In June 2020, the National Human Rights Commission of Korea(NHRCK) released its opinion calling for the enactment of Equality and Anti-Discrimination Law (equality law) to the National Assembly.

So far, the NHRCK has been putting forward a wide variety of policies to counter hate and discrimination in our society and working to lay the foundation for the passage of equality law.

Despite our efforts, we are still faced with a challenging environment.

The 2020 Conference on Combating Hate and Discrimination, co-hosted by the NHRCK, the European Union and the Asia Pacific Forum of National Human Rights Institutions (APF),
has been designed to seek collective efforts to eradicate hate and
discrimination and build a more equal society.

I hope this conference will offer a valuable opportunity to discuss
and share the experiences of countries that have enacted
anti-discrimination and equality laws and the positive effects they
have had on society.

I look forward to your valuable contributions and active
participation in the conference.

Thank you.

Chairperson
National Human Rights Commission of Korea

It is an honour and pleasure to deliver one of my first messages as the new EU Ambassador to the Republic of Korea. I would like to extend my sincere greetings to all the participants of the 2020 Conference on Combating Hate and Discrimination.

The Republic of Korea has been deliberating on the enactment of Equality and Anti-Discrimination law for more than a decade. Due to the continuing efforts of the National Human Rights Commission of Korea (NHRCK), civil society groups and human rights activists in laying the foundation for the equality law, the Republic of Korea is moving in a positive direction notwithstanding ongoing challenges.

The issue of equality and anti-discrimination is also close to the heart of the European Union. The EU’s path towards combatting discrimination is a continuous process not without its own challenges and setbacks, but now we do have effective mechanisms in place to eliminate all forms of discrimination. The European Treaties aim to prevent and combat all forms of discrimination, and the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights on Non-discrimination prohibits any discrimination based on any ground. Similarly, the EU Framework Decision on combating racism and xenophobia also aims to combat certain forms and expressions of racism and xenophobia through an EU-wide criminal law. I hope that the EU’s experience could provide an invaluable insight into combating hate and discrimination in the Republic of Korea.

In this respect, the 2020 Conference on Combating Hate and Discrimination will be an excellent opportunity to bring distinguished experts and practitioners from diverse background together, to exchange ideas and discuss effective methods to address hate and discrimination.

I would like to express my sincere gratitude to the National Human Rights Commission
of Korea and the Asia Pacific Forum for co-hosting this event. I would especially like
to thank the NHRCK for its commitment in putting forward policies to abolish
discrimination. I hope that this conference contributes to your efforts to combat hate
and discrimination in the Korean society.

I look forward to the fruitful discussions ahead.

Sincerely,

Ambassador of the European Union to the
Republic of Korea