In a great many European countries anti-discrimination legislation has been adopted and reviewed over recent years. This major and unprecedented operation was originally set in motion with the adoption of two pieces of European legislation in 2000: the Racial Equality Directive (2000/43) and the Employment Equality Directive (2000/78). The transposition of these Directives into the national legal systems of the 27 Member States is described in a series of annually updated country reports produced by the European Network of Legal Experts in the non-discrimination field. In addition to the EU Member States, the candidate countries Croatia, the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, and Turkey have been part of the Network since December 2009 and reports have been issued for these countries as well. Finally, the EEA countries Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway are also part of the Network since 2012 and as such the first annual country reports were issued for these countries in 2012. This Network was established and is managed by Human European Consultancy and the Migration Policy Group on behalf of the European Commission.
The reports were written by independent national experts in each Member State, candidate or EEA country. The information was provided in response to questions set out in a template format which closely followed the provisions of the two Directives. The Network’s ground coordinators (experts on the five discrimination grounds covered by the Directives) and content manager read and commented on various drafts of the reports. The 33 reports cover national law, the establishment of enforcement mechanisms and the adoption of other measures. They contain the information current as of 1 January 2012.
The objective of this Comparative Analysis, drafted by Isabelle Chopin and Thien Uyen Do (Migration Policy Group), is to compare and contrast the information set out in the 2011 country reports in a format mirroring that of the country reports themselves and to provide an overview of national anti-discrimination legislation. In addition, 12 years after the adoption of the Racial Equality Directive and the Employment Equality Directive, the Comparative Analysis reflects on the transposition of these landmark instruments and draws on some conclusions regarding the effective implementation of anti-discrimination law in Europe. Significant EU and national case-law and key issues are highlighted so as to enrich the overview.
