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

• Author: Justesen, Pia
• Pages: 74-83

74

7BODIES 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

The Danish Institute of Human Rights (DIHR) is designated as a body for the promotion

of equal treatment and effective protection against discrimination on grounds of racial or

ethnic origin as set out in Article 13 of the Racial Equality Directive.213 Section 2(2) of the

Act on the Institute for Human Rights – the National Human Rights Institution of

Denmark stipulates that the DIHR must promote equal treatment of all persons without

discrimination on grounds of gender, race or ethnic origin. The DIHR addresses

discrimination in any domain, including employment, education, housing, social services,

etc. The mandate stipulated in the Act on the Institute for Human Rights only covers

gender, race and ethnic origin. According to Parliament Decision B15 of 17 December

2010, the DIHR is also responsible for monitoring the Danish implementation of the UN

Convention on Rights of Persons with Disabilities. More broadly it follows from the Act,

that the DIHR is mandated to work on the promotion of human rights in general. The

DIHR writes on its website that the principle of equal treatment and non-discrimination is

a cornerstone of human rights advocacy. In its work, the DIHR therefore frequently

applies a horizontal perspective. In practice, this means that all grounds of discrimination

are addressed, taking into account gender, age, disability, sexual orientation, religion

and faith, ethnicity and race.214

The act establishing the DIHR exempts Greenland and the Faroe Islands from the

competence of the DIHR.215 In 2014, it was decided by decree that the DIHR has a

mandate to work in Greenland in the same way that it does in Denmark.216 The DIHR

evaluates, promotes and monitors human rights in Greenland and publishes ongoing

status reports on its activities and on the human rights situation in Greenland. It

presents these reports to the Inatsisartut, the Parliament of Greenland.217

In accordance with the requirements of Article 13 of the Directive, the Institute has been

given the authority to assist victims of discrimination, to conduct surveys concerning

discrimination and to publish reports and make recommendations on discrimination.

The Board of Equal Treatment is an independent complaints board established by the Act

on the Board of Equal Treatment. It is a quasi-judicial institution that is limited to

adjudicating individual complaints about discrimination.218 The Board is not officially

designated as an Article 13 body.

b) Political, economic and social context of the designated body

In 2015, legislation was amended to give the DIHR the authority to bring complaints to

the Board of Equal Treatment in cases that are a matter of principle or in cases that are a

matter of general public interest.219 The amendment represented a strengthening of the

DIHR’s position. Furthermore, most of the DIHR’s general budget comes from the Danish

213 Consolidated Act No. 553 of 18 June 2012 with later amendments on the Institute for Human Rights – the

National Human Rights Institution of Denmark.

214 Seehttps://www.humanrights.dk/about-us/mandate.

215 Section 15 of Consolidated Act No. 553 of 18 June 2012.

216 Decree No. 393 of 23 April 2014 about the entry into force for Greenland of the Act on the Institute for

Human Rights – the National Human Rights Institution of Denmark.

217 For information on the DIHR’s work on Greenland, see https://menneskeret.dk/emner/groenland. For the

latest status report on equal treatment in Greenland, see https://humanrights.dk/publications/equal-

treatment-greenland-status-2019.

218 Consolidated Act No. 1230 of 2 October 2016 on the Act on the Board of Equal Treatment.

219 Act No. 1570 of 15 December 2015 amending the Act on the Board of Equal Treatment.