Human Rights Committee

137th session

Summary record of the 3964th meeting

Held at the Palais Wilson, Geneva, on Friday, 3 March 2023, at 3 p.m.

Chair:Ms. Abdo Rocholl

Contents

Consideration of reports submitted by States parties under article 40 of the Covenant (continued)

Sixth periodic report of Peru

The meeting was called to order at 3.05 p.m.

Consideration of reports submitted by States parties under article 40 of the Covenant (continued)

Sixth periodic report of Peru (CCPR/C/PER/6; CCPR/C/PER/QPR/6; HRI/CORE/PER/2019)

At the invitation of the Chair, the delegation of Peru joined the meeting. The Chair, welcoming the Permanent Representative of Peru to the meeting, explained that the other members of the delegation would be participating via video link.

Mr. Chuquihuara Chil (Peru) said that the country had been experiencing difficult times since the coup d’état of 7 December 2022. There had then been a swift transfer of the reins of government to the constitutionally mandated successor in the person of President Dina Boluarte, but the political crisis had triggered social protests that had upended peoples’ lives. The Government respected the right to peaceful protest, especially regarding structural inequalities that must be overcome, but it regretted that outbreaks of violence were undermining important social demands and was working hard to put in place the conditions needed in order for national harmony to prevail. Peru remained committed to upholding the international and regional human rights systems and remaining open to international cooperation and scrutiny at what was a complex juncture in the country’s history.

Mr. Tello Alfaro (Peru), speaking as head of delegation, said that the State respected the right to protest. However, while it remained open to dialogue in order to build consensus, it rejected all forms of violence that interfered with people’s enjoyment of basic human rights. It offered its condolences to those who had lost loved ones and was conducting investigations to determine where responsibility lay.

Full support had been given for the high-level visit of representatives of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights to Peru in December 2022 and January 2023 to observe the human rights situation and for the January 2023 visit of Mr. Christian Salazar Volkmann, Director, Field Operations and Technical Cooperation Division of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), and Representative of the Secretary-General.

A temporary multisectoral commission had been set up to monitor efforts to assist those who had suffered the most harm as a result of the events that had occurred between 8 December 2022 and 10 February 2023. One-off payments made to support bereaved families had so far benefited 91 relatives of 52 deceased persons. Such payments had also been made to persons who had been seriously injured. The family members of the other 4 persons who had died and 27 seriously injured persons were also set to receive assistance payments. Similar financial support had been provided to relatives of those who had died or been seriously injured in demonstrations in April 2022 and the protests of November and December 2020.

The Government’s ongoing commitment to fulfil its international and national human rights obligations had been demonstrated by the recent signing of a memorandum of understanding between Peru and OHCHR. That commitment was also reflected in the fact that the Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association had been invited to visit the country in 2023 and the Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions had been asked to bring forward a visit originally scheduled for 2024.

Implementation of the National Human Rights Plan 2018–2021 had resulted in the achievement of 39 per cent of its targets in 2019 and 32 per cent in 2020, with the reduction being due to disruptions caused by the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic. The pandemic had interfered with the development of many different national policies and programmes, but work was under way on the National Multisectoral Human Rights Policy, which was to be submitted for approval in December 2023. The decree establishing the Intersectoral Mechanism for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders had been published, and policies designed to guarantee the rights of women and children, older persons, persons with disabilities and persons deprived of their liberty had been strengthened.

The National Action Plan on Business and Human Rights 2021–2025 had been approved upon the conclusion of a two-year process involving 132 institutions representing the State, business, Indigenous Peoples, trade unions and civil society organizations. That plan was aligned with the relevant international standards, including the United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights.

A representative of Peru said that reducing violence against women was one of the six strategic objectives of the National Gender Equality Policy and an ongoing commitment of the judiciary. Specialized service units had been set up in different judicial districts since 2018, and the Results-oriented Budget Programme for the Reduction of Violence against Women had been under way since 2020. That programme had helped to set up and provide support for 135 courts within the framework of a specialized national system of justice for the protection of women and other family members from domestic violence and the punishment of their assailants. More than 70,000 protection measures had been issued under that system in 2022.

Also in 2022, as the Government looked to increase the use of information technology to provide a swift response to cases of violence, a nationwide electronic judicial case file system for domestic violence offences had been launched. The National Interoperability Platform had been introduced in 343 police stations to facilitate interaction between officials working in the justice system and police officers. A panic-button system had been taken up by more than 6,000 victims of violence, over half of whom had made use of it.

More than 3,600 people working in the justice system had received gender-sensitive training in 2021 and 2022. A gender mainstreaming protocol for the administration of justice had been in effect since November 2022 and was helping to ensure effective, stereotype-free judicial protection for women.

Women were also being encouraged to take up decision-making positions in the judicial branch and, in 2021, the Supreme Court had achieved gender parity.

A representative of Peru said that the gender perspective had also been mainstreamed into the development of multisectoral policies relating to older persons and persons with disabilities. Funding for the National Programme for the Prevention and Eradication of Domestic Violence against Women and Family Members (AURORA) totalled 560 million soles in 2023; a portion of those funds had been used for a national strategy aimed at protecting women living in rural areas. The Gender Parity and Alternation Act and the Act to Prevent and Punish Harassment of Women in Political Life had achieved encouraging results. Women had been elected to 88 per cent of regional deputy governor positions in the 2022 regional and municipal elections. In addition, national legislation had been brought into line with the International Labour Organization (ILO) Domestic Workers Convention, 2011 (No. 189), with the Domestic Workers Act being one example.

Awareness-raising campaigns targeting public servants and the general public had been launched in order to foster respect for the rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex persons. Guidelines had also been drawn up in the AURORA programme to ensure comprehensive, specialized and stigma-free services for those groups.

Mr. Gómez Martínez said that he was grateful for the State party’s participation at a time when Peru was undergoing an acute political and constitutional crisis. He believed that placing human rights at the centre of the national debate at such a critical juncture would benefit all Peruvians.

He would be grateful for specific information about the action taken by the State party pursuant to the Committee’s recommendations and opinions and on the frequency with which the concluding observations or opinions of the Committee were cited by the domestic courts.

The Special Prosecutor’s Office for Supranational Affairs had reportedly failed on numerous occasions to secure compliance at the national level with the decisions of supranational bodies. He would like to know whether any domestic legal procedure was planned or had been established whereby persons in whose favour the Committee had issued an opinion could demand full enforcement directly from the State party’s national judicial bodies.

He would appreciate information about how the principle relating to the exceptional nature of pretrial detention was being respected in the case of former President Pedro Castillo, in accordance with article 9 (3) of the Covenant, and what steps had been taken to ensure that the right of the accused to be tried within a reasonable time and without undue delay, as stipulated in article 14 (3) (c) of the Covenant, was being upheld. It would also be of interest to know to what extent the trial court met the criteria of independence and impartiality set out in article 14 (1). He wished to learn about any measures planned to ensure that the deprivation of liberty did not entail the deprivation of any of the accused person’s other rights and to guarantee that the trial was held in a transparent and public manner and in full compliance with the other procedural guarantees covered by the right to a fair trial, as set out in article 14 of the Covenant.

As the delegation had informed the Committee that 49 per cent of the 137 targets of the National Human Rights Plan 2018–2021 had been reached in its first year of implementation, he would like to receive a list of the targets that had been attained and those that had not. It would be appreciated if that information could be supplied within 48 hours following the conclusion of the present dialogue.

He wished to learn more about the National Action Plan on Business and Human Rights and would like to know whether the State party had envisaged developing a new national human rights plan for the coming years. Was the State party planning on widening the membership of the National Human Rights Council to include indigenous and trade union organizations?

It would be appreciated if the delegation could provide statistics on the complaints of human rights violations received by the Ombudsman’s Office during 2021, 2022 and thus far in 2023 and the outcomes of those complaints. It would be interesting to find out whether the number of complaints had increased since the events of 7 December 2022. According to a report from the Ombudsman’s Office, 60 people had died and more than 900 had been injured during recent protests. He would like to know whether the Government had officially acknowledged that report and whether any measures had been taken to prevent further casualties. It was his understanding that the Congress was considering reducing the size of the parliamentary majority needed to elect the Ombudsman. If those reports were accurate, he wondered how such a change could be justified from the point of view of the independence of the Ombudsman.

Mr. Quezada Cabrera said that, as the State party had noted that no rights were restricted during a state of emergency declared owing to a natural disaster but that some rights were suspended under a state of emergency prompted by a disturbance of the peace or of public order, he would like to know exactly which rights could be limited in the latter case. He would appreciate further information on the existing state of emergency in the State party, including an indication of which provinces it currently applied to and which rights had been suspended or restricted in those provinces. He wondered whether the State party had examined the question of the compatibility of those suspensions or restrictions with its obligations under the Covenant, as interpreted by the Committee in its general comment No. 29 (2001) on derogations from provisions of the Covenant during a state of emergency. It would be useful to know what role the armed forces played during a state of emergency, whether investigations had been undertaken into the deaths or serious injury of demonstrators in areas under a state of emergency and, if so, what progress had been made in that respect. Was it true that the military justice system was involved in such investigations? Clarification would be appreciated as to whether the recent raids at the Confederación Campesina del Perú and San Marcos National University had been carried out in the context of the state of emergency. He would like to know if investigations had been opened into what had reportedly been an indiscriminate use of force by police officers during those raids.

Ms. Kpatcha Tchamdja said that she would like the delegation to provide information on the measures taken to eliminate discrimination, especially against Indigenous Peoples and people of African descent, with an indication of the prevention, monitoring and protection mechanisms in place. She wished to know more about the humanitarian visa that was required for entry into the country by prospective migrants. How did a person go about obtaining such a visa and from which authority? It was her understanding that legislation had been issued by the Cuzco regional government in 2019 that was designed to penalize employers who dismissed Peruvian workers in order to hire foreign workers in their stead. It would be useful to learn whether that legislation referred to all foreign workers or only those in an irregular situation. Given reports of increased discrimination and hate speech in recent years, she would like to know whether the State party planned to take any measures to dissuade high-level authorities and the media from making remarks that would encourage the discrimination and stigmatization of migrants, especially Venezuelan nationals. Information would be appreciated on the measures in place to ensure that acts of discrimination were investigated, that perpetrators of discriminatory acts were prosecuted and punished, and that victims obtained redress. It would also be helpful to learn how the State party was combating the dissemination of discriminatory stereotypes by the media. In the light of reports that Indigenous Peoples had been the target of particularly harsh repression during recent protests, she would like to know what steps had been taken to avoid racial profiling by the police and military forces during protests. Statistics on the number of people belonging to Indigenous groups who had been killed, wounded or detained during the protests would also be welcome.

She would like to know whether the State party intended to amend the Criminal Code to cover discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation or gender identity, amend its laws to recognize same-sex marriages and partnerships, and ban conversion therapy. She wished to invite the delegation to comment on reports that children of unmarried fathers or parents of the same sex born abroad had been denied registration as Peruvian citizens and did not have the same rights to nationality as children born to single mothers or heterosexual parents. It would be useful to know what steps the State party had taken to guarantee equal rights for same-sex couples and their children. She would appreciate statistics on the number of prosecutions resulting from complaints of discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and the compensation awarded to victims over the preceding five years. Information would also be welcome on the measures taken to prevent violence directed at members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI) community and the specialized protocols in place for the provision of support to victims from that community.

Mr. Santos Pais said that he would like the delegation to outline the results achieved under the National Gender Equality Policy and following the introduction of a gender equality mechanism in national and regional government agencies. He wished to know whether the objectives of Act No. 30996, which amended the Elections Organization Act, had been achieved. He invited the delegation to indicate the percentages of women currently employed in the legislative branch, executive branch, the judiciary and the civil service; the percentage of women among those elected in the most recent regional and municipal elections; the current percentages of members of campesino and native communities and Indigenous Peoples holding seats on regional and municipal councils; and the measures adopted to protect women politicians from intimidation and harassment. Was the State party considering criminalizing political harassment?

With regard to the private sector, he would be interested to know what impact the adoption of Act No. 30709 had had on the gender pay gap and, more specifically, how much that gap had been reduced in the preceding three years and its current value. He also wished to learn to what extent women held decision-making positions in the private sector; whether women were represented in the agricultural and livestock sectors; what measures had been taken to eliminate stereotypes and increase women’s participation in economic activities in which they were underrepresented; how many cases of workplace discrimination had been reported in the preceding three years and the results of related investigations; and what measures had been taken to strengthen the collection of disaggregated data on discrimination in the workplace.

He would like to hear about the results of the adoption of Act No. 30364 on the Prevention, Punishment and Eradication of Violence against Women and Family Members; the system used to monitor the implementation of the National Plan against Gender-based Violence 2016–2021 and the National Programme for the Prevention and Eradication of Violence against Women and Family Members; and the measures adopted to prevent femicide and to put a stop to sexual harassment in public places. He wondered whether there was a standardized system in place for recording cases of violence against women. It would be useful to learn what other measures had been taken to reduce the high levels of gender-based violence, increase the reporting of those crimes, especially by victims from disadvantaged and marginalized groups, protect victims and ensure their access to justice. He was keen to hear the delegation’s comments on the fact that young women were apparently not allowed to report cases of gender-based violence without the presence of a parent or legal guardian. He would also be interested to learn what kinds of training were provided for judges, prosecutors, public defenders and police officers on the issue of gender-based and domestic violence and what percentage of the country was served by the women’s emergency centres and temporary shelters.

The meeting was suspended at 3.55 p.m. and resumed at 4.10 p.m.

Mr. Chuquihuara Chil (Peru) said that the coup d’état led by the then sitting president, Mr. Pedro Castillo, on 7 December 2022 had been rejected by the democratic institutions of the country and, in line with the Constitution, the Vice President, Dina Boluarte, had assumed the presidency. The current Government of Peru had a constitutional mandate from the Congress of the Republic that was in full compliance with democratic principles and the rule of law. While it could be said that his country was experiencing a political or social crisis, it was not experiencing a constitutional crisis.

A representative of Peru said that consultations had been held to evaluate the implementation of the National Human Rights Plan 2018–2021, which, unlike previous such plans, had included monitoring indicators and provided for an annual reporting process. The final evaluation document would serve as the basis for the first multisectoral national human rights policy, in which discrimination and structural inequality would be the central focus. That policy would run until 2030, thereby facilitating alignment with the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and other international instruments. The 13 groups identified in the National Human Rights Plan 2018–2021 as requiring special protection were the 10 groups identified in previous such plans, human rights defenders, members of the LGBTI community and domestic workers. Indigenous organizations, the Indigenous Peoples of the Peruvian Amazon and public bodies, including the Public Prosecution Service, had all played a role in strengthening policies to protect human rights defenders.

The work done within the framework of the fifth strategic area of action outlined in the Human Rights Action Plan 2018–2021 had spurred the development of policies in the area of business and human rights. In turn, those policies had informed the development of the National Action Plan on Business and Human Rights, which had been the outcome of a dialogue among 132 different stakeholders, including government agencies, organizations of Indigenous Peoples, businesses both large and small, and trade unions.

The National Commission against Discrimination had prepared various reports on specific aspects of discrimination in Peru, including discrimination in the Peruvian media, with special emphasis on ethnic and racial discrimination and discrimination against trans persons in Peru. The second national human rights survey, which had been carried out in 2019, had shown that the LGBTI community experienced the highest levels of discrimination of any minority group in Peru. In the light of the Azul Rojas Marín case, it had recently been announced that a working group would be established to develop a protocol on handling cases of violence directed against members of the LGBTI community.

A representative of Peru said that, in 2017, the Criminal Code had been amended to strengthen measures for providing protection against discrimination. It was now specified in article 46 of the Code that the motivation of an offence by intolerance or discrimination against the victim on the basis of his or her sexual orientation or gender identity constituted an aggravating circumstance, and sexual orientation and gender identity had been included among the prohibited grounds of discrimination in article 323. Those amendments gave the Public Prosecution Service the requisite legal tools to effectively prosecute offenders and conduct investigations from a human rights perspective. The Public Prosecution Service was now developing appropriate tools for working with LGBTI victims and, in 2020, the Attorney General’s Office had established a commission to draw up guidelines on the provision of support to such persons. The Crime Observatory of the Public Prosecution Service had determined that, over the period 2012–2021, there had been 84 violent deaths of persons belonging or perceived as belonging to the LGBTI community that had been attributable to intentional offences.

The Public Prosecution Service had introduced various tools relating to violence against women, including a protocol for the investigation of femicides, a directive on the gender-sensitive investigation of violent offences against women and family members and a set of guidelines for prosecutors on the rights of women and members of their families who were victims of violence. It had also launched a project to support the effective incorporation of a gender perspective into investigations in cases of gender-based violence. The Central Protection and Assistance Unit for Victims and Witnesses had monitored the application of over 70,000 protection measures issued on behalf of women and family members who were victims of violence.

A representative of Peru said that, in accordance with the Constitution and the Covenant, a state of emergency had been declared for a limited time and in specific areas affected by conflict and violence. The civilian and police deaths that had occurred in the context of the state of emergency were being investigated both as part of an administrative disciplinary process and under criminal law. Cases involving command responsibility were dealt with by a specialized prosecutor’s office and two commissions established by Congress. Law enforcement officers who used arbitrary or excessive force were prosecuted under criminal law provisions.

The Code of Conduct for Law Enforcement Officials, the Basic Principles on the Use of Force and Firearms by Law Enforcement Officials and the recommendations of United Nations bodies and the Inter-American Court of Human Rights had been incorporated into legislation on the use of force. International standards on the use of force had been invoked in judgments of the Constitutional Court and a decision taken in plenary by the judges of the Supreme Court. The national police force had been involved in various activities to promote, safeguard and ensure the observance of human rights. For example, train-the-trainer courses on human rights had been organized under an agreement with the International Committee of the Red Cross. A human rights handbook for police staff had been issued, as had a directive setting out operational and administrative guidelines on the maintenance of public order.

A representative of Peru said that, in states of emergency declared owing to a disturbance of the peace or public order, the exercise of certain constitutional rights relating to personal freedom and security, the inviolability of the home and freedom of assembly and movement could be suspended or restricted for a limited time on an exceptional basis. Such states of emergency were a legal means of maintaining security and upholding the most fundamental rights, in full conformity with article 4 of the Covenant and article 27 of the American Convention on Human Rights. The national police force was empowered to carry out operations to neutralize threats in specific areas and to recommend and request that the Ministry of the Interior should declare or extend a state of emergency. During a state of emergency, the national police force maintained public order with the support of the armed forces. Legislative Decree No. 1095 established rules on the use of force by military personnel on Peruvian territory which were underpinned by the principles of legality, necessity and proportionality. In accordance with article 23 of its implementing regulations, that legislative decree was to be interpreted in accordance with international human rights standards and the decisions of international human rights courts and monitoring bodies. The legal framework governing interventions by the armed forces in support of the national police force was fully compliant with human rights standards and international humanitarian law.

A representative of Peru said that emergency centres for women not only provided legal, psychological and social assistance but also carried out preventive activities throughout the country. The Rural Strategy had been rolled out in almost every region, the sole exceptions being largely urban regions such as Lima. Services for victims of violence were available to all women, whatever their age or migration status. Under the basic protocol for joint action adopted in 2016, any person could report a violent incident, whatever his or her age, gender or sexual orientation and regardless of whether he or she was the victim. The progress made in implementing Act No. 30364 included the establishment and subsequent reinforcement of the National System for the Prevention, Punishment and Eradication of Violence against Women and Family Members. A national strategy for the prevention of violence against women had been adopted in 2021, and a preventive mechanism was being developed specifically for rural areas. While the specialized system had yet to be expanded to all areas of the country, a great deal of headway in that respect had nevertheless been made.

In 2021, the Ministry of Agrarian Development and Irrigation had established a national directorate to further the empowerment of women in the agricultural sector. It was currently helping such women to obtain land titles, which they needed to qualify for loans and other programmes, including the drought relief compensation scheme.

The law on gender parity and alternation had recently been applied for the first time. While its introduction had resulted in a significant increase in the number of women councillors, men continued to predominate among the head-of-list candidates, since they were more likely to apply. Further awareness-raising was needed to combat the underrepresentation of women in that regard. Victims of political harassment received comprehensive support under the National Programme for the Prevention and Eradication of Violence against Women and Family Members. A multisectoral strategy entitled Gobernando Juntas (“women governing together”) had been adopted to support recently elected women.

A representative of Peru said that the Government had adopted a protocol on quality care in the context of the special protection procedure for dealing with cases of violence against women and family members, in which such factors as disability, race, ethnicity, sexual orientation and gender identity were taken into account. In addition, a protocol on the administration of justice from a gender perspective had been developed with a view to combating gender stereotypes and promoting gender equality. Sexual orientation and gender identity were recognized as factors of vulnerability in regulations 3, 4 and 20 of the Brasilia Regulations Regarding Access to Justice for Vulnerable People. Specialized judicial units could order the issuance of protection measures in cases of violence against women. Many judicial districts had special units to deal with offences involving violence against women. Protection measures were ordered in nearly 90 per cent of the cases that were brought before a judge. Women accounted for some 44 per cent of all judges in Peru.

Ms. Kpatcha Tchamdja said that she would appreciate additional information on measures being taken by the State party to support persons of African descent and Indigenous Peoples.

Mr. Santos Pais said that he wished to know how many cases there had been involving threats made against female politicians and what the outcome had been of the steps taken to address the issue. How many investigations and convictions concerning such offences had there been? He wondered how many investigations had been conducted into reports of gender-based violence and what percentage of reported cases had ended in a conviction. He would be interested to learn how many victims of gender-based violence had received support at emergency centres or shelters, what type of support they had been given and how long victims generally stayed in those centres or shelters.

Mr. Carazo asked what safeguards were in place to ensure a fair trial for former President Pedro Castillo.

A representative of Peru said that, pursuant to Act No. 31030 of 2020, gender parity among candidates and alternation between men and women in primary, general and subnational elections were required. The principle of parity had been applied for the first time in the general elections of 2021 and subsequently in the regional and municipal elections of 2022. The number of female candidates had increased significantly over the past decade, rising, for example, from 39.26 per cent in to 49.79 per cent in the general elections and, in the subnational elections, from 37.6 per cent in 2010 to 43.3 per cent in 2022, and a majority of young political candidates in the subnational elections in 2022 had been women. The number of women elected to office had increased as well, climbing, for example, from 23.8 per cent of the successful candidates in the subnational elections of 2011 to 41.1 per cent in the 2022 elections at that level. The number of female candidates with disabilities, candidates from Indigenous communities and candidates of African descent had also increased substantially between 2018 and 2022, and now almost half of political party members were women.

Over the past decade, in-person and online workshops had been carried out to provide training to female political candidates and party leaders who were of African descent or from Indigenous or rural communities, and technical assistance in enhancing inclusiveness had been offered to almost 3,000 members of political organizations. Surveys on political harassment had been carried out among female candidates since 2014, and educational material on the issue had been prepared; 60 cases of such harassment had been identified during the past four elections. On 14 September 2022, the National Elections Authority had issued an opinion regarding a bill on the prevention of harassment aimed at women in politics, but that bill had yet to be debated in Congress. Agreements and memorandums of understanding had been signed with various national and international organizations, including the Manuela Ramos Movement, the Flora Tristán Centre for Peruvian Women, the Peruvian Centre for Indigenous Cultures, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Inter-American Commission of Women to promote the participation of women in politics.

A representative of Peru said that the Public Prosecution Service was conducting a preliminary investigation into the events that had occurred at the National University of San Marcos.

A representative of Peru said that declarations of a state of emergency did not designate areas where Covenant rights could be restricted, as the purpose of states of emergency was to protect people and property from the impact of disasters. Work was being carried out to incorporate a rights-based intercultural approach into the implementation of the National Disaster Risk Management Policy up to 2050.

In the light of recent protests in Peru, a strategy had been adopted to restore peace and promote the rule of law in high-conflict areas to prevent damage to private property and public infrastructure. As part of that strategy, a government minister would be assigned responsibility for fostering a dialogue in each department. The strategy also provided for the launch of an initiative focused on boosting productivity and revitalizing the national and regional economies, especially in areas such as tourism, trade and agriculture.

A representative of Peru said that a service had been set up to address ethnic and racial discrimination and provide free legal assistance to persons wishing to initiate legal action in response to discriminatory treatment. Since mid-2021, the service had received more than 180 reports of ethnic and racial discrimination and provided technical assistance to 170 officials from various public bodies in that connection. Furthermore, the service had provided training to almost 800 persons concerning cultural diversity, racism and discrimination. In 2022, an online course entitled Hablemos del Racismo (“let’s talk about racism”) had been developed to raise awareness of racism and discrimination among students in schools and universities. Given the importance of the media in promoting cultural diversity and combating racism, a handbook for journalists had been published to guide them in presenting information about people of African descent and Indigenous Peoples and avoiding discriminatory language. A national development plan for the Afro-Peruvian population had been introduced for the period 2016–2022, and the National Policy for the Afro-Peruvian People up to 2030 had been approved in 2022 to safeguard the economic, social and cultural rights of Peruvians of African descent and to combat discrimination and racism.

The Ministry of Culture had strengthened its training programmes for translators and interpreters of Indigenous languages. At present, over 550 professionals were listed in the national register of interpreters and translators, and over 2,700 bilingual public officials had received certification of their language skills with a view to increasing staffing capacity for the provision of multilingual public services. The Ministry of Culture had provided translation and interpretation services for people who had been arrested during the recent protests.

The meeting rose at 5.05 p.m.