Bodies for the promotion of equal treatment (Article 13 Directive 2000/43)

• Author: Ouhnaoui, Hania; Bribosia, Emmanuelle; Navasartian, Areg; Rorive, Isabelle
• Pages: 99-112

99

7 BODIES FOR THE PROMOTION OF EQUAL TREATMENT (Article 13 Directive

2000/43)

a) Body/bodies designated for the promotion of equal treatment irrespective of

racial/ethnic origin according to Article 13 of the Racial Equality Directive

In Belgium, Unia (also known as the Centre)353 is the equality body designated for the

promotion of equal treatment irrespective of racial/ethnic origin according to Article 13 of

the Racial Equality Directive.

From its creation in 1993354 until 2014, the body was called the ‘Centre for Equal

Opportunities and Opposition to Racism and Discrimination’ (CECLR) and was a federal

body, only competent in respect of both Federal Anti-Discrimination Acts. It was not

institutionally linked to the regions and communities, and was therefore not competent in

respect of regional statutory ET law. In order to empower the Centre for Equal

Opportunities to play a role at regional level, the federal state, the regions and the

communities signed a Cooperation Agreement on 12 June 2013. The Centre for Equal

Opportunities and Opposition to Racism and Discrimination became an inter-federal centre

competent to promote equal opportunities and fight any kind of distinction, exclusion or

restriction based on the prohibited grounds contained in various anti-discrimination

instruments adopted at both regional and federal levels.

The new Inter-federal Centre for Equal Opportunities (renamed Unia in 2016) has been

fully operational since March 2014.355 Henceforth, in cases of potential infringement of any

of the federal or regional anti-discrimination legislation, citizens are able to contact either

the main office of the Centre in Brussels or contact points in Flanders or Wallonia.356 Since

the entry into force of the Cooperation Agreement of 2013, these contact points fall directly

under the responsibility of Unia. As a consequence, whether a potential discrimination case

is submitted to the main office or to a local contact point, Unia is the centralised equality

body competent to assist victims and file legal actions with respect to federal as well as

regional ET law (Cooperation Agreement of 12 June 2013, Article 6). In 2015, two years

after the entry into force of the Cooperation Agreement of 12 June 2013, 4 554 people had

contacted the Centre to report discrimination cases and 904 of them had come through

the contact points. As has been pointed out by the Centre itself, the goal of the Cooperation

Agreement has been achieved in this respect.357

Another cooperation agreement was planned in order to turn the Institute for Equality of

Women and Men into an inter-federal institute, but the process could not be achieved for

political reasons and was eventually abandoned, as there was no reference to this

cooperation agreement or to a future inter-federal centre for equality of women and men

in the previous 2014 Federal Governmental Agreement.358

It must be stressed that the Expert Commission for the Assessment of the 2007 Anti -

Discrimination Federal Acts, in its 2017 report, made recommendations on the institutional

structure of the Belgian equality bodies:

353 It is the abbreviation chosen by the Centre itself (see, on its website: www.unia.be/en/).

354 The Centre for Equal Opportunities and Opposition to Racism was created by a Federal Act of 15 February

1993 (OJ (Moniteur belge), 19 February 1993).

355 Since 15 March 2014 (date of the entry into force of the Cooperation Agreement of 12 June 2013), all the

details regarding the missions, organisation and functioning of the Inter-federal Centre for Equal

Opportunities and Opposition to Racism and Discrimination are enshrined in the Cooperation Agreement

(and no longer in the Federal Act of 15 February 1993).

356 There are currently 13 contact points in Flanders. In Wallonia, a collaboration currently exists with 10

‘Wallonia Spaces’ (‘Espaces Wallonie’). There are four Unia contact points covering four sub-regions. A list of

the contact points is available at the following address: www.unia.be/en/contacting-unia/our-local-contact-

points.

357 Unia (2016) Annual report for 2015 (Discrimination – Diversité), available on its website, www.unia.be/en,

p. 27.

358 Interview with Patrick Charlier, co-director of Unia, 28 March 2017.