Translation of "Rupture de l'égalité devant les charges publiques " (French → English) :

When facts presented before a tribunal support the presumption of the existence of discrimination, it falls to the defendant to prove that there has been no infringement of the principle of equal treatment (rebuttal of the charge).

6. Believes that the incorporation of environmental considerations into the WTO is also of fundamental importance, and would be minded to consider rejecting a new multilateral trade round if it did not include significant new provisions aimed at safeguarding environmental sustainability. Inter alia, this requires: the incorporation of the precautionary principle into WTO rules; the insulation of Multilateral Environmental Agreements (MEAs) from unwarranted challenge within the WTO; new provisions to facilitate eco-labelling schemes compatible with WTO rules; a closer relationship between the WTO and international environmental bodies, notably UNEP, including submissions from these bodies and from ...[+++]relevant NGOs to WTO dispute settlement panels; and further reflection on the way WTO rules apply to Process and Production Methods (PPMs) as well as the way in which the burden of proof on environmental and public safety matters falls upon importing countries within the WTO;

These can include questions of democratic participation (including universal suffrage, free elections, multiparty structure, equality of access to political activity, participatory decision making); human rights (including adherence to, and implementation of, commitments under international human rights Treaties and Conventions, protection of civil liberties including freedom of speech and of assembly, effective operation of human rights monitoring); and the rule of law (including an independent and effective judiciary, transparent legal framework, equality of all citizens before the law, police and ...[+++]public administration subject to the law, enforcement of contractual obligations).

It appears from the statistics provided by the Member States and equality bodies that most complaints of discrimination before national courts and/or equality bodies involve employment, followed by the provision of goods and services and housing.

From the information provided, it is clear that the equality bodies give legal advice to individual victims of discrimination, but they only support a small number of cases before the courts.

N. whereas in practice equality bodies unfortunately bring only a small number of cases before the courts, owing to a lack of financial and human resources; whereas it is often NGOs that provide victims of discrimination with end-to-end assistance in taking action,