Early warning mechanisms have been set up to prevent, inter alia, racial, ethnic or religious tensions from escalating into conflicts. Three types of provisions for EWMs established by the UN should be mentioned in the context of minority protection. First, the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights is mandated to monitor and prevent human rights violations. In carrying out its mission, OHCHR gives priority to addressing the most pressing human rights violations, both acute and chronic, particularly those that put life in imminent peril. OHCHR responds to emerging human rights crises by anticipating and responding to deteriorating human rights situations across the globe, including through fact finding missions and commissions of inquiry that investigate serious allegations of human rights abuses. The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights may play a mediation and diplomacy role in situations that may escalate into conflict by encouraging dialogue among the parties concerned.

Second, CERD has established an early warning mechanism to draw the attention of its members to situations where racial discrimination has reached alarming levels. The Committee has adopted both early warning measures and urgent procedures to prevent as well as to respond more effectively to violations of ICERD.

	CERD early warning measures could be utilized when the following indicators are present: (a) Presence of a significant and persistent pattern of racial discrimination, as evidenced in social and economic indicators; (b) Presence of a pattern of escalating racial hatred and violence, or racist propaganda or appeals to racial intolerance by persons, groups or organizations, notably by elected or other State officials; (c) Adoption of new discriminatory legislation; (d) Segregation policies or de facto exclusion of members of a group from political, economic, social and cultural life; (e) Lack of an adequate legislative framework defining and criminalizing all forms of racial discrimination or lack of effective mechanisms, including lack of recourse procedures; (f) Policies or practice of impunity regarding: (i) Violence targeting members of a group identified on the basis of race, colour, descent or national or ethnic origin by State officials or private actors; (ii) Grave statements by political leaders/prominent people that condone or justify violence against a group identified on the ground of race, colour, descent, national or ethnic origin; and (iii) Development and organization of militia groups and/or extreme political groups based on a racist platform; (g) Significant flows of refugees or displaced persons, especially when those concerned belong to specific ethnic groups; (h) Encroachment on the traditional lands of indigenous peoples or forced removal of these peoples from their lands, in particular for the purpose of exploitation of natural resources; (i) Polluting or hazardous activities that reflect a pattern of racial discrimination with substantial harm to specific groups.

Third, the post of the UN Special Advisor on the Prevention of Genocide was created in 2004 with the mandate, inter alia, to act as an early warning mechanism to the UN Secretary-General and the Security Council by bringing to their attention potential situations that could result in genocide. To this end, the Special Advisor collects information on massive and serious violations of human rights and international humanitarian law of ethnic and racial origin that might lead to genocide, makes recommendations to the Security Council (through the UN Secretary-General) on actions to prevent or halt genocide, and liaises with the UN system on activities for the prevention of genocide, including enhancement of UN capacity to analyze and manage information relating to genocide and related crimes.

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