A Forum Talk on “How to Counter Discrimination and Promote Equality and Diversity to Transcend Divides in Society?’ was organised within the 12th edition of the World Forum for Democracy (6 – 8 November 2024) by the Anti-discrimination Department.
The session, moderated by Erik Adell Hellström, Chair of the Steering Committee on Anti-discrimination, Diversity, and Inclusion (CDADI), explored how democracies can harness the power of diversity to address and mitigate issues of discrimination and exclusion.
The panel hosted Anu Juvonen, Executive Director of Demo Finland; Željko Jovanović, President of the Roma Foundation for Europe; Jürgen Pirker, Member of the Committee of Experts of the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages; and Jelle Postma, Director of “Justice for Prosperity”.
During the Forum Talk, the panellists and participants highlighted the important democratic principle of everyone participating in democracy; they emphasised that this principle is increasingly at risk and addressed the ongoing polarisation surrounding topics such as women’s rights, LGBTI rights, and issues affecting minorities highlighting the divisive ”us versus them” discourse.
Strategies for including marginalised and minority groups, including Roma, national minorities and LGBTI persons, were discussed, alongside standards, policy reforms and best practices aimed at creating and maintaining inclusive democracy and ensuring political representation and participation of all. The necessity of ensuring gender equality and diversity in political participation was repeatedly underlined.
The role of civil society organisations was emphasised, as was the importance of multilateral dialogue in promoting diversity and creating meaningful solutions for political participation and representation of all.
The panellists highlighted the importance of education, from a very young age, about democracy, diversity, and anti-discrimination. In this respect, the importance of protecting and promoting the linguistic rights of national minorities, particularly in relation to the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages was specifically underscored.
In conclusion, the panel emphasised the necessity to rebuild consensus on respecting democratic values and behaviours, which include embracing diversity.
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