NETHERLANDS

In the context of the UPR, Amnesty International has made the following recommendations to the Netherlands

International and regional human rights standards:

Establish a national preventative mechanism in accordance with the obligations under the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture, with sufficient resources and mandate in line with the Optional Protocol;

Ratify the Optional Protocol to the Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities;

Provide single consolidated reports regarding all parts of the Kingdom of the Netherlands when reporting to UN human rights treaty bodies.

National human rights framework:

Establish a national action plan for human rights;

Ensure the effective and regular consultation between civil society and the government on current and structural human rights concerns in the Netherlands;

Ensure the implementation of recommendations of all UN human rights bodies, including the treaty monitoring bodies.

Human rights education:

Fulfil the state’s obligation to provide human rights education to all school pupils.

National Human Rights Institution:

Ensure that the National Human Rights Institution is accessible to all individuals in the Kingdom of the Netherlands, including all parts of the overseas territories.

Protection of migrants and asylum-seekers:

Ensure that all allegations of ill-treatment and excessive use of force are independently, effectively and thoroughly investigated in line with international human rights law and that the outcome of the investigation is made public;

Review its asylum legislation and procedures to ensure that all asylum-seekers, including those whose claims are being assessed under the accelerated procedure, receive a full and fair individualized determination of their claim;

Take concrete measures to reduce the resort to detention of individuals solely for immigration purposes, in line with international refugee and human rights law and standards;

Assess individually alternatives short of detention and apply these whenever possible;

Introduce statutory provisions in law, policy and practice to prevent the detention of persons belonging to vulnerable groups;

Treat those detained for immigration purposes humanely and in line with the strictest international human rights standards.

Non-Discrimination:

Develop a national action plan to combat discrimination;

Address concerns of discrimination by the government such as ethnic profiling, in order to uphold the principle of non-discrimination;

Withdraw draft legislation to introduce a complete ban of full-face veils in public;

Amend the Dutch General Equal Treatment Act to ensure it is fully in compliance with regional and international standards of non-discrimination.

Criminalization of irregular entry and stay:

Refrain from criminalization of irregular entry or stay which may leave irregular migrants more vulnerable to human rights abuses.

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