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Unia reacts to the report on discrimination by the Fundamental Rights Agency (FRA)
Out of all survey-respondents of North African and Turkish origin who experienced discrimination in the past year in Belgium, 20% said it had occurred on the job market, while the European average on this point is 12%. This figure was brought to Unia’s attention in the Second EU-MIDIS report by the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA).
The Achbita case before the court again
‘The Achbita case must be retried. The Court of Cassation has overturned the previous ruling of the Antwerp labour court because it inadequately examined whether Ms Achbita’s dismissal was discriminatory,’ Unia says.
‘Preferably no tenants on welfare or unemployment benefits’
In the housing market, landlords sometimes refuse to rent to people without regular employment, for example on welfare or unemployment benefits. When they do so, they are discriminating on the basis of wealth. Fortunately, anyone who experiences this form of discrimination is protected by the antidiscrimination legislation.
Supermarket convicted of racism in dismissal
The store manager of the Intermarché in Klabbeek was guilty of racism when he dismissed a black employee. That was the ruling of the criminal court of Walloon Brabant. The manager dismissed the man because some customers ‘didn’t want to be served by a black person’. Unia was a civil claimant.
Discrimination against Muslims in Europe remains an increasing problem
Many Muslims in Europe are still confronted with discrimination, physical violence and harassment, despite the fact that most of them feel a strong connection to their country of residence. This is the conclusion of the FRA in a new report. The FRA is the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights. The report is based on material including responses from 25,000 residents of Europe with a migration background.
European Court: conviction of Belkacem is upheld
Fouad Belkacem is not exonerated by the European Court: his video messages in which he, among other things, calls for fighting against non-Muslims do not fall under freedom of expression. The ruling of the European Court is good news for Unia. In the past Unia has repeatedly filed complaints against Sharia4Belgium, and we were a civil party in the case in the criminal court of Antwerp.
Conviction for administrator of Facebook page of ‘Vlaamse Verdedigings Liga’
The administrator of the Facebook page of the Vlaamse Verdedigings Liga [Flemish Defence League] has received a ten months’ suspended sentence. According to the Antwerp court he incited his followers to racism. Unia was a civil party.
For the first time, the Court rules against an insurer who had turned down an HIV-infected woman
Under penalty of a fine of 2500 euro per established violation, the Commercial Court of Brussels has ordered insurance company Cardif to put an end to a discriminatory practice in which it had denied an HIV-infected person insurance.
Number of new discrimination cases at Unia rises by 20 percent
Unia received no fewer than 5,619 reports of discrimination in 2016. These led to 1,907 case files being opened concerning possible discrimination, hate speech or hate crimes. This represents an increase of 20 percent from 2015.
The antidiscrimination laws, 10 years later: Unia highlights the major trouble spots
Unia took a critical look at the antidiscrimination and antiracism law and published a report with 27 recommendations. In brief, Unia concludes that the laws are insufficient for certain victims and do not always have enough impact. The current laws have now been in place for 10 years.