Human Rights Education: The 4th R, Human Rights Education
and the Arts, vol. 7 No. 1, Winter 1996.
HRE Initiatives Around the Globe
HRE Initiatives Around the Globe
The Centre for the Study of Human Rights, a part of the Faculty of Law at the University of Colombo in Sri Lanka, was established in 1991 to promote comprehensive human rights education. To the founders of the Centre, the majority of Sri Lankans seemed to know little of their rights and how to assert them peacefully. The Centre grew out of concern about political violence and fear and about the failure of the educational system to produce a democratic social ethos based on respect for human rights.
The Centre’s purpose is to design and facilitate multidisciplinary human rights educational and research programs. For example, the Human Rights Outreach Education Project has school, community, and university components. One part of the project focuses on building awareness in school children about dimensions of human rights and their relationship to development, democracy, and freedoms. Twenty-five schools across Sri Lanka participated in 1994. In addition to classroom instruction, students worked in their communities under adult supervision. Over a three month period, students identified human rights violations and developed projects ranging from rights of the child to environmental issues. At project review time, students enthusiastically supported the project and hoped it would continue.
Zimbabwe: At the International Book Fair in August, Amnesty International set up a booth to publicize and distribute AI publications, including country reports and human rights education materials. At the same time, a question and answer leaflet in the form of a poster was produced to increase awareness of the obligations of the governments of the Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) to protect and promote human rights under international human rights treaties. The leaflet was widely distributed amongst NGOs and the general public during the Book Fair, and was the focus of an AI campaign action. When the organization Gays and Lesbians of Zimbabwe (GALZ) was expelled from the Fair, AI joined with other nongovernmental organizations and the literary community in Zimbabwe in putting pressure on the Bookfair Trust and Government of Zimbabwe to rescind the expulsion of GALZ.
Mali: Amnesty members were given a regular slot on national radio for a weekly talk show on human rights. Subjects covered include the human rights situation in Rwanda and AI’s recent campaign on Sudan.
Rwanda: A project started by Amnesty International during 1995 involves the production and distribution of a human rights poster for young people. The poster will be designed to raise awareness about the right to life. The back of the poster will include suggestions on how to teach children and adolescents to resolve conflict peacefully. Distribution is planned through existing projects supported by UNICEF and the UN.
Mongolia: Among other initiatives in 1995, Amnesty International organized a Human Rights Education workshop at Mongolia’s National University. Teachers, academics, lawyers, and activists from AI and other NGOs explored different approaches to teaching and learning about human rights, including democratic and participatory HRE techniques used by AI around the world, including games, songs, and role plays. Many of these techniques were quite new to Mongolian educators. Participants also began to work on a human rights history of Mongolia, and to develop plans for introduction of human rights across the curriculum and age spectrum in formal, informal, and professional education.
Mexico: Mexico has had its own HRE department since 1991, now based in Querétaro. They have been organizing courses for both teachers and students. They held their first week long HRE course in June, 1995. A diverse group of 139 participants included 20 indigenous teachers and human rights promoters from different parts of Mexico, 20 members of governmental human rights agencies, 40 members of non-governmental organizations, and dozens of teachers from all the regions of Querétaro and nearby states.
A second course is planned for July 28 - August 3, 1996, with the theme “Aprecio a las diferencias.” Knowledge of Spanish and interest in HRE are the only requirements. Cost is $100. For more information, contact Frans Limpens, HRE Coordinator, AI Querétaro, Mexico, Apartado Postal # 1-1117, Centro, C.P. 76001, Querétaro, QRO, Mexico; FAX (42) 16 45 23, tel. (42) 16 57 31, (42) 16 41 58, or (42) 16 46 63.
Pakistan: Amnesty International in Pakistan held a bike-a-thon in December 1995, to raise funds for a proposed Human Rights Institute in Baluchistan province. More than 100 cyclists participated in this event, covering 157 kilometers in 9 hours through the mountains. AI Pakistan welcomes donations to help establish the Institute. For more information, contact the University of Minnesota Human Rights Center at 612-626-0041.
The sun shines for us.
All around the earth.
It shines on death and it shines on birth.
We don’t know how it got there,
But we know it will always be
The light that will guide us when we cannot see.
Some people are less fortunate,
Never see the light of day.
Some were locked up and tortured,
For refusing to pray.
Other for reasons as silly as may be,
Now can’t live a normal life,
The sun they’ll never see.
What can you do?
How can you help?
Peacefully protest
With a group or by yourself.
What is the cause?
Why should I get involved?
To show love for humans,
And to prevent further loss.
The sun is nature’s gift,
Something that is guaranteed.
Across the seas,
Think of other people
And then you will see
That we need to join together,
A planet as a whole.
Fight for human rights
And give each other what we need.
We have inborn rights.
We have the right to be free.