Quito, November 16-18, 2000

General Discussion of the Context

Entering in the new millenium, human rights look threatened by numerous
challenges. We are witness to a resurgence of racism, fascism,
xenophobia, homophobia, hate crimes, ethnocide and genocide, which most
impacts indigenous, black and gypsy peoples, as well as other populations
that are disadvantaged or not rightfully represented. The situation
concerning so-called "minorities" is rarely a national priority, and even
less often an international concern. Nonetheless, it is necessary to
remember that for those who experience the impacts of these practices,
their vindication is a priority.

It is necessary to examine at length new and emerging forms of racism,
xenophobia and intolerance and the difficulties of not having adequate
resources opposed to these phenomenon. Also of concern are the rights of
the peoples or populations that may not be included in the definitions
mentioned above and that find themselves facing discrimination or the
negation of their rights. These peoples and populations can not count on
legal, social, and political mechanisms in the places they live in or
transit through.

The multiple forms of intolerance are interwoven and include intolerance
for: ethnicity, race, gender, age, sexual orientation, social class,
disabilities, religious beliefs, political or ideological orientation,
displacement - forced migration - or for people that live with HIV/AIDS.
Interconnected forms of intolerance, like intolerance for gender, age,
sexual orientation, class, and disability, cross the lines of ethnic and
racial discrimination and worsen them.

A series of factors that affect discriminated villages and populations
were identified:
- Economic system (globalization, neoliberalism, structural adjustment
politics, debt service, social debt)

- Poverty, especially the feminization of poverty

- Dominant social classes

- Mass media: New technology, like the internet, has become a space for
the diffusion of negative stereotypes

- Education with discriminatory content

- Lack of representation in spheres of political and economic power

- Lack of access to quality attention in health services that respect
diversity and the world views of the population

On the other hand, according to the definition of (in)tolerance provided
by the Ecuadorian Forum for Diversity and Pluralism: "Tolerance is
defined as the respect and wholeness of humanity and nature, while
intolerance is tied to the distortion of so-called human values that
favor economic interests and the hegemony of only one group. In that
sense, the capitalistic and neoliberal system is exclusive and intolerant
by their own definition of interests."

The following are other important points made by the Table:

- There is also discrimination of one discriminated population against
another; in part, this is a product of dividing and segmenting the
diverse populations and discriminated peoples. This makes them weaker and
more vulnerable.

- The family plays a central role in the construction of self-esteem.
Likewise, tolerance and respect towards differences should begin in the
home.

- The topic of discrimination does not interest governments.

- Those who exhibit power are those who segregate/discriminate. The
racist enjoys having power over other people.

- Positive discrimination is necessary at times in order to equilibrate
the inequalities.

- Ethnic borders, positive exclusions made in order to protect and
preserve cultures, are not racial discrimination, for to speak of racial
discrimination the person discriminating must be in a position of power.

- The peoples that do not have a state are not represented in the UN (for
example, gypsy peoples).

- Homosexuality constitutes a crime in nearly half of the world's
countries. In 1998, Amnesty International enumerated at least 83
countries where homosexuality is explicitly condemned by an article of
criminal law. The sanctions varied from imprisonment to the death
penalty.

Proposals

Human rights are indivisible, inalienable, and universal. If we cease to
consider gender, as well as age, sexual orientation, social caste and
class, the solutions for confronting and eliminating racial and ethnic
discrimination that emerge from the World Conference against Racism will
not be effective. Therefore:

We make a call to the United Nations System with the purpose of:

Bringing up all related forms of intolerance in the final proposals of
the World Conference. In addition, women, lesbians, homosexuals, and
people with disabilities should enjoy the protection of international
laws concerning human rights, including:

- The Universal Declaration of Human Rights

- International Pact concerning Civil and Political Rights

- International Pact concerning Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights

- Optional Covenant and Protocol concerning the Elimination of All Forms
of Discrimination Against Women

- Covenant and Protocol concerning the Status of Refugees

Secondly, we make a call to the Governments of Andean Countries, with the
purpose of:

- Revising or annulling all laws that discriminate against people because
of ethnicity, race, gender, sexual orientation, caste, age, religious
beliefs, and political ideologies.

- Promoting laws and developing politics and practices that guarantee
justice and the complete expression of human rights to the indigenous,
afro-Andean, and gypsy peoples, as well as to women, lesbians,
homosexuals, young people, elderly people, people with disabilities, and
those who live with HIV/AIDS.

- Promoting campaigns of sensitization concerning respect for diversity.

- Regulating programming that ridicules/devalues black, indigenous and
gypsy peoples, women, homosexuals, lesbians, young people, elders, people
with disabilities, and people who live with HIV/AIDS throughout different
forms of mass media communication.

- Establishing mechanisms to sanction the violations of established or
to-be- established anti-discriminatory laws.

- Implementing educational reforms that respect diversity and tolerance
towards racial, ethno-cultural, gender, sexual orientation, class, and
ideological differences.

- Incorporating the histories and the successes of the communities of
African, indigenous, and gypsy descent into educational curriculum and
training.

- Consolidating mechanisms and developing regulations directed towards
the reduction of social violence against indigenous, afro, and gypsy
populations, women, homosexuals, young people, etc., in public and
private spaces.

Lastly, we make a call to the diverse players that make up civil society
in order to:

- Generate spaces for meeting, reflection, and action that call together
diverse communities and discriminated peoples.

- Construct positive self-esteem, cultivated within the family and
educational systems.

- Broaden the definition of intolerance over and above that of ethnic and
racial in order to include all related intolerance.

- Promote respect of the worldviews of the diverse Andean, afro, and
gypsy peoples.

- Campaign against the broadcasting of programs that contain racial,
sexist, and homophobic content.

- Promote and strengthen a culture tolerant towards differences.

- Support the United Nation's International Decade for a Culture of Peace
and Non-Violence, as well as the Third Decade to Combat Racism and Racial
Discrimination.

Participants:

Facilitator: Patricio Brabomalo, National Forum of Diversity and and
Pluralism, Ecuador

Narrator: Nelly Jitsuya, GALF, Peru

Gladys Galarreta, MHOL, Peru

Omaira Mosquera, Afroamérica XXI, Colombia

Juancarlos Gamboa, COICA, Ecuador

Robert Valencia, Afroamérica XXI, Ecuador

Geronimo Sanchez, Afroamérica XXI, Venezuela

Luisa Bustamante, Teatro del Milenio, Peru

Julia Barrera, CEDEMUNEP, Peru

Phumi Mtetwa, ILGA, South Africa