A/HRC/28/81 Convention, she reiterated that States that had not yet ratified or acceded to the Convention should do so. The long-standing position of the European Union was that full implementation of the existing standards was key; only one of the new replies mentioned the need for complementary standards. 30. The representative of Brazil stated that, according to the responses received, both xenophobia and national mechanisms were concerns for countries. However, there was no consensus yet on the question of gaps. Further discussion was needed on both topics, and the views of the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination on those issues were essential. Alternatively, the Ad Hoc Committee could reflect on the possibility of favouring the development of, inter alia, plans of action and guidelines on those issues. With regard to procedural gaps, the responses to the questionnaire indicated that the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination still lacked an official mandate to engage in actions such as visits to countries and follow-up to its recommendations, which were important for the fulfilment of its functions. Treaty bodies created subsequently had provisions on those issues. Therefore, additional norms could be needed in that area. 31. The representative of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela highlighted the importance of new complementary standards to combat racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance, and referred to the need to criminalize discrimination in all its forms. Venezuelan society was multi-ethnic and the Government was committed to implementing the 2011 law against racial discrimination, article 11 of which addressed xenophobia and racist acts. The representative also highlighted the positive role of civil society with regard to the prevention and eradication of racial discrimination, and reported on the establishment of a national institution against racial discrimination as an effective implementation of provisions of the Convention and the Durban Declaration and Programme of Action. The Government was committed to collecting disaggregated data, and the recent 2011 census would provide more detailed information on the population. 32. The representative of the Russian Federation also supported the need for the development of additional standards, emphasizing that existing international standards were proving ineffective. He encouraged delegations to consider drafting new complementary standards and making improvements to the effectiveness of existing mechanisms. 33. The representative of Morocco informed the meeting that Morocco had adopted a new migration policy, which called for a human rights-based approach. Migrants required legal recognition and rights in areas such as access to housing and education. The new policy was comprehensive and covered asylum seekers and refugees. He pointed out the need to move away from a security-oriented approach that led to a fortress mentality, and acknowledged problems with data collection, adding that currently the country was conducting a census that would influence positively the development of public policies. He highlighted the importance of vital statistics. 34. The Chairperson-Rapporteur asked whether constitutions and legislation were sufficient to address racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance, and asked how Governments could move from legal measures to the protection of victims on the ground. He invited participants to share good practices and difficulties in that regard. 35. The representative of Morocco said that there were different approaches to combating racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance. On one side there were provisions in the Constitution to combat discrimination. There was also the operational side, taking into consideration concrete facts, since Morocco was a country of origin, transit and destination for migrants. Those combined factors left Morocco with a large number of irregular migrants. A new asylum and migration policy was needed. In that regard, a report had been submitted to the Government, which had decided to adopt a new policy. The representative noted that day-to-day issues at the practical level should be 8