Measures to Help Certain Groups

Many treaties also except measures on behalf of certain groups from being treated as discrimination even though the differential treatment would otherwise fall within its scope. Sometimes this exception is temporary but in others it is done on a permanent basis. The former include those aimed at accelerating de facto equality²²²² and those for the sole purpose of securing adequate advancement of certain racial or ethnic groups or individuals requiring such protection.²²²³ Possibly permanent measures are authorised to meet the requirements of persons who for reasons such as sex, age, disablement, family responsibilities or social or cultural status are generally recognised to require special protection or assistance,²²²⁴ to promote, in all areas of economic, social, political and cultural life, full and effective equality between persons belonging to a national minority and those belonging to the majority,²²²⁵ to protect maternity,²²²⁶ to safeguard indigenous and tribal people²²²⁷ and to secure the rehabilitation of the disabled,²²²⁸ as well as those in favour of regional or minority languages aimed at promoting equality between the users of these languages and the rest of the population or which take due account of their specific conditions.²²²⁹

They are also found in European Union Directives²²³⁰ and are specifically authorised in the European Union’s Charter of Fundamental Rights in favour of the under-represented sex.²²³¹

Moreover these measures will be regarded as having an objective and reasonable justification even in the case of norms without such explicit provisions.²²³²

Such measures can include preferential treatment, targeted recruitment, the adoption of training and support programmes, the setting of targets and the use of mainstreaming, policy impact assessments and quotas.