On 29 August 2019, the Département présidentiel (PRE) of the Ville de Genève published “Un écosystème dynamique de plus de 750 ONG à Genève” in which – for the first time – researchers of the University of Geneva have made a survey of the NGO world in Geneva. The study – in French – has some fascinating key findings:
Posts Tagged ‘Geneva’
Public conference on the UN Human Rights Council on 4 September
August 20, 2019
In an environment where short-term and national interests are taking over, UN institutions are under attack….Michelle Bachelet, United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, and Coly Seck , President of the Human Rights Council, will discuss the importance and contribution of UN institutions to ensure that each country upholds and promotes human rights. WEDNESDAY 4 SEPTEMBER, 18h00 – 19h30 in Auditorium Ican Pictet, Maison de la Paix, Geneva, organised by the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studie.
Michelle Bachelet has been the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights since September 2018. She was the first female President of Chile and elected for two terms (2006–2010 and 2014–2018). She also served as the first Director of UN Women, Health Minister of Chile, and was Chile’s and Latin America’s first woman Defense Minister.
Coly Seck is President of the 13th Cycle of the Human Rights Council, serving a one-year term beginning 1 January 2019. He is the Permanent Representative of Senegal to the United Nations Office in Geneva since October 2016.
This discussion will be moderated by Vincent Chetail, Professor of International Law, Head of the International Law Department and Director of the Global Migration Centre at the Graduate Institute, and will then be followed by a Q&A with the public. This conference is organised in partnership with the Club Diplomatique de Genève.
Interview with Cédric Herrou, migrants rights defender who is the central person in the film Libre
July 18, 2019ISHR had the chance to meet with Cédric Herrou for the Geneva premiere of movie ‘Libre’ where director Michel Toesca follows him in his endeavours in France‘s Roya Valley. During our interview, Herrou, a migrant rights defender and president of association ‘Défends Ta Citoyenneté’, shared his testimony, challenges, aspirations and calls to action. The interview was published on 22 March 2019.
Nelson Mandela Human Rights Lecture in Geneva on 18 July 2019
July 12, 2019
On the occasion of Nelson Mandela International Day, Albie Sachs, Former Judge of the South African Constitutional Court, and Michelle Bachelet, United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, will reflect on today’s challenges to human rights and how to move the human rights agenda forward based on their personal experiences.
THURSDAY 18 JULY 2019, 18:00 – 19:30 AUDITORIUM IVAN PICTET | MAISON DE LA PAIX, GENEVA
Welcome remarks:
- Andrew Clapham, Professor of Public International Law, the Graduate Institute, Geneva
- Nozipho Joyce Mxakato-Diseko, Ambassador, South African Permanent Mission to the United Nations Office in Geneva
Keynote speech:
- Albie Sachs, Former Judge, Constitutional Court of South Africa
Discussion with:
- Michelle Bachelet, United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights
- Christof Heyns, Professor of Human Rights Law, University of Pretoria (moderator)
- Nozipho Joyce Mxakato-Diseko, Ambassador, South African Permanent Mission to the United Nations Office in Geneva
- Albie Sachs, Former Judge, Constitutional Court of South Africa
Closing remarks:
- Frans Viljoen, Director, Centre for Human Rights, University of Pretoria
The Nelson Mandela Human Rights Lecture is presented by the Centre for Human Rights of the University of Pretoria, the Washington College of Law at the American University, the Human Rights Council Branch at the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights and the Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights in collaboration with the South African Permanent Mission to the United Nations.
This lecture is part of the Nelson Mandela World Human Rights Moot Court Competition and will be followed by a reception.
https://graduateinstitute.ch/communications/events/nelson-mandela-human-rights-lecture
Rich palette of side events at 41st Session of the UN Human Rights Council
June 21, 2019The 41st session of the UN Human Rights Council is to start soon. In addition to items of the agenda [see https://humanrightsdefenders.blog/2019/06/14/guide-to-human-rights-defenders-issues-at-the-41st-human-rights-council-starting-on-24-june/] there are – as usual – many side events in Geneva, both by States and NGOs, that relate to human rights defenders. You can download the list of NGO events here.
Here a selection:
- Launch of ISHR joint report on strengthening HRC membership on 1 July at 13:00 at the UN Delegates restaurant. Speakers will introduce the report and highlight some of the key challenges, opportunities and practical recommendations, including with regard to good practice relating to candidacy and membership of the HRC.
- Promoting and Protecting Civic Space for Migrants and Refugees is organised by CIVICUS and Solidarity Center and will take place on 24 June at 12:00. This event will examine findings on civic space barriers for migrant/refugees in Germany, Jordan, Kenya, Malaysia and Mexico from a new report by Solidarity Center and CIVICUS; provide an analysis of some of the civic space trends for migrants/refugees across the five countries; and hear from civil society activists on the ground.
- Health impacts for US Asylum is organised by Physicians for Human Rights (PHR) and will be held on 26 June at 10:00 in Room VIII. PHR will present findings from two reports about the asylum crisis in the United States with research based on forensic evaluations of more than 180 child asylum seekers regarding their trauma exposure in country of origin and reasons for fleeing, and documentation of cases where US immigration enforcement has impeded migrants access to emergency health care.
- Defending rights online: Challenges facing human rights defenders and a free and open Internet is organised by Article 19 and will be held on 26 June at 15:30 in Room VIII. It will discuss what more States at the Human Rights Council can do to bolster safeguards for the protection of human rights online, while also holding States accountable for violations of those rights. The panelists include the Special Rapporteur on freedom of opinion and expression and human rights defenders from Russia, Mexico, Tanzania and Tajikistan. https://www.article19.org/resources/event-defending-online-civic-space-challenges-facing-human-rights-defenders/
- Freedoms of expression, assembly, and association in Asia organised by Forum-Asia and will be held on 26 June 2019 at 15:00. This side event aims to discuss issues related to freedoms of expression, assembly, and association in Asian states.
- Ending Impunity for Murdered Journalists: Enhancing the role and impact of the UN is organised by Article 19 and will be held on 27 June at 11:30 in Room VIII. The panelists include the Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions, the Special Rapporteur on freedom of opinion and expression, and Hatice Cengiz, Fiancée of Jamal Khashoggi. It will examine how the UN’s response to cases of murdered journalists might be enhanced.
- Criminalisation of solidarity in migration organised by the International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) and OHCHR, and will be held on 27 June in Kazakh Room – Cinema XIV. The event will feature the screening of the movie “The Valley” by Nuno Escudeiro, documenting the situation of human rights defenders and migrants in South of France, with an introductory panel and a discussion session after the movie (THE VALLEY is a coproduction Point du Jour (France), Miramonte Film (Italy) and was awarded the Emerging international filmmaker at the HOT DOCS film festival, Toronto).
- Women’s rights under attack: the case of Poland, organised by the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) and Human Rights Watch, will take place on 27 June, at 13:00 in Room XV. This side event will expose attempts to erode sexual and reproductive health and rights, campaigns against women’s rights organisations, and targeting of women’s rights activists – against the backdrop of a decline in the rule of law in the country. It will explore how international and regional organisations should address this concern in Poland and in the rest of the continent.
- Needs, best practices and risks of research and data collection on sexual orientation and gender identity, organised by COC Nederland and sponsored by ISHR will be held on June 27 at 15:30 in Room V.
- Human Rights in Kashmir is organised by the International Commission of Jurists and will be held on 28 June at 13:00 in Room XXI.
- The human rights problem of political marginalisation is organised by Salam for Democracy and Human Rights (Bahrain) and CIVICUS, and will take place on 2 July at 12:00. Despite steadily rising levels of social and political marginalization in Bahrain, the government has sought to convey the appearance of political stability. In a context where freedoms of expression, peaceful assembly and association are severely restricted, what strategies can civil society – in Bahrain and in other countries around the world – bring into play to reduce political marginalisation?
- The situation of migrants and refugees rights in Brazil is organised by Conectas and will be held on 2 July at 14h in Room VIII. The event will discuss the rights of migrants and refugees in Brazil focusing on the situation of Venezuelans refugees coming to the country, the reasons why they are leaving Venezuela and how Brazil is responding to this situation.
- Human rights in Myanmar is organised by Physicians for Human Rights, and will be held on 1 July at 12:00 in Room VIII. PHR will provide an in-depth briefing on new research findings that reveal a painful, long-term legacy of the Rohingya Crisis and underscore the urgent need for accountability.
- Human rights in Myanmar is organised by Forum Asia and will be held on 1 July 2019 at 14:30 in Room VIII. Human rights defenders and the Special Rapporteur on Myanmar will provide updates on the situation in the country since the last Council session.
- Upholding the rule of law: The UN database on businesses operating in the OPT is organised by the Cairo Institute for Human Rights Studies and will be held on 5 July at 14:00 in Room VIII. More than three years following the establishment of the Database mandate pursuant to Human Rights Council Resolution 31/36– the results of this process are not being transmitted with the necessary transparency. The side event will focus on the importance of releasing the database as a public online platform of business enterprises engaged in business activities related to Israeli settlements.
- Human rights in Sudan is organised by DefendDefenders and Physicians for Human Rights. It will be held on 8 July at 13:00 in Room XXIV. This event will bring Sudanese voices to the Council to speak about the situation in Sudan and the ongoing crackdown.
- Human Rights in Venezuela is organised by the International Commission of Jurists and will be held on 8 July at 14:30 in Room IX.
Any others that come to my attebtion will be reported later.
Global Alliance for Torture-Free Trade: another step towards a binding instrument
June 17, 2019
The Global Alliance for Torture-Free Trade was launched in September 2017 under the leadership of Argentina, the European Union, and Mongolia. Today, the Global Alliance has over 60-member states that have proclaimed their determination to end international trade in instruments of torture and capital punishment. The Alliance is now introducing a draft resolution before the United Nations General Assembly with a view to adopt a legally binding instrument. A public panel event was held on 14 June 2019 in the Maison de la Paix in Geneva with experts from academia, policy practitioners, representatives from member states, civil society, and the interested public, to take stock of the developments leading to the creation of the Alliance and the prospects and challenges of adopting and implementing a global ban on tools of torture.
Panel discussion
- Cecilia Malmström, European Union Commissioner for Trade
- Barbara Bernath, Secretary General, Association for the Prevention of Torture
- Andrew Clapham, Professor of International Law, the Graduate Institute, Geneva
- Michael Crowley, Research Associate, Omega Research Foundation, and Project Coordinator of the Bradford Non-Lethal Weapons Research Project, University of Bradford
- Gerald Staberock, Secretary General, World Organisation Against Torture
Moderators
- Nico Krisch, Co-Director, Global Governance Centre, and Professor of International Law, the Graduate Institute, Geneva
- Ezgi Yildiz, Postdoctoral Researcher, Global Governance Centre, the Graduate Institute, Geneva
This conference was organised with the support of the Global Governance Centre and is part of the EU Lecture Series “Europe Tomorrow”.
https://graduateinstitute.ch/communications/events/norm-making-banning-global-trade-tools-torture
One-day dialogue on Human Rights Council membership on 1 july 2019
June 12, 2019ISHR, Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch organise a meeting on STRENGTHENING AND LEVERAGING HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCIL MEMBERSHIP on Monday 1 July 2019, 13h00-14h30 Restaurant des Délégués, 8th Floor, Palais des Nations, Geneva.The composition of the HRC has captured significant public attention over the past year – with people around the world rightly asking: how can States accused of gross and systematic human rights violations become members of the United Nations’ Human Rights Council? And what does that mean for the credibility and effectiveness of this body? Clearly, for the HRC to be effective, and to be credible and relevant to the wider human rights community, and the wider public, it needs members committed to the promotion and protection of human rights at home and abroad in its 47 seats, as foreseen by UNGA resolution 60/251. Of course, no State has a perfect human rights record, and a wide and diverse range of States should be encouraged to address their shortcomings and enhance their commitment to human rights through HRC participation and engagement. While the argument does not apply to candidates that are in clear breach of the membership criteria, HRC membership may be an important incentive for national-level change, particularly where States, as candidates, make voluntary pledges and commitments, and are willing and able to implement them. The framing and implementation of those pledges and commitments is, however, rarely discussed at national or international level. Against this backdrop, in February 2019, Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, the International Service for Human Rights (ISHR) and HRC-net convened a one-day dialogue bringing together national and regional actors – including human rights defenders and NHRIs – with a cross-regional group of State representatives, OHCHR officials and international civil society, to address two important and interlinked questions regarding HRC membership: 1) how can we encourage greater respect and application of the membership criteria clearly set out in GA resolution 60/251; and 2) how can a State’s membership of the HRC be leveraged for positive change on human rights at national level? Drawing on good practices and lessons learned, participants identified a range of challenges, opportunities and practical recommendations. A report of the one-day dialogue will be presented during a lunch time reception at the Restaurant des Délégués on 1 July, in the side-lines of the 41st session of the Human Rights Council. The reception will provide an opportunity for the presentation of some of the key challenges, opportunities and practical recommendations identified in the report, including with regards to good practice relating to candidacy and membership of the HRC.
Speakers:
- Ambassador Nazhat Shameem Khan, Permanent Representative of Fiji to the UN
- Salma El Hosseiny, ISHR’s Human Rights Council Advocate
- Hilary Power, Amnesty International’s Senior UN Advocate
Please RSVP by clicking here <https://crm.ishr.ch/sites/all/modules/civicrm/extern/url.php?u=884&qid=111418> by 19 June 2019 to confirm your participation at this event.
UN High Commissioner to present her Human Rights Report 2018 to Civil Society
May 29, 2019
On 14 June 2019 the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Ms. Michelle Bachelet will present the UN Human Rights Report 2018 to Civil Society. The event wil take place from 14:00 to 15:00 on Friday, 14 June, in the Ground Floor Conference Room at Palais Wilson. Please note that the meeting is limited to NGOs holding annual accreditation with UNOG (confirm by 11 June to zghanem@ohchr.org).
However the electronic version of the Report is already available on the Office’s website: https://www.ohchr.org/Documents/Publications/OHCHRreport2018.pdf
Geneva Launch of the World Refugee Council’s Report aiming to transform global system
April 15, 2019
The Global Migration Centre‘s mission is to advance new solutions to address the structural challenges facing the global refugee system. It is forged by an independent group of individuals which include political leaders, policy advisers, academic experts and private sector and civil society representatives from around the world. The Council unveiled its report “A Call to Action: Transforming the Global Refugee System ” in January 2019. It offers bold recommendations to transform the global refugee system with a focus on four key areas: political will, responsibility sharing, financing and accountability. It now hosts the Geneva Launch of the World Refugee Council’s Report.
Wednesday 17 April 2019, 18:30 – 20:00
Auditorium A2| Maison de la paix, Geneva
Speakers:
- Her Excellency, Ms. Rosemary McCarney, Ambassador, Permanent Mission of Canada to the United Nations Office and other international organizations in Geneva
- Lloyd Axworthy, Chair, World Refugee Council, former Canadian Foreign Minister
- Lawrence L. Herman, World Refugee Council
- Allan Rock, Special Adviser, World Refugee Council
- Moderator: Vincent Chetail, Director, Global Migration Centre, Graduate Institute, Geneva
Hans Thoolen on Human Rights Defenders and their awards 