A/HRC/43/47/Add.2 Group of Experts on People of African Descent) determines that, in Spain, the actions described (the filming of law enforcement agents) only constitute an infraction when said images or data are used in a manner that endangers, inter alia, the personal safety of the agents or their families. Furthermore, at the end of paragraph 34, the Rapporteur states, without providing any evidence, that practice by law enforcement agents in the field in 2019 (it should be borne in mind that the Rapporteur visited Spain in January 2019) did not seem to fully comply with the strict instructions of the State Secretariat for Security (instructions issued in October 2018). 13. Paragraph 41 asserts: “Connected to events in Catalonia in 2017, the Special Rapporteur was presented reports of apparent increasing hate speech, vilification, vandalism, physical threats and even assaults on minorities such as the Catalans, and to a lesser degree on other national minorities. Some reports suggest that authorities are not sufficiently responding to or prosecuting these allegations, thus indirectly contributing to an increasing atmosphere of intolerance against minorities and nationalistic vitriol.” There is no footnote providing any data from the reports on which the Rapporteur is basing these claims. What is more, the Rapporteur himself goes on to admit that “the Special Rapporteur is not able to comment on the veracity of these allegations…” Once again, at the end of paragraph 43 there is a reference to an “apparent rise of hate speech and intolerance against minorities”. It is unacceptable for the Rapporteur to include statements in his Report which he himself recognizes to be unsubstantiated. 14. As regards the claims contained in paragraph 51, and to provide a comprehensive overview of the actual situation in Spain, it should also go on record that article 3.2 of the Spanish Constitution provides for the right of all Spaniards to use Castilian—the official Spanish language of the State—and their duty to know it. The above notwithstanding, in addition to what is set out in the following paragraph regarding the use of the official languages in the justice administration, we would mention the initiatives put into practice to promote the knowledge of the co-official languages of Spain among the members of the State law enforcement bodies. For this reason, the National Police provides assistance to its members to learn Catalan. Similarly, the Delegation of the Central Government in Catalonia has proposed to the Department of Culture of the Government of Catalonia the promotion of an agreement to provide courses on the Catalan language to National Police and Civil Guard officers posted to or recently arrived in Catalonia. Furthermore, for certain regional official positions in Autonomous Communities (Spain’s self-governing regions) with a co-official language, knowledge of said language is taken into account as a point of merit when selecting candidates. In addition to all of this, the proceedings of the judicial police are assisted by providing documents drafted in co-official languages, both for the victim and for the alleged perpetrator of the crime. Finally, at the end of the same paragraph the Rapporteur states: “It has been suggested that this leads to a significant number of grievances and frustration in some of these communities…” We might then ask, yet again, if this suggestion has been supported by any kind of data, statistics, etc. 15. Paragraphs 53, 54 and 55. Article 231 of Organic Law 6/1985 of 1 July, on the Judiciary (Spanish acronym LOPJ), does not obstruct the use of official languages in the justice administration. On the contrary; this use is permitted, unless opposition is expressed by one of the parties in the proceedings and such use would give rise to unfairness contrary to the principle of effective remedy. Moreover, knowledge of official languages is taken into account as a point of merit when deciding on candidates for the post of president in the higher courts and appellate courts, as set forth in LOPJ, article 341. Also noteworthy here is the express inclusion of the right to translation and interpretation in the Criminal Procedure Act and in the Civil Procedure Act. This entails a set of rights for those defendants who do not speak Castilian or the official language of the proceedings, i.e. the co-official languages of certain Autonomous Communities: the assistance by an interpreter using a language that the defendant understands throughout the proceedings and in their conversations with their attorney, as well as the right to written translations of the documents that are essential to guarantee their right to defence. In such cases the expenses are defrayed by the administration, regardless of the outcome of the proceedings. Furthermore, this right is guaranteed in article 9 of Act 4/2015 of 27 April, on the standing of victims of crimes. However, paragraph 54 of the Report concludes: “…there have been consistent reports in 4