COMMITTEE ON THE ELIMINATION OF RACIAL DISCRIMINATION REVIEWS THE REPORT OF PARAGUAY

The Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination today concluded its consideration of the combined fourth to sixth periodic report of Paraguay on its implementation of the provisions of the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination.

Introducing the report, Héctor Cárdenas, Minister and Executive Secretary for Social Action of Paraguay, said that Paraguay was a multi-cultural and multi-ethnic country in which the existence of indigenous peoples was recognized and discrimination was prohibited. As a result of the economic growth of the past several years, the number of Paraguayans living in poverty had dropped by 30 per cent between 2009 and 2014. Paraguay had achieved significant headway in overcoming corruption, consolidating democracy and building institutions, but significant challenges remained in overcoming social inequalities and in maintaining the benefits of growth in a challenging international context. According to the 2012 census, indigenous peoples made up 1.8 per cent of the population, living in 711 indigenous communities in 13 of the 17 regions. Paraguay was in the process of issuing indigenous identity documents to enable them to exercise their rights as citizens of Paraguay, access socio-economic goods and services, and exercise their right to vote. In the area of access to justice, a guide was being promoted to harmonize the State and indigenous systems in criminal justice, while the Agreement of the Supreme Court of Justice had ensured the incorporation of the 100 Brasilia rules for access to justice for vulnerable persons.

In the ensuing discussion, Committee Experts took positive notice of the recognition of Guaraní as an official language and the progress that Paraguay had achieved since its last review. One of the most pressing issues was the status of ancestral land and Experts urged Paraguay to complete the demarcation process and ensure access to land for indigenous peoples, and protect their traditional way of life, especially for Ayoreo people who lived in voluntary isolation. Experts expressed concern about the unequal distribution of land, noting that 40 per cent of the land was owned by two per cent of the population, and asked about its redistribution and efforts to ensure equal access. At the moment, the only mechanism for free, prior and informed consent was a draft protocol, which had not been consulted on with civil society organizations and indigenous peoples themselves. The delegation was asked about the situation of other ethnic groups in the country, including those who were vulnerable to racial discrimination in many areas of the world, such as people of African descent, Roma Gypsies and stateless persons. It was regrettable that racial discrimination was not specifically criminalized in Paraguay, and that the law did not contain a definition of racial discrimination consistent with Article 1 of the Convention.

Alexei Avtonomov, Committee Expert and Rapporteur for Paraguay, said in concluding remarks that the dialogue was very constructive and expressed hope that the Committee’s concluding observations would be helpful and useful to Paraguay.

In concluding remarks, Mr. Cárdenas thanked the Experts for the frank dialogue and the in-depth examination, and said that Paraguay would deal constructively with the Committee’s concluding observations.

Anastasia Crickley, Committee Chairperson, said that the Committee’s job was to challenge States parties on the implementation of obligations they had voluntarily entered into, and also said that its attention was focused on the progress in key areas, such as education and health, by people vulnerable to racial discrimination.

The concluding observations on the report of Paraguay will be made public on Monday, 29 August and will be available here.

The delegation of Paraguay included representatives of the Secretariat for Social Action, National Institute for Indigenous Affairs (INDI), Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Public Health and Social Welfare, and the Permanent Mission of Paraguay to the United Nations Office at Geneva.

Live webcast of country reviews is available at http://www.treatybodywebcast.org.

The Committee will reconvene in public on Tuesday, 9 August, at 3 p.m., to consider the combined fourth to eighth periodic report of South Africa (CERD/C/ZAF/4-8).

Report

The combined fourth to sixth periodic report of Paraguay can be read here: CERD/C/PRY/4-6.

Presentation of the Report

HÉCTOR CÁRDENAS, Minister and Executive Secretary for Social Action of Paraguay, said that since 2003, Paraguay had had a standing invitation to Human Rights Council Special Procedure mandate holders, several of whom had visited the country over the past several years. Paraguay was a multi-cultural and multi-ethnic country in which the existence of indigenous peoples was recognized. There were 19 indigenous peoples organized in five linguistic groups, with Guaraní, alongside Spanish, being an official language since 1992. There were also communities of Afro-descendants, as well as other communities from around the world. Discrimination was prohibited and the State had an obligation to remove all obstacles to the equality of all of its seven million inhabitants. As a result of the economic growth of the past several years, the number of Paraguayans living in poverty had dropped by 30 per cent between 2009 and 2014. Significant challenges remained in overcoming social inequalities and in particular maintaining the benefits of growth in a challenging international context. Paraguay had achieved significant headway in overcoming corruption, consolidating democracy and building institutions, such as the National Secretariat for Language Policies, the National Preventive Mechanism against Torture and Cruel and Degrading Treatment, and the National Secretariat for Human Rights and Persons with Disabilities, while the National Human Rights Plan, coordinated by the Ministry of Justice, was in place.

During the third national census in 2012, more than 117,000 indigenous peoples had been registered, accounting for 1.8 per cent of the total population, who lived in 711 indigenous communities in 13 of the 17 regions. The National Institute for Indigenous Affairs (INDI) was working on issuing identity documents to all indigenous peoples to enable them to exercise their rights as citizens of Paraguay, access socio-economic goods and services and exercise their right to vote. The 2008 National Indigenous Health Policy was the relevant policy framework which was rights-based and drafted in cooperation with indigenous peoples’ representatives and civil society organizations. The law 5.469/15 on healthcare for indigenous peoples gave new impetus to the access of indigenous peoples to a health system which took into account cultural specificities and traditional knowledge and practices. The National Council for Health had been set up as well; it was an autonomous and consultative body that provided guidance and advice and which would be incorporated in the national health system. Measures were being taken to document and revitalize indigenous languages of the country, with a view of their preservation, while national fairs were being organized in cooperation with communities to promote local agricultural and artisanal products.

Since 2013, conditional cash transfers had been included in Tekoporä - Living Well Programme, and a concerted effort had been made to extend its coverage from 3 per cent of the indigenous families in 2013 to 68 per cent today. The pace of expansion of the middle class in Paraguay was the fastest in Latin America, which was a reflection of a very dynamic economy which made it possible to markedly reduce poverty from 38.6 per cent in 2005 to 22.2 per cent in 2015. With regard to access to justice, a guide was being promoted to harmonize the State and indigenous systems in criminal justice, while the Agreement of the Supreme Court of Justice ensured the incorporation of the 100 Brasilia rules for access to justice for vulnerable persons.

Questions by the Committee Experts

ALEXEI AVTONOMOV, Committee Expert and Rapporteur for Paraguay, took positive notice of the recognition of Guaraní as an official language in Paraguay, which went a long way to preserve the language and diversity. Major progress had been achieved in Paraguay since its last review by this Committee, said the Committee Rapporteur, commending Paraguay for the methodology in the preparation of the report which listed key developments in the country and the actions taken to address the Committee’s previous concluding observations. What were the obstacles to removing the reservation on article 14 of the Convention and would Paraguay ratify the amendment to article 8 related to the funding system for the Committee?

With regard to the implementation of the Convention, Mr. Avtonomov noted that the legislation in Paraguay did not contain a definition of racial discrimination consistent with article 1 of the Convention and asked about a broad-based law combatting all forms of discrimination, including on grounds protected by the Convention. At the moment, Paraguay only had a draft protocol on free, prior and informed consent, which had not been consulted on with civil society organizations and indigenous peoples themselves – was there a new draft protocol and what was its status?

One of the most pressing issues in Paraguay was the status of ancestral land; only some of it was demarcated and not everyone had property titles and deeds to the land. Ayoreo people lived in voluntary isolation and it was important to protect their rights and way of life regardless of whether they had titles to their ancestral land, especially since they were not aware of mechanisms to defend their rights before the courts. Was there a specific protection mechanism for people living in voluntary isolation? In the Chaco region, it was important to conclude the process of demarcation and ensure the rights of indigenous peoples to their ancestral land. In October 2015, Amnesty International had received information from indigenous peoples living in Paraguay about major difficulties facing Ayoreo people, including reprisals with the participation of the police. The country Rapporteur asked about Paraguay’s compliance with the three rulings by the Inter-American Court for Human Rights which, because of their relation to the demarcation and the use of ancestral land, were of interest to the Committee.

What was the situation of other ethnic groups among the Paraguayan population, such as people of African descent? Historically, Paraguay had not been directly linked with slavery, but it had a population of African descent, and there were also Roma Gypsies who were usually discriminated against across the world. What was the situation of stateless persons, yet another category of people vulnerable to discrimination?

Committee Experts asked about the involvement of civil society organizations in the preparation of the report, and congratulated Paraguay on the implementation of the 2012 census in which indigenous peoples were allowed to self-identify. It was regrettable that the domestic legislation did not specifically criminalize racial discrimination.

What percentage of the prison population was made of indigenous peoples and for which offences? What was the status of the draft law on free, prior and informed consent? What was being done to improve the living conditions of indigenous peoples in urban areas, to promote their employment, and to protect them from bad working conditions?

Another Expert remarked that racial discrimination did not affect indigenous peoples alone, and urged Paraguay to ensure that all persons born in the country were registered at birth and had identity documents – currently, only 77 per cent of the population were registered at birth and some 60 per cent had identity papers. The language law and policy were in place but were not effectively implemented; what linguistic obligations were placed on civil servants?

Only 1.8 per cent of the population in Paraguay was indigenous, which indicated the devastating impact of colonisation and the fact that demographically they had still not recovered. What was the ethnic make-up of indigenous peoples at the moment? What was the level of participation of indigenous peoples in the National Institute for Indigenous Affairs (INDI)? Paraguay had experienced remarkable economic growth but the key question was to ensure that the benefits were being used for the improvement of the situation of all population groups. What was the actual situation of people of African descent in terms of access to health, education and housing, and what was their participation in the workplace and in which professions? Did media racially profile people of African descent?

Some claimed that 40 per cent of the land in Paraguay was owned by two per cent of the population; what was being done to redistribute the land? What was the tax burden on agricultural exporting companies which polluted indigenous land? What was the surface of the land currently under contention?

With regard to the National Institute for Indigenous Affairs (INDI), the delegation was asked about the participation of indigenous peoples in the working of the Institute and whether 43 per cent of its budget had indeed been cut.

Another Expert noted that Paraguay’s core document mentioned that its population was made up of white and indigenous peoples, without a mention of people of African descent, which needed to be corrected. Free, prior and informed consent did not necessarily require regulation, but it could be implemented through appropriate special procedures. How many free, prior and informed consent procedures had been established to date? What was the status of indigenous law in domestic law and was Paraguay setting up a separate jurisdiction for indigenous people? The Prison Observatory was in place, and the delegation was asked whether it took into account the provisions of International Labour Organization Convention 179 on prison conditions. Indigenous people had a disproportionate literacy rate, only 42 per cent, and there were more than 200 indigenous villages without any school premises.

Experts also asked about extraordinary sessions of the Constitutional Court, access to courts by people of African descent, particularly in cases of racial discrimination, their right to vote, and access to health, including reproductive health, and education. According to the 2012 census, 1.8 per cent of the population were indigenous peoples – was this based on their self-identification?

The delegation was asked whether the Convention could be directly applicable in courts and administrative tribunals, and if not, what guarantees of its effective implementation were in place in the absence of the required legislation. Experts remarked that the distribution of land and the distribution of wealth were unbalanced in Paraguay, and asked about the process of land expropriation and what steps were being taken to ensure the survival of indigenous populations whose land was expropriated, not only in financial terms but also in terms of access to services. Paraguay was one of the most deforested countries in the world and Experts inquired about the specific measures taken to address logging on ancestral lands.

ALEXEI AVTONOMOV, Committee Expert and Rapporteur for Paraguay, noted that the Government was drafting enabling legislation for the Indigenous Health Act and, since the act was already in force, asked whether there had been any positive developments as a result of the enactment of this new piece of legislation. It was interesting to examine the situation of undernutrition and malnutrition of indigenous children – according to the United Nations Children’s Fund, chronic malnutrition affected 41.7 per cent of indigenous children compared to 17 per cent among the general population. What measures were in place to address this unacceptable situation? The National Congress of Indigenous Peoples had taken place in March 2016 – had all the different indigenous groups participated in this civil society initiative? Were there obstacles and discrimination against people of African descent and indigenous peoples in their access to justice?

ANASTASIA CRICKLEY, Committee Chairperson, reiterated concern about the unequal distribution and access to land and the actions of the State party to address the issue, and asked about the mechanisms to ensure the participation of groups vulnerable to discrimination, particularly women.

Responses by the Delegation

Responding to questions and comments raised by Committee Experts, a delegate said that the population of today’s Paraguay had been defined by two key historical events, the first was the Spanish colonisation in the fifteenth century during which the population mixed, thus creating the new population group of Creoles. The second was the Triple Alliance War fought between 1864 and 1870 during which the population of Paraguay had decreased from 1.3 million to 300,000 and the males were virtually exterminated. In the nineteenth century migrants from Europe had arrived, followed later by immigrants from Syria, Lebanon and other countries. The indigenous peoples today accounted for 1.8 per cent of the population, which was the result of the colonisation, population mixing, wars and international migration. For five hundred years now, the population of Paraguay had been multi-racial and multi-ethnic, with particularly strong influence by the Guaraní culture. People of African descent had been present in the country since the colonial time and had integrated in the fabric of the country - manifestations of racial discrimination were very rare and in racial terms there were no second class citizens in Paraguay. According to the 2012 census, the demographic make-up of the population included indigenous peoples, people of African descent and immigrants, with racial classification based on the self-identification of individuals. As per the census data, the population numbered 6,461,000 of which 1.81 per cent or 117,000 were indigenous peoples, 0.06 per cent or 3,867 were people of African descent, and two per cent were immigrants.

In terms of social investments, Paraguay had in place a national strategy of Spreading Opportunities, which intended to boost revenues and access to social services of poor families in vulnerable situations, including in areas of food, education, housing, access to clean water, jobs and income generation opportunities. The strategy had a component focusing on indigenous peoples with the same priorities, and the investment in social action had been increased by 2,200 per cent over the past two years. The investment was being made in nutritional programmes, also for indigenous people, for example a programme was in place which focused on the nutritional status of pregnant women and children under the age of five. In 2003, social spending stood at 30 per cent, and it had been increased to 51 per cent in 2014 – the social investment clearly related to the country’s revenue and those figures also demonstrated the clear focus of the government on social spending. Access to water was one of the areas where important progress was being made and it was surprising to hear the data from the report by the United Nations Children’s Fund stating that only seven per cent of indigenous peoples had access to clean water.

In terms of free, prior and informed consent, a delegate said that 297 consultations had taken place with indigenous peoples in 2015, and that more than 500 had already been conducted this year. The protocol on consultations had not yet been translated in law, but had been used in practice and today, there was no public work that did not involve free, prior and informed consultation. Consultations were also being used in local and regional government initiatives, and in private initiatives as well, and environmental certificates and licences which affected indigenous areas used free, prior and informed consultation. It was expected that the law on free, prior and informed consultation would be adopted by the end of this year.

Indigenous identification documents enabled indigenous people to obtain tax exemptions and access various services granted to them by law. The law 904 conferred upon indigenous peoples and communities communal and not individual property and the possession of indigenous identification documents was also important to ensure access to indigenous leadership. To date, some 1,600 housing units had been built for indigenous peoples, with plans for an additional 1,500 units to be built this year. The dwellings had been built with the consent of and prior consultation with indigenous peoples, who had also been included in the design of the houses; building techniques favoured by indigenous peoples had been used.

The resources allocated to the National Institute for Indigenous Affairs (INDI) had indeed been reduced but the decrease was due to the inability of the previous management to spend almost 20 per cent of the budget allocated to it in 2015. The only reason for the budgetary decrease had been the lack of management capacity to absorb the resources.

Health and equity referred to having access to timely and quality health care and was a cornerstone of social values. Paraguay was implementing since 2014 the new system of a comprehensive and integrated healthcare network, which was based on the principles of accountability, transparency, equity and social participation. All indigenous women had access to reproductive health services and free-of-charge health care and access to essential medicines were guaranteed by the law. The Directorate for Indigenous Health was in place and would soon become a National Directorate.

For over 35 years, Paraguay had had no guarantees of compliance with any human rights instruments, and during the first decade of democracy, Paraguay had gradually incorporated human rights treaties and recognized its international responsibilities in relation to indigenous peoples and communities, which had been neglected for so long. Paraguay had also developed a new approach to petitions and demands, particularly those submitted to the Inter-American human rights system, and in 1998 had been the first Latin American country to endorse the first amicable solution to a case. This had been a mark of the dawn of a new approach to indigenous issues and since then the amicable solution approach had expanded and Paraguay had concluded 10 amicable solution agreements with indigenous communities. This was the policy today and the Government was committed to it. This was also the approach adapted to the situation of Ayoreo-Totobiegosode, who were in a situation of voluntary isolation. The three communities involved in the ruling by the Inter-American Court for Human Rights lived in the Chaco region.

The Government of Paraguay had established in 2009 the Human Rights Network to coordinate policies and programmes intended to improve mechanisms to promote and protect human rights. SIMORE, the mechanism established by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to monitor and follow up on international recommendations on human rights issues, was made up of local boards, including for indigenous peoples, people of African descent and international migrants. Guaraní was now one of the official languages of the Common Southern Market and efforts were being made to translate into Guaraní decisions by various international bodies.

The unequal distribution of land in Paraguay had roots in the history of the country, while the concentration of productive land was spurred by the demand for food and biofuels from the world, seeing even greater production of grain and livestock rearing in the south of the country where the land was very fertile. Latin America was one of the world’s regions with the most inequality in terms of land distribution and concentration, but it was important to say that the 2014 Gini coefficient placed Paraguay for the first time above the average in Latin America in terms of income distribution.

The approval of the amendment to article 8 of the Convention was ongoing by the National Congress. In terms of individual communications, Paraguay had accepted the competence of the Inter-American human rights system, which individuals could seize and lodge a complaint.

Questions from the Experts

ALEXEI AVTONOMOV, Committee Expert and Rapporteur for Paraguay, asked about legal measures adopted to address the high illiteracy rates among the indigenous peoples, and about mechanisms in place to protect the access to ancestral land for the indigenous people living in voluntary isolation. Could the delegation inform the Committee about access to education, health and employment for indigenous women? What measures were being adopted to prevent discrimination against asylum-seekers?

Committee Experts noted that the delegation referred to indigenous peoples as indigenous communities or indigenous citizens and stressed that the use of the term indigenous peoples was important as they were entitled to special protection and had collective rights. They asked the delegation about specific access to health for indigenous peoples, access to judicial mechanisms, and about the size and structure of the housing units constructed for indigenous peoples.

Responses by the Delegation

Answering questions concerning high illiteracy rates among indigenous peoples, a delegate said that there were 501 schools in indigenous communities, many of which were empty because of migration. The Ministry of Education was trying to make more efficient use of facilities, given that some communities suffered from the shortage of infrastructure. Of the 1,800 teachers, 1,000 had been recruited from indigenous peoples. As for the access to judicial mechanisms, the Constitutional Court had ruled that judicial indigenous facilitators should be involved in matters relating to members of the indigenous population and this enhanced familiarity with customary law. There were differing views concerning prior consultation, so the National Institute for Indigenous Affairs wished to open up the process and involve different elements of the society in the discussions on the law governing consultations.

The Human Development Index (HDI) had not declined in Paraguay, it was constantly moving upwards, from 0.55 in 1980 to 0.68 in 2015, which showed that Paraguay had made slow but sure progress in human development. Paraguay had a long-term policy of offering refuge and asylum and had recently received a large number of Syrian refugees.

Before the setting up of the new health network system in 2014, people used to go to big cities for various hospital services. Today, in accordance with the current primary health care strategy, 795 family health centres had been set up throughout the country, of which 168 served indigenous communities, or more than 17,000 families.

Further Questions from the Experts

In the next round of questions, Committee Experts asked the delegation about land appropriation and compensation paid; the situation of people of African descent and the need for special temporary measures to address the deep structural discrimination they suffered from, resulting in high rates of illiteracy, poverty and exclusion; the aspects of consultations conducted in 2015 and in 2016, and whether indigenous peoples were represented by any bodies in those consultations; and the contribution of indigenous peoples to the economic well-being of the country and the role of the Government in supporting indigenous peoples’ economic activities. An Expert took note of the rapid rate of deforestation in Paraguay and stressed the importance of forest conservation for the sake of the planet and for the protection of the way of life of indigenous peoples.

Response by the Delegation

Responding to those and other questions, a delegate said that the Ombudsman was appointed by the National Congress and that the last appointment had taken place in 2008. There were three major political groups in the country that made up the Parliament. So far, there was no consensus in the Parliament to appoint a new Ombudsman. Over 70 per cent of the budgetary structure of the National Institute for Indigenous Affairs was destined to land acquisition, and it was expected that its budget for next year would be enhanced and better balanced. Paraguay did not have a law against all forms of discrimination; in 2015, a draft law had been rejected by the parliament and the Senate, and at the present time there were two draft laws.

The Secretariat for Social Action was working with some 1,000 people of African descent, out of the population of some 4,000. The situation of people of African descent was a new issue in Paraguay. Paraguay had just completed an exercise of mapping links between ethnicity and poverty in the country, and said that the exercise had been very useful in determining the future course of social action.

The Committee had raised the question of communities which did not have access to land and lived by the side of highways, and a delegate explained that, three such communities had been assisted and now owned their own land, thanks to the use of mechanisms of consultation and compensation. The law on consultation should be in place by the end of this year, and it would facilitate the continuation of the process of consultation.

There were no specific details concerning the economic contribution of indigenous peoples to the well-being of the country, but in areas in the Chako region some Menonites worked in the agriculture and service sectors, while support was being provided for some economic activities by indigenous peoples, for example honey production.

Concluding Remarks

ALEXEI AVTONOMOV, Committee Expert and Rapporteur for Paraguay, said that the dialogue was very constructive and expressed hope that the Committee’s concluding observations would be helpful and useful to Paraguay.

HÉCTOR CÁRDENAS, Minister and Executive Secretary for Social Action of Paraguay, said that it was an honour to participate in the consideration of the report and thanked the Experts for the frank dialogue. The Government focused on promoting and protecting human rights; it was working hard through its various institutions and was very much aware of the path that remained to be travelled. Paraguay welcomed the in-depth examination and would deal constructively with the comments and questions raised by the Experts, and by the Committee’s concluding observations.

ANASTASIA CRICKLEY, Committee Chairperson, confirmed that the Committee’s job was to challenge States parties on the implementation of obligations they had voluntarily entered into. The Committee was concerned about progress made in key areas, such as education and health, by people vulnerable to racial discrimination.




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CERD16/017E