The President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, in her recent State of the Union address, stressed the need for the EU to “live up” to its motto “United in diversity” and “fulfil its meaning”.
The means that the European institution intends to use to achieve this were presented this Friday 18 September by the Vice-President of the Commission responsible for Values and Transparency, Věra Jourová, and the Commissioner for Equality, Helena Dalli.
The two of them unveiled the Commission's 2020-2025 action plan to combat racism in the EU.
The text marks an important first step, welcomed by the associations, but contains few specific recommendations and even fewer binding objectives. There is therefore no guarantee that Member States will make any effort to comply with it.
Infringement proceeding envisaged
For many, however, the fight against discrimination is not a priority. This is evidenced by the deadlock in the negotiations in the EU Council since 2008 on the Commission's proposal to implement equal treatment between persons irrespective of religion or belief, disability, age or sexual orientation.
On this point, the Commission undertakes to continue to encourage progress towards the unanimity required for the adoption of this Directive.
It also plans to make an implementation report in 2021 on the implementation of the Racial Equality Directive (2000/43) and undertakes to present by 2022 any legislation needed to remedy shortcomings identified.
“One area to be looked at specifically in the context of possible new legislation is law enforcement. The report will also help to inform continued action to prioritise infringement proceedings”, specifies the action plan.
Emphasis will also be placed on the role of equality bodies and the possible need for new legislation to strengthen the role of these bodies.
“I am glad to see that the action plan involves NGOs and racialised groups, at the decision-making level”, welcomed MEP Samira Rafaela (Renew Europe, Netherlands), co-chair of ARDI - the European Parliament's intergroup on diversity and the fight against racism.
The Commission also promises to ensure concrete implementation of the Framework Decision on racism and xenophobia throughout the EU, “including through infringement proceedings”, it stressed.
Anti-Racism Coordinator
This will include the adoption in each State of national action plans against racism and discrimination. So far, only 15 of them have them. The Commission will present by the end of 2021 “the main principles and elements necessary for the development of effective national action plans”.
In order to strengthen its dialogue with Member States, civil society organisations and local representatives, the Commission will appoint its first “anti-racism coordinator” (see EUROPE 12561/3).
A stipulation for which Juliana Santos Wahlgren of the European Network Against Racism (ENAR) has high hopes. “But that person should be from a racialised group. We need a racialised perspective here”, she assured EUROPE.
Asked about the future candidate for the post, Věra Jourová, for her part, felt that it should be “a very strong personality”, with “enough authority” to communicate with the EU27 and deal with a multi-sectoral issue. “We are talking about the need to integrate the idea of anti-racism in all the policies we carry out at EU level, this concerns housing, education, employment, power, culture, health”, she highlighted.
The institutions in question
The Commissioners also reiterated the importance of working to “improve the representativeness” of College members and Commission staff. New recruitment measures will be deployed, they announced, without further details.
On this point, Juliana Santos Wahlgren insisted in particular on the importance of ensuring that information on recruitment does not circulate only in a restricted circle or even internally, as is the case today, but that it “goes to where you want to actually recruit”.
“We now have to wait and see if all this will be put in place”, she concluded, but regretted the lack of clear recommendations on many points. An anti-racism summit will be organised by the Commission in the spring of 2021.
See the action plan: https://bit.ly/3mCNNky (Original version in French by Agathe Cherki)