Formation Continue du Supérieur

Fighting against discrimination and promoting equality
To treat a person unfairly on the basis of his or her ethnic origin, sex, age, state of health, lifestyle, opinions... (in total, 20 elements are established by law) is strictly prohibited by French law and the international conventions approved by France.
You may appeal to the Defender of Rights if you believe you have been the victim of discrimination, either direct or indirect.

Who can refer cases to the Defender of Rights?

• a private person (a natural person acting on his/her own behalf)
• an association or group whose bylaws promote anti-discrimination efforts. It must be properly declared and in operation for at least 5 years at the time of the action. The appeal to the Defender of Rights must be made with the consent and the cooperation of the person claiming to be a victim of discrimination.
• The Defender of Rights may also take up a case on his own initiative in cases of suspected discrimination

What are the criteria of discrimination?
The law forbids any distinction or unequal treatment on the basis of:

• the geographic origin, family name, place of residence, belonging or not belonging to an ethnic group, a race, or a certain nation, whether these are real or presumed
• sex, sexual orientation, sexual identity, lifestyle
• age, marital status, pregnancy
• state of health, disability, physical appearance, genetic characteristics
• religion, political opinions, union activity

What kinds of inequality of treatment are involved?
The Defender of Rights may intervene in many types of discrimination, for example in matters of:

• access to employment
• access to housing
• access to goods and services, both public and private (access to a nightclub, a public building, credit…)
• access to care and to social services
• education and training (as a condition for enrolment, admission, evaluation). More...

Upholding the rights of the users of public services
The Defender of Rights is responsible for improving relations amongst the citizen, the administration and public services.
He may act as a mediator.
You may refer a case to the Defender of Rights if you disagree with a decision or behaviour by an administration or a public service.
The Defender of Rights may intervene, through consultation, when your previous efforts to resolve a dispute have failed.

Who can refer cases to the Defender of Rights?

• a private person (a natural person acting on her/his own behalf)
• an association or a group
• a company

What public services are concerned?
The Defender of Rights may intervene in a conflict between you and:

• a State administration: prefecture, ministry, taxation centre, consulate…
• a local entity: city hall, general councils of a department or region…
• a health care facility
• a body responsible for managing a public service: Family Benefit Fund (CAF), National Health Insurance (CPAM), Pôle emploi (National Employment Agency), energy suppliers (electricity and gas, EDF-GDF), public transportation system (SNCF)…

What kinds of disputes can be referred?
Your problem with an administration or public service may concern, for example:

• dysfunction of a public service: erroneous decision, failure to respond, lack of information…
• failure to execute a judicial decision favourable to the citizen. More...

Promoting children’s rights and intervening in their defence
Every child has fundamental rights in terms of care, education, justice, social protection…
These are recognized by law, in particular by the UN Convention of the Rights of the Child. This treaty was adopted unanimously by the United Nations in 1989 and ratified by France.
You may appeal to the Defender of Rights if you believe that the rights of a child are not being upheld or that there is a situation threatening her/his wellbeing.
A child or an adolescent may also contact the Defender of Rights.

For what children can the Defender of Rights act?

• French and foreign children living in France
• French children living abroad. More...

Upholding security ethics
The Defender of Rights is charged with seeing to it that professional ethics are observed by persons performing security activities on French soil.
Professional ethics include all of the rules of proper conduct for a given profession. In terms of security, they focus on respecting persons and protecting individual freedoms.
You may appeal to the Defender of Rights if you are the victim of or witness to actions you believe to be contrary to the ethical code concerning security.

Who can refer a case to the Defender of Rights?

• persons who believe they are a victim of a breach of security ethics, whether of French or foreign citizenship, residing in France or abroad
• the family members, legal guardians or beneficiaries of the alleged victim
• a witness to acts which might constitute a breach of security ethics
• the Defender of Rights can also take up a case on his own initiative when a breach of ethics is suspected

What security agents does this include?
The security agents concerned include the:

• national police
• gendarmes
• municipal police
• customs agents
• officers of the prison system
• agents monitoring public transports
• members of law enforcement agencies
• private investigators
• agents of surveillance services, security guards
• cash transport personnel

Where do I start?
You can appeal to the Defender of Rights free of charge by referring your complaint directly to the Defender of Rights. More...

The Defender of Rights oversees the protection of your rights and freedoms, promotes equality and ensures greater access to rights.
Any natural or legal person may refer a case to it directly and free of charge.
This independent administrative authority was enshrined in the Constitution on 23rd July 2008 and established by the Organic and Ordinary Laws of 29th March 2011.
The Defender of Rights is a single authority in charge of defending your rights. Starting in 2011, the areas of competence of the Médiateur de la République (French Mediator), the Défenseur des enfants (Children's Ombudsman) and the Haute Autorité de lutte contre les discriminations et pour l’égalité (HALDE, equality and anti-discrimination authority), and the Commission nationale de déontologie de la sécurité (CNDS, national commission on security ethics) have been joined together in the interest of facilitating and simplifying access by citizens. More...

Dossier de presse (Anglais) : Rapport sur les droits fondamentaux des étrangers en France
The Defender of Rights takes the view that upholding the fundamental rights of foreigners is an essential marker of the degree of defence and protection of rights and freedoms in a given country.
In this document, the Institution wishes to highlight the obstacles that obstruct foreigners’ access to fundamental rights, drawing upon the decisions issued by the Institution in addition to identifying new legal issues.
By way of a preliminary, it should be pointed out that:
• Concerning entry, residence and expulsion, positive law authorises, a priori, differences in treatment based specifically on the distinction between the legal categories of “national” and “foreigner”. In these areas, the discretionary power of the State is considerable. It is not unlimited, however, and may not under any circumstances be discriminatory. It is the duty of the Defender of Rights to point out that even in such a sovereign area, the respect for fundamental rights must be guaranteed.
• Conversely, in the majority of areas of daily life, social welfare, child welfare, health, housing, etc., the law in theory prohibits the establishment of any differential treatment. However, in addition to those illegal practices that contravene this prohibition, such as the refusal of school registration, or of access to care, for example, the legal rules themselves, in sometimes appearing to establish neutral criteria, in fact limit foreigners’ full access to their fundamental rights.
The analysis set out in this document is intended to underscore the measurable disparity between the proclamation of these rights and how they work in practice. Far from being natural and immutable, the legal rules governing foreigners are choices made by the legislature and are sometimes made on the basis of considerations that vary over time. It is the duty of actors in the defence of rights to play a role in dismantling these preconceptions, these myths. More...

Dossier de presse : Les droits fondamentaux des étrangers en France
Le Défenseur des droits estime que le respect des droits fondamentaux des étrangers est un marqueur essentiel du degré de défense et de protection des libertés dans un pays.
Il entend, dans ce document, pointer l’ensemble des obstacles qui entravent l’accès des étrangers aux droits fondamentaux, en prenant appui sur les décisions de l’Institution mais en identifiant aussi de nouveaux problèmes juridiques.
Il convient au préalable de noter que :
• Concernant l’entrée, le séjour et l’éloignement, le droit positif autorise les différences de traitement fondées sur la catégorie juridique « étranger ». Dans ces domaines, le pouvoir discrétionnaire de l’Etat est important. Il n’est toutefois pas sans limite et ne saurait en aucun cas être discriminatoire. Il appartient au Défenseur des droits de rappeler que, même dans un domaine aussi régalien, le respect des droits fondamentaux doit être garanti.
• A l’inverse, dans la plupart des domaines de la vie quotidienne, protection sociale, enfance, santé, logement …, le droit interdit a priori d’établir des différences de traitement. Cependant, audelà des pratiques illégales qui contreviennent à cette interdiction, comme les refus de scolarisation ou d’accès aux soins par exemple, c’est la règle de droit elle-même qui, en instaurant parfois des critères apparemment neutres, limite de fait le plein accès aux droits fondamentaux des étrangers.
Les analyses développées dans ce document entendent souligner l’écart mesurable entre la proclamation de ces droits et leur effectivité. Loin d’être naturelles et immuables, les règles de droit consacrées aux étrangers sont autant de choix opérés par le législateur qui reposent parfois sur des considérations fluctuant dans le temps. Il est du devoir des acteurs de la défense des droits de contribuer à déconstruire ces idées préconçues, ces mythes. Voir l'article...

Au cours de la discussion en nouvelle lecture du projet de loi de modernisation de la justice du XXIème siècle, le gouvernement s'est opposé à un amendement qui aurait permis d'instaurer une procédure déclarative et non juridictionnelle pour le changement d'état civil des personnes transgenres.
Le Garde des Sceaux a avancé comme dirimant l'argument de l'indisponibilité de l'état des personnes. Or, dans sa décision cadre MLD-MSP-2016-164 du 24 juin 2016  proposant un système déclaratif, le Défenseur des droits a démontré que ce principe ne fait pas obstacle à une telle procédure dans la mesure où l'indisponibilité n'emporte pas l'immutabilité de l'état civil. Voir l'article...