Last week, the UN’s Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination published an examination of Luxembourg’s periodical report on racism. Already in March, the Luxembourg Institute for Socio-economic research (Liser) published a study on racial discrimination, commissioned by the Ministry of Foreign affairs. Nearly 3.000 people in Luxembourg responded to the questionnaire established by Frédéric Docquier and his team of researchers. “About 50 percent of the people that we have interviewed answered that discrimination is important on the housing market and at the workplace.” A majority of people from African backgrounds and Muslims as well as Portuguese jobseekers feel discriminated on the job market or at the search for houses and apartments.

The study however concludes that ideological racism does not seem the root of the problem since, fortunately, the vast majority of people neglect the theory of inferior and superior races.

Fréféric Docquier and his fellow researchers drew some recommendations for the legislators out of this analysis. “There is a common perception that the sanctions are not important enough and that the follow up is not important enough. Increasing the sanctions and improving the follow would be something that we would recommend.” Docquier also concludes it would be helpful to provide more information on the existing structures that advise victims and prevent racist offenses. “The Centre d’égalité de traitement (CET) has existed for a long time and providing more information on this CET would be something that we would recommend as well.”

Photo: John Darroch, Wikimedia Commons