Concept
Mexico City has established an internal infrastructure to express and sustain its commitment to equality and non-discrimination. This encompasses a Constitution for the City of Mexico published in 2017, a Council to Prevent and Eliminate Discrimination established in 2011, and a biennial Programme to Prevent and Eliminate Discrimination. This infrastructure covers a wide range of groups.
Foundation
This infrastructure is rooted in range of international and national human rights instruments. It is driven by the Law to Prevent and Eliminate Discrimination of Mexico City. This includes duties on public bodies to be proactive in preventing and eliminating discrimination and promoting equality. It provides for the establishment of the Council as an autonomous body.
Progress
The Constitution includes a Bill of Rights, with specific commitments to address structural inequalities. As a ‘city of solidarity’, authorities are to take measures to progressively eradicate structural inequalities. As an ‘inclusive city’, attention is to be given to the full exercise of their rights by people who, due to structural inequality, face discrimination, exclusion, mistreatment, abuse, violence and obstacles to fulfilling their rights. It commits to a system of indicators for the rights set out, that allow goals to be set in the annual budget of the city, and an evaluation of their achievement.
The functions of the Council include to: issue guidelines for public policies on discrimination; prepare policies to prevent and eliminate discrimination; coordinate and monitor the actions of public bodies in addressing discrimination; and provide advice on the right to non-discrimination and process complaints of discrimination. It is responsible for the Programme to Prevent and Eliminate Discrimination. It is composed of members of the public administration and the Consultative Assembly, with a range of public bodies attending. A Consultative Body advises the Council, with members drawn from relevant social, private, NGO, and academic sectors.
The Programme 2019-2020 is organised along three strategic lines of action to: promote the incorporation of the equality and non-discrimination approach in the regulatory framework and public management instruments of the city; promote the right to equality and non-discrimination in the communication, education, and information work of the city; and strengthen a culture of equal treatment through awareness of complaint mechanisms, addressing complaints, and preventing discrimination in the private sector.
