A/HRC/30/26 not always correspond to the wishes of the electorate and political parties around the world have struggled to effectively address economic and other issues of primary interest, leaving individuals feeling disillusioned with what they see as increasingly empty campaign slogans.27 This lack of trust in political parties, owing notably to democratic shortcomings in their internal structures, has negatively translated into a lower level of public trust in State institutions. Structural inequalities 19. Some individuals or groups are often denied the opportunity to participate in the conduct of public affairs because of socioeconomic inequalities. Individuals and groups concerned are confronted with a vicious circle: the greater the inequality, the less the participation; the less the participation, the greater the inequality. This perpetuates the privilege of the elite who may be the only ones able to influence formal and informal processes directly.28 20. Lack of decision-making power is a universal and basic characteristic of underrepresented and marginalized groups. Their right to participate in political and public affairs is hampered by multiple compounding obstacles. Discrimination and stigma, poverty and mistrust of authorities all limit the possibilities and incentives for individuals belonging to such groups to participate fully in society and make them particularly vulnerable to corruption or co-option.29 21. While the general right to participate in political and public affairs is a prerequisite of democracy, it is not, in itself, sufficient. Processes need to be put in place to ensure that all segments of society are able to influence agenda-setting and decision-making. Pro forma participatory processes only reinforce existing power structures and the feeling of exclusion.30 22. In some cases, private corporations and lobby groups take precedence over other less-resourced and less-organized voices. The Independent Expert on the promotion of a democratic and equitable international order recently denounced secret negotiations of free trade and investment agreements as being a threat to human rights since they exclude key stakeholder groups from the process. He warned that the reality of economic, political and military imbalance leads to pressures on the weak that have little choice but to bend to various forms of coercion threats, sanctions or carrot-and-stick practices.31 B. Challenges affecting women and specific groups 23. Various social groups face specific challenges and discrimination. Intersecting and compound forms of discrimination have an especially devastating effect on the right to participate in political and public affairs. Roma women, for example, have been denied access to political and public participation rights on the grounds of their minority status, citizenship and gender. People living in poverty experience discrimination, not only on the grounds of poverty itself, but also due to membership in other disadvantaged groups, such as indigenous peoples, non-nationals or people living with HIV/AIDS. 27 28 29 30 31 A/HRC/24/38, para. 16. A/HRC/23/36, para. 14. Ibid., paras. 12 and 13. A/HRC/23/36, para. 72. A/HRC/24/38, para. 27; also OHCHR, “Secret negotiations on trade treaties, a threat to human rights”, press release, 23 April 2015, available at www.ohchr.org/EN/NewsEvents/Pages/DisplayNews.aspx?NewsID=15883&LangID=E. 7