Coordination at national level

• Author: Hiltunen, Rainer
• Pages: 60-60

60

9 COORDINATION AT NATIONAL LEVEL

The responsibility for developing non-discrimination policies and legislation lies with the

unit for democracy, language affairs and fundamental rights at the Ministry of Justice.

The Ministry of Justice prepared, together with representatives from all ministries, the

National Action Plan on Fundamental and Human Rights. On 16 February 2017, the

Government took a decision in principle to accept the National Action Plan on

Fundamental and Human Rights for 2017–2019.

The objective of the action plan is to promote the obligation of the public authorities to

guarantee the observance of basic rights and liberties and human rights as stipulated in

Section 22 of the Constitution. The measures taken under the action plan are designed to

work on identified problems with fundamental and human rights and to complement the

work being carried out in various policy sectors to promote fundamental and human

rights.

The main areas on which the national action plan focuses are fundamental and human

rights education, equality, the right to self-determination and fundamental rights and

digitalisation. The action plan includes a total of 43 projects, which are spread across the

administrative branches of all ministries.

After the general election in April 2019, a new Government took office in June 2019. It

was announced that the preparation for a new National Action Plan on Fundamental and

Human Rights would start by the end of 2019, but no information on whether this work

has begun or on what date is available.141

141 Current issues of the Government, 11.7.2019,

https://valtioneuvosto.fi/artikkeli/-/asset_publisher/1410853/kansallinen-perus-ja-

ihmisoikeustoimintaohjelma-on-toteutunut-hyvin.