7th session of the Working Group of Experts on People of African Descent

The Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights presents its compliments to non-governmental organizations and has the honour to inform them that the seventh session of the Working Group of Experts on People of African Descent will take place at the United Nations Office in Geneva, Palais des Nations – Room XIX, from 14 to 18 January, 2008.

The seventh session will concentrate on an analysis of the conclusions and recommendations made by the Working Group in previous sessions in order to distil from this discussion its contribution to the Preparatory Committee for the Durban Review Conference, in compliance with decision PC.1/10 of the Preparatory Committee on its first session (A/62/375) in which it “requests …. the Working Group of Experts on People of African Descent and other relevant human rights mechanisms including other special procedures to assist the Preparatory Committee by undertaking review and submitting recommendations, through the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, as contributions to the outcome of the Review Conference”.

Themes discussed in previous sessions and the subject of analysis and review in its seventh session will be: Administration of justice, the media, access to education, racism and employment, racism and health, racism and housing, participation of people of African descent in political, economic, social and cultural aspects of society and in the advancement and economic development in their countries, Millennium Development Goals, empowerment of women of African descent and racial profiling. The opening meeting will begin at 10 a.m. on Monday 14 January 2008. The provisional agenda will be available on OHCHR website prior to the Working Group session.

Interested non-governmental organizations in consultative status with the Economic and Social Council, those non-governmental organizations which were accredited to the World Conference against Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia and Related Intolerance as well as those that have been accredited to participate in the Durban Review Conference are invited to communicate the names of their representatives by fax +41 22 928 90 50 on letterhead, signed by the appropriate official of their organization. For further information, please contact Mr. Richard Clarke (tel: +41 22 928 9874 – e-mail: [email][email protected]).

The Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights seizes this opportunity to renew to non-governmental organizations the assurance of its highest consideration.

12 December 2007