In February 2013, the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD Committee or the Committee) issued its opinion in TBB—Turkish Union in Berlin/Brandenburg v. Germany. The majority of the Committee concluded that Germany had violated its obligations to protect its Turkish and Arab populations from a former state official’s allegedly racially discriminatory statements in violation of Articles 2(1)(d), 4(a), and 6 of the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (CERD or the Convention). The Committee reached significant conclusions regarding the contours of incitement to racial hatred and ideas of racial superiority, the balance between freedom from discrimination and freedom of expression, and state discretion not to prosecute. Consideration of this matter also marks the first time a member of the CERD Committee has filed an individual—or dissenting—opinion.
