UN will establish panel to investigate systemic racism in policing

NEW YORK: The United Nations announced Tuesday plans to form a panel of experts to examine the root causes and effects of systemic racism in policing around the world, including the legacies of slavery and colonialism, media reports.

The move follows a year of heightened attention on police brutality against Black people, and comes after a UN human rights report detailed the need for reparatory justice and accountability. The panel, comprised of three experts in law enforcement and human rights, is expected have a three-year mandate for its investigation and to make recommendations for actionable change.

The other side: Britain and other former European colonial powers pushed back against the proposed panel, arguing that several UN entities are already responding to societal problems related to race and that colonialismfocused probes could divert attention from addressing contemporary racism.

Between the lines: "Civil rights groups see the resolution as a litmus test of the Biden administration's readiness to follow through on campaign promises to tackle racism and how it will engage with the human rights council," the Times writes.

Worth noting: The investigation is the result of a resolution by African countries following UN findings that described systemic barriers to education, health care, employment, housing, clean water, political participation and other fundamental rights.