Portugal and Implementation of International convention on elimination of all forms of racial discrimination

Rosario Farmhouse, High Commissioner for Immigration and Intercultural Dialogue: What I would like to highlight here are the efforts and investments undertaken by my country, one of the leading countries in integration policies, in order to combat all forms of racial discrimination and to integrate all the groups included in the Portuguese multicultural society, ensuring the full enjoyment of all human rights, civil, cultural, economic, political and social rights. Portugal has been ranked in 2011, for the second consecutive time, the second among 31 developed countries for its policies in the area of integration of migrants by the Migrant Integration Policy Index, sponsored by the European Commission.
A good example of that effort and commitment is the fact that Portugal possesses a public institute that – among other competences - is responsible for combating racism, promoting the integration of immigrants and Roma communities and promoting Intercultural Dialogue, something which constitutes still a rare case in the international panorama, namely because it reports to one Ministry that works with transversal dimensions of Public Policies, which adopts a holistic approach when dealing with these issues and to which I have the honour to preside...Read more