishing a Community action programme to combat discrimination (2001 to 2006)
(2000/750/EC)
THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION
,
Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community, and in particular Article 13 thereof,
Having regard to the proposal from the Commission,
Having regard to the Opinion of the European Parliament(1),
After consulting the Economic and Social Committee(2),
After consulting the Committee of the Regions(3),
Whereas:
(1) The European Union is founded on the principles of liberty, democracy, respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms, and the rule of law, principles which are common to all Member States. In accordance with Article 6(2) of the Treaty on European Union, the Union should respect fundamental rights as guaranteed by the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms and as derived from the shared constitutional traditions common to the Member States, as general principles of Community law.
(2) The European Parliament has strongly and repeatedly urged the European Union to develop and strengthen its policy in the field of equal treatment and equal opportunities across all grounds of discrimination.
(3) The European Union rejects theories which attempt to determine the existence of separate human races. The use of the term "racial origin" in this Decision does not imply an acceptance of such theories.
(4) In the implementation of the programme, the Community will seek, in accordance with the Treaty, to eliminate inequalities and promote equality between men and women, particularly because women are often the victims of multiple discrimination.
(5) The different forms of discrimination cannot be ranked: all are equally intolerable. The programme is intended both to exchange existing good practice in the Member States and to develop new practice and policy for combating discrimination, including multiple discrimination. This Decision may help to put in place a comprehensive strategy for combating all forms of discrimination on different grounds, a strategy which should henceforward be developed in parallel.
(6) Experience of action at Community level, in particular in the field of gender, has shown that combating discrimination in practice calls for a combination of measures and in particular of legislation and of practical action designed to be mutually reinforcing. Similar lessons can be drawn from experience dealing with racial and ethnic origin and disability.
(7) The programme should deal with all grounds of discrimination with the exception of sex, which is dealt with by specific Community action. Discrimination on different grounds can have similar features and can be combated in similar ways. Experience built up over many years in combating discrimination on some grounds, including sex, can be used to the benefit of other grounds. However, the specific features of the diverse forms of discrimination should be accommodated. Therefore, the particular needs of people with disabilities should be taken into account in terms of the accessibility of activities and results.
(8) Access to the programme should be open to all public and/or private bodies and institutions involved in the fight against discrimination. In this connection account must be taken of the experience and abilities of both local and national non-governmental organisations.
(9) Many non-governmental organisations at European level have experience and expertise in fighting discrimination, as well as acting at European level as the advocates of people who are exposed to discrimination. They can therefore make an important contribution towards a better understanding of the diverse forms and effects of discrimination and to ensuring that the design, implementation and follow-up of the programme take account of the experience of people exposed to discrimination. The Community has in the past provided core funding for various organisations working in the area of discrimination. The core funding of effective non-governmental organisations may be a valuable asset in combating discrimination.
(10) The measures necessary for the implementation of this Decision should be adopted in accordance with Council Decision 1999/468/EC of 28 June 1999 laying down the procedures for the exercise of implementing powers conferred on the Commission(4).
(11) It is necessary, in order to reinforce the added value of Community action, that the Commission, in cooperation with the Member States, should ensure, at all levels, the coherence and complementarity of actions implemented in the framework of this Decision and other relevant Community policies, instruments and actions, in particular those in the fields of education and training and equal opportunities between men and women under the European Social Fund and those to promote social inclusion. Consistency and complementarity with the relevant activities of the European Monitoring Centre on Racism and Xenophobia should also be ensured.
(12) The Agreement on the European Economic Area (EEA Agreement) provides for greater cooperation in the social field between the European Community and its Member States, on the one hand, and the countries of the European Free Trade Association participating in the European Economic Area (EFTA/EEA), on the other. Provision should be made to open up this programme to participation by the candidate countries of Central and Eastern Europe, in accordance with the conditions established in the Europe Agreements, in their additional protocols and in the decisions of the respective Association Councils, to Cyprus, Malta and Turkey, funded by additional appropriations in accordance with the procedures to be agreed with those countries.
(13) A financial reference amount, within the meaning of point 34 of the Interinstitutional Agreement of 6 May 1999 between the European Parliament, the Council and the Commission(5) is included in this Decision for the entire duration of the programme, without thereby affecting the powers of the budgetary authority as they are defined by the Treaty.
(14) The Commission and the Member States should make efforts to ensure that all the texts, guidelines and calls for proposals published under this programme are written in clear, simple and accessible language.
(15) It is appropriate that account should be taken of the need to provide special assistance, where appropriate, to enable people to overcome the obstacles to their participation in the programme.
(16) It is necessary for the success of any Community action to monitor and evaluate the results set against the objectives.
(17) In accordance with the principle of subsidiarity as defined in Article 5 of the Treaty, the objectives of the proposed action concerning the contribution of the Community to combating discrimination cannot be sufficiently achieved by the Member States because, inter alia, of the need for multilateral partnerships, the transnational exchange of information and the Community-wide dissemination of good practice. In accordance with the principle of proportionality as defined in the said Article, this Decision does not go beyond what is necessary to achieve those objectives,