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| Award Ceremony of the 2006 UNESCO Prize for Human Rights Education |
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| The University of Pretoria’s Centre for Human Rights has received the 2006 UNESCO Prize for Human Rights Education at the official Award Ceremony which took place on the occasion of Africa Day, 25 May 2007, in the Auditorium of the University of Pretoria’s Law Faculty. The keynote address was delivered by Deputy Minister of Education, Mr Enver Surty. |
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News 10 of 19
Professor Neo Mathabe, Chairperson of the South African National Commission for UNESCO, welcomed more than two hundred persons who attended the Ceremony. Among them were senior government officials, representatives of the Diplomatic Corps, academic and human rights communities, eminent South Africa personalities who contributed to the transition to democracy, civil society activists and students. Professor Mathabe stressed the role of the South African National Commission for UNESCO in encouraging and fostering the progress of national education system, the spread of culture, the conservation and protection of the world cultural and natural heritage, the advancement of cooperation in all branches of intellectual knowledge, and the promotion of better understanding among peoples, cultures and civilizations.
Professor Calie Pistorius, Vice-Chancellor and Principal of the University of Pretoria, greeted the participants of the Ceremony on behalf of the University. He stressed the constant support which the University has given to its Centre for Human Rights from the first days of its creation more than two decades ago. At present, the Centre represents the centre of academic and human excellence, an example of good practices to be followed by others.
Professor Abdelfatah Amor, President of the International Jury of the UNESCO Prize for Human Rights Education who is also Member and Deputy Chairperson of the United Nations Human Rights Committee and United Nations Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Religion or Belief (1993-2004), said that “in deciding in favour of the candidature of the Centre, the Jury wished to pay tribute to an institution that made remarkable efforts to build and consolidate a democratic, apartheid-free society in a country that suffered for so long from this scourge”. He quoted a famous speech “I’m an African” of President Thabo Mbeki delivered after the adoption of the South African Constitution on 8 May 1996 in which he asserted firmly that “South Africa belongs to all who live in it, black and white” and rejoices in the diversity of its people who have made a free choice to define themselves as “one people”. Professor Amor stressed that the Centre for Human Rights had spared no effort to translate these words into action.
The Director-General of UNESCO, Mr Koïchiro Matsuura, sent his pre-recorded video-message to the participants of the Ceremony in which he stressed that “The Centre receives the Prize in recognition of its contribution to the advancement of a human rights culture in South Africa, as well as in other countries of the continent and beyond. The Centre's two flagship programmes are the Master’s Degree in Human Rights and Democratization in Africa, organized jointly with seven other African universities, and the African Human Rights Moot Court Competition. The Competition gives African lawyers the opportunity to deepen their knowledge of the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights and its implementation. So far it has brought together 708 teams from 111 universities representing 43 African countries”. The Centre for Human Rights contributed to South Africa's Bill of Rights and to the development of a post-apartheid constitution.
The UNESCO Prize for Human Rights Education was awarded by Dr Claudia Harvey, Director of the UNESCO Windhoek Cluster Office in Namibia and Representative of UNESCO to South Africa, who was designated by the Director-General of UNESCO as his personal representative at the Award Ceremony of the Prize.
The Prize consists of the Honorary Diploma, the Trophy, created by the Japanese artist Toshi, who was also present at the ceremony in Pretoria, and the amount of ten thousand US dollars.
Dr Claudia Harvey awarded the Prize to Professor Christof Heyns, Director of the Centre for many years and Dean of the Faculty of Law, and also warmly congratulated Mr Norman Taku, Acting Director of the Centre, and the staff and all those who contributed to the success of the Centre’s work.
In accepting the award, Prof Christof Heyns paid tribute to his colleagues who had received the two Honourable Mention awards, as well as UNESCO for the work they have done over many years to promote the cause of human rights education. Prof Heyns recalled some difficult challenges the founders of the Centre had faced 20 years before, and he quoted from renowned African author Chinua Achebe who said “Things fall apart, the centre cannot hold”. Prof Heyns acknowledged that there is always the danger that things may fall apart. “But the Centre – and here I mean the Centre for Human Rights – has held for 20 years – and together we can make things hold into the future.”
The Honorary Mention of the 2006 UNESCO Prize for Human Rights Education went to the European Master’s Programme in Human Rights & Democratisation (Venice, Italy) of the European Inter-University Centre for Human Rights and Democratisation in recognition of its important contribution to the cause of human rights and its pioneer educational programme. The Honorary Diploma and the copy of the Trophy of the Prize were awarded to Professor Manfred Nowak, Chairperson of the European Master’s Programme, who is also the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Torture, Director of the Ludwig Boltzmann Human Rights Institute in Vienna, Austria, and Professor of Law at the Vienna University. Professor Nowak gave a lecture to the students of the Master’s Programme in Human Rights and Democratisation of the Centre before the Ceremony.
Another Honorary Mention of the 2006 UNESCO Prize for Human Rights Education went to the One World International Human Rights Documentary Film Festival, Czech Republic, in recognition of its important contribution to the promotion of respect for human dignity and human rights for all without discrimination. The Honorary Diploma and the copy of the Trophy of the Prize were awarded to Mr Igor Blazevic, Director of the One World Human Rights Film Festival of the non-governmental organization People in Need. Mr Blazevic thanked UNESCO for this distinction and stressed that it recognizes the important role of image in the promotion of respect for human rights. On the eve of the Ceremony, he presented the documentary film “A Lesson of Belorussian” which won Václav Havel’s special award for a major contribution to the human rights promotion of the 2007 edition of the One World Human Rights Film Festival.
A short presentation on the Centre’s LLM and Moot Programmes was then presented before Deputy Minister of Education, Mr Enver Surty, delivered his keynote address. The Deputy Minister spoke at length about the need to educate young people in the spirit of respect for human rights and congratulated the Centre for Human Rights and the University of Pretoria for their efforts to establish the University as a leading player on the African continent.
Mr Norman Taku brought the proceedings to a close by thanking the Minister and other speakers for their presentations and the audience for their support. He then invited everyone to celebrate the occasion over cocktails.
The Ceremony was organized jointly by the University of Pretoria, the South African National Commission for UNESCO and the Sector of Social and Human Sciences of UNESCO.
Recent laureates of the US$ 10 000 UNESCO Prize for Human Rights Education, awarded every two years include the city of Nuremberg (Germany) in 2000; the Academia Mexicana de Derechos Humanos (Mexico) in 2002; and legal expert Vitit Muntarbhorn (Thailand) in 2004.
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| Author(s) |
UNESCO, Centre for Human Rights of the University of Pretoria |
| Publication Date |
25-05-2007 |
| Source |
UNESCO |
| Type |
Text |
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