“21 March marks the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination.
The Council of Europe can take pride in having established the European Commission against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI), which has been working tirelessly to promote equality and combat discrimination for over 25 years. Racism, discrimination and intolerance lead to the division of society, the exclusion of the most vulnerable and the spread of hatred. At this very difficult time in our continent and in the world, we must instead stay united across differences to overcome the current crisis.

In this context, it is particularly important to keep in mind ECRI's valuable recommendations and, as the Committee of Ministers did last October, I would like to encourage member States to introduce an effective system to ensure the implementation of these recommendations.”

Statement by David Zalkaliani, President of the Committee of Ministers, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Georgia