Lok Sabha Question No. 1701 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2016-07-27
Subject: Report on Minority Issues
Ministry: EXTERNAL AFFAIRS
Asked by: E. T. MOHAMMED BASHEER

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA

## MINISTRY OF EXTERNAL AFFAIRS

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO.1701 TO BE ANSWERED ON 27.07.2016

## REPORT ON MINORITY ISSUES

1701. SHRI E. T. MOHAMMED BASHEER:

Will the Minister of EXTERNAL AFFAIRS be pleased to state:

- (a) whether  UN  human  rights  council  has  made  a  report  titled 'Report  of  the  Special  Rapporteur  on  minority  issues'  and India's  permanent  representative  to  the  UN  have  allegedly dismissed the report; and
- (b) if so, the salient features of this report pertaining to India and the reasons of our representative in the UN for dismissing it?

## ANSWER THE MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF EXTERNAL AFFAIRS (SHRI M. J. AKBAR)

- (a) & (b) The Report by the Special Rapporteur (SR) of the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) on minority issues Ms. Rita Izsak was tabled under Agenda item 3 pertaining to promotion and protection of all human rights, civil, political, economic, social and cultural  rights,  including  the  right  to  development  during  the  31 st Session  of  UNHRC  held  from  29  February  to  24  March,  2016.  The report provided  an  update  of  SR's  activities  during  2015  and included thematic analysis on the topic of minorities and discrimination  based  on  caste  and  analogous  systems  of  inherited status.  India made an intervention during the interactive dialogue with  the  SR  on  minority  issues  held  on  15  March,  2016  which  is placed at the Annex.
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## Mr. President,

We have seen the report of the Special Rapporteur on minority issues.

2. My delegation would like to raise some questions on this matter relating to the fundamental point of, what we consider, a breach of the SR's mandate. The mandate of the SR, as detailed in OP 11 of HRC Resolution A/HRC/25/5, clearly spells out the categories of minorities to be covered under this mandate.
3. It would have been preferable for the SR to take the guidance of the relevant resolutions  that  led  to  the  establishment  of  the  SR's  mandate  rather  than  to  seek  to extend it. Despite the SR's own acknowledgement of the weakness of this aspect, the SR  has  gone  ahead  to  make  a  series  of  sweeping  judgments.  The  justification provided  is that the  choices  made  share  "minority-like  characters".  This  is a questionable  proposition,  because  in  some  context  or  the  other  all  categories  of persons  could  well  be  classified  as  minorities,  and  hence,  is  there  any  section  of society over which the SR's mandate will not be applied? If we thus create incentives for  each  SR  to  go  beyond  the  mandates  set  out  and  seek  to  reinterpret  them,  this creates  the  potential  for  calling  into  question  the  seriousness  of  the  work  of  this Council. This approach, in our view, is best avoided.

## Mr. President,

4. The publication of this report provides us with an opportunity to address the crucial issue of role and responsibility of UN Special Procedures mandate holders. We believe that any attempt to completely disregard the agreed procedures and mandates carries  a  serious  risk  of  undermining  the  credibility  of  the  UN  Special  Procedure system itself, and this should be avoided.

I thank you, Mr. President.

## PERMANENT MISSION OF INDIA GENEVA

## 31 st  SESSION OF HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCIL (29 February-24 March 2016)

## Agenda Item 3: Interactive Dialogue with SR on Minority Issues

[1800-2100 hrs; Tuesday, 15 th March 2016]

## Intervention by India

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## ANNEX