Human rights commissions on both sides of the border banded together today to combat racism.
They have produced their first joint publication, a booklet aimed at helping community organisations and campaign groups make use of one of the main UnitedNations human rights treaties.
The booklet - A User's Guide to the International Convention on theElimination of Racial Discrimination- was launched in Belfast by theJoint Committee of the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission and the IrishHuman Right Commission.
Maurice Manning, president of the IHRC said : "Any discrimination on suchgrounds as race, colour, ethnic or national origin or membership of a nationalminority is a violation of human rights."
It was the principle underlying the International Convention of theElimination of All Forms of Discrimination , a treaty to which both Ireland andthe UK were bound, he said.
"The purpose of this booklet is to help community organisations, pressuregroups and others to use the CERD treaty in the fight against racism in bothparts of Ireland," said Mr Manning.
The publication was very timely for the Republic, he said, because the countrywould soon be examined by the UN on its first report under the treaty.
Professor Brice Dickson, chief commissioner of the NIHRC, added that the UKhad just been examined by the UN CERD Committee, so the task was to getgovernment to deal seriously with the criticisms in the Committee's report.
Prof Dickson stressed: "The protection of human rights is not just a matterfor agencies like the Commissions".
Community-based organisations had a "vital role" and he hoped thatpublication of the new booklet would help them to use the UN treaty in apractical way to tackle racism and discrimination.
"The UK and Ireland have signed up to the Convention, but neither state hasfully incorporated it into their laws," he added.
That meant the only way of holding the governments to account was to link inwith the UN reporting and monitoring process. "This booklet encourages groupsto do so and explains all the procedures," he said.
PA