KATHMANDU: Minister for Foreign Affairs Shishir Khanal has urged the world community to take more effective steps to end various forms of discrimination.

Minister Khanal also urged the world community to take more effective steps to end racial discrimination, racism, xenophobia and systemic injustice.

Addressing a high-level meeting organized on the occasion of the 25th anniversary of the Durban Declaration and Plan of Action at the UN Headquarters in New York today, Minister Khanal said discrimination and exclusion are still obstacles to the development of human capacity.

With the development of technology, bias has also started appearing in the digital realm and in the form of algorithmic bias, according to his secretariat. “Prejudices and exclusions are still limiting human abilities, while they are also being transformed into the digital realm and algorithmic bias,” he said.

Stating that the principles of the Durban Declaration for Nepal are deeply linked to the national consciousness and constitutional values, Khanal said that the government was committed to social justice and equality.

He was of the view that initiatives from the political level were necessary to address the historical and institutional discrimination against the Dalit community in Nepal.

On the occasion, Minister Khanal presented the apology sought by Rastriya Swatantra Party President Rabi Lamichhane from the rostrum of the parliament from the Dalit community as an example of commitment towards social justice.

“The quest for justice begins with institutional humility and moral accountability,” he said. He said such initiatives underscore the need for legal and structural transformation to end racial discrimination.

In his address, Minister Khanal said that Nepal’s constitution has guaranteed equality in the eyes of law and has prohibited all forms of discrimination and has made provision for proportional inclusion for the historically marginalized communities.

According to him, Nepal is a state party to seven major international human rights conventions including the Convention on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination.

Minister Khanal put forward four priorities for the effective implementation of the Durban Action Plan. He said that the implementation of strong anti-discrimination laws and the expansion of human rights education from the school level, the formulation of public policy with the meaningful participation of historically oppressed communities, the control of racial bias and hate expression through the regulation of artificial intelligence and the elimination of systemic intolerance should be given priority.