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| University of Pretoria's Centre for Human Rights wins 2006 UNESCO Prize for Human Rights Education |
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| UNESCO Director-General, Koïchiro Matsuura, has designated the Centre for Human Rights of the University of Pretoria (South Africa) as the winner of the fifteenth edition of the UNESCO Prize for Human Rights Education (2006). |
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News 11 of 19
The Centre for Human Rights receives this Prize in recognition of its outstanding contribution to the cause of human rights in South Africa and to the advancement of a human rights culture by means of education and training of professionals in South Africa, other countries of the continent and beyond.
In 2006, the Centre celebrates its 20th anniversary. When it was created, during Apartheid, the Centre contributed to the adaptation of a Bill of Rights for South Africa. Later, it participated in the Constitution-building process. The Centre then broadened its activities in human rights education and training in South Africa and other African countries.
The two flagships programmes of the Centre are the Master’s Degree in Human Rights and Democratization in Africa, established in 2000, and the African Human Rights Moot Court Competition, launched in 1992.
The Master’s Programme is a joint project of the Centre with seven other African universities. It is an intensive one-year course which offers knowledge and invaluable practical experience to 30 highly qualified individuals from African countries every year. It is the only course of this kind in Africa.
The Centre’s African Human Rights Moot Court Competition is a unique project which gives African lawyers the opportunity to deepen their knowledge and understanding of the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights and its implementation. The Moot Court Competition has so far brought together 708 teams from 111 universities representing 43 African countries.
The Centre also runs a number of other academic programmes and projects dealing with human rights and democracy, and has issued numerous publications in these fields, including African Human Rights Law Journal, African Human Rights Law Reports, etc. The Centre has established close partnerships with other academic institutions, NGOs, governments and international organizations such as the African Union and the United Nations.
Two Honourable Mentions were also awarded.
One is given to the European Master’s Programme in Human Rights and Democratisation (E.MA) of the European Inter-University Centre for Human Rights and Democratisation (EIUC) in recognition of its pioneer educational programme which has served as model for similar programmes in many regions and its overall contribution to the cause of human rights.
E.MA, established in 1997 in Venice, Italy, is run by EIUC, which brings together 39 universities from 25 European Union countries. The inter-European one-year intensive postgraduate programme in human rights and democracy has so far provided high-level education for 750 graduates. It aims to satisfy the need for competent human rights practitioners through application of a multidisciplinary educational concept. Graduates include citizens of European Union countries, as well as specialists from other regions. They work in governmental structures, intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations, as well as in the field. The success of E.MA has served as an example for the creation of similar programmes elsewhere.(Read more...)
The other Honourable Mention goes to the One World International Human Rights Documentary Film Festival of the Czech Republic in recognition of an innovative approach in using the language of art to inculcate respect for human dignity and human rights for all without discrimination.
Organized every year since 1999 by the NGO “People in Need”, the Festival attracted more than 40,000 people in 13 Czech cities in 2006. The Film Festival is an international competition of documentary films, notably educational films for primary and high schools. Workshops, debates, concerts and photo exhibitions are organized on the fringe of the Festival. The powerful vector of the cinema is thus used to promote human rights and to inculcate respect for human dignity for all without discrimination. (Read more...)
The decision on the prizewinner was taken by the Director-General upon the recommendation of the International Jury which met at UNESCO Headquarters on 9 and 10 November 2006. The Jury considered 49 candidates from 37 countries. It was composed of Professor Abdelfattah Amor (Tunisia), Member and Deputy Chairperson of the United Nations Human Rights Committee; Professor Kinhide Mushakoji (Japan), Director of the Chubu Institute of Advanced Studies, Department of International Relations, Chubu University; Professor Nasila S. Rembe (South Africa), holder of the UNESCO Oliver Tambo Human Rights Chair at Fort Hare University (Alice); Ms Dina Rodriguez Montero (Peru), Director of the Gender and Peace Studies Department at the United Nations University for Peace (Costa Rica); Professor Rumen Valchev (Bulgaria), holder of the UNESCO Chair for Human Rights and the Culture of Peace at Bourgas Free University, in Sofia; and Mr Antoine Valéry (France), President of the Committee on Human Rights and Ethical Issues of the French National Commission for UNESCO.
Awarded every two years, the UNESCO Prize for Human Rights Education, currently endowed with US$ 10,000, was established in 1978 – on the occasion of the 30th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. It honours institutions, organizations or individuals that have made a particularly significant contribution to human rights education. The laureate also receives a bronze trophy created by Japanese artist Toshimi Ishii.
The laureate is named on December 10, Human Rights Day.
The award ceremony will be held in South Africa in 2007.
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| Author(s) |
UNESCO, Human Rights and Gender Equality Section, Division of Human Rights, Human Security and Philosophy |
| Publication Date |
11-12-2006 |
| Source |
UNESCO |
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