Interview Series on National Human Rights Institutions and the International Human Rights System
11 – 13 March 2015, Geneva, Switzerland - On the occasion of the International Coordination Committee of National Human Rights Institutions (ICC) 28th General Meeting, UNITAR and the ICC are recording a series of video interviews with a selected group of ICC members, other relevant stakeholders and representatives of UN agencies, to capture their thoughts and rich experiences on the work of the ICC and of the NHRIs both at the national and international level.
During these days, the ICC is hosting, in Room XVII at the Palais des Nations, its 28th General Meeting. Consequently, representatives of National Human Rights Institutions (NHRIs) from all regions of the world, as well as UN experts, are gathering in Geneva, Switzerland, to discuss the human rights situation, and the related NHRIs role, with regard to specific issues.
Every year the Meeting is organized around Thematic Sessions and in 2015 five thematic sessions will cover the potential role of the ICC and NHRIs in the Post 2015 Development Agenda; the use of national inquiries by NHRIs and the analysis of practical experiences, lessons learned and recommendations; the different types of governance structures of NHRIs; the role of NHRIs in preventing and combating violence against women and the role of NHRIs in the rights of persons with disabilities.
UNITAR and the ICC will film, throughout the ICC 28th General Meeting, video interviews that, presenting practitioners experiences and achievements, and focusing on best practices and lessons learned, will represent a valuable and unique resource for all NHRIs staff.
The videos will feature, among others, the High Commissioner for Human Rights, Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein, the Human Rights Council President Joachim Rücker, the Special Rapporteur on Human Rights Defenders and Secretary General National Consultative Commission of Human Rights of France Michel Forst, the ICC Chairperson Adv. Mabedle Lourence Mushwana and the Chairperson of the NHRIs of Mexico, Luxembourg, Afghanistan, Northern Ireland and Kenya.
Since 2013, UNITAR and the ICC have launched a fruitful collaboration for the development of training materials and programmes addressed to the staff of NHRIs and aimed at increasing NHRIs’ awareness of, and participation in, the United Nations human rights mechanisms and on the international human rights system, in general.
The production of these video interviews represents one of the various initiatives that UNITAR and the ICC are implementing in this direction.
In addition, integrated into the training courses for NHRIs, developed by UNITAR and the ICC, these videos will provide “first hand information” about and advocate the good work of the ICC and NHRIs; the actual and potential roles of NHRIs when engaging at international level, to all course participants.
These training initiatives, being directly addressed to National Human Rights Institutions (NHRIs) mandated to protect and promote human rights in accordance with the Paris Principles, will have a significant impact on the human rights situation worldwide.
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