Forums

Inaugural session of the Forum on Minority Issues

Date

15 - 16 December 2008

LOCATION

Palais des Nations in Geneva

THEME

Minorities and the right to education

The inaugural session of the Forum took place on 15 and 16 December 2008 at the Palais des Nations in Geneva. The thematic focus of this first session of the Forum was “Minorities and the Right to Education”. The Forum was opened by the President of the Human Rights Council, Ambassador Martin Ihoeghian Uhomoibhi, and opening remarks were made by the High Commissioner for Human Rights, Navi Pillay, the Independent Expert on Minority Issues, Ms. Gay McDougall, and the Chairperson of the Forum, Ms. Viktoria Mohacsi.

As required in resolution 6/15, the Forum achieved the active participation of representatives of Member States, United Nations mechanisms, bodies and specialized agencies, funds and programmes, intergovernmental organizations, regional organizations and mechanisms in the field of human rights, national human rights institutions and other relevant national bodies, academics and experts on minority issues, and NGOs. Over 370 individuals were accredited from all categories to participate in the Forum, including delegates from over 40 States and representatives of some 90 NGOs.

The views of experts and participants from minority communities were given a particularly high priority within the proceedings of the Forum. Several experts from each region were identified on the basis of criteria including their belonging to a minority group and their professional expertise in the field of education, particularly as it interfaces with the rights and experiences of minorities.

On the basis of the provisions of resolution 6/15 and in the wider context of promoting implementation of the Declaration in all regions, the focus of discussions was broadly based around three core elements: identification of challenges and problems facing minorities and States; identification of good practices in relation to minorities and education; and consideration of opportunities, initiatives and solutions. A set of draft recommendations was prepared and circulated prior to the Forum. The draft recommendations were developed in collaboration with Patrick Thornberry. The draft further benefited from information, surveys and studies received by the independent expert. Participants were invited to target their contributions towards developing, improving and refining the draft as the subsequent outcome recommendations document.

Pursuant to resolution 6/15, a summary of the discussions at the Forum was prepared by the Chairperson, and recommendations by the Forum were included in the Independent Expert’s annual report to the Human Rights Council’s 10th session in March 2009. Both the Chairperson’ summary and the Forum’s recommendations are posted on the Forum’s web site.

Outcome documents

Further information

Side events

Oral statements

Item I – Introduction

Item II – International and Regional Human Rights Frameworks and Core Principles

Item III – Essential Requirements for an Effective Education Strategy

Invited experts

Participants

Item IV – Equal Access to Quality Education for Minorities

Invited experts

  • Mr. John Payton, President and Director-Counsel, National Association for the Advancement of Coloured People – Legal Defense Fund (NAACP - LDF) – USA
  • Ms. Eliane Cavalleiro, Coordinator, Unit on Diversity and Educational Inclusion of the Secretariat of Continuing Education, Literacy and Diversity at the Ministry of Education - Brazil
  • Mr. Nadir Redzepi, Board Member, Roma Education Fund – Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia
  • Ms. Anastasia Crickley, Personal Representative of the Chairman-in-Office on Combating Racism, Xenophobia and Discrimination, OSCE
  • Mr. Biram Dah Abeid, Lawyer and researcher, Save Slave Organisation - Mauritania
  • Ms. Sawsan Zaher, Attorney, Adalah – the Legal Centre for Arab Minority Rights in Israel – Israel
  • Mr. Peter Hyll-Larsen, Coordinator, Right to Education Project, Action Aid International – UK
  • Mr. Charles Masabo, Member of the Senate and Member of the Executive Committee of the organisation “Unissons-nous pour la promotion des Batwa – UNIPROBA” – Burundi
  • Ms. Helen Pinnock, Education Advisor, Save the Children – UK
  • Ms. Doris Angst, Director, Federal Commission Against Racism (FCR) – Switzerland

Participants

  • Ms. Barbara Wilson, Member of the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights
  • Mr. Prasad Kariyawasam, Member of the Committee on Migrant Workers

Item V – The Learning Environment and School Governance

Invited experts

  • Mr. Carlos de la Torre, Chair, Political Studies and Director of the Ph.D. Programme in Social Sciences, Latin American Faculty for Social Sciences FLACSO - Ecuador
  • Ms. Maisie Chin, Director, Community Asset Development Redefining Education (CADRE) - USA
  • Ms. Meghna Guhathakurta, Executive Director, Research Initiatives – Bangladesh
  • Mr. Dennis Parker, Director, Racial Justice Programme, American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) - USA
  • Ms. Bamo Ayi, Professor, Central University of Nationalities, Beijing - China
  • Ms. Anna Frangoudaki, University of Athens, Center of Intercultural Research and Pedagogic Intervention – Greece
  • Ms. Thalia Dragonas, Member of the Parliament, Coordinator of the Project on Muslim Minority in Thrace - Greece

Participants

Item VI – The Relationship between De-Segregation Strategies, Cultural Autonomy and Integration
 in the Quest for Social Cohesion

Invited experts

Participants

Item VII – The Content and Delivery of the Curriculum

Invited experts

  • Mr. Bernard Gifford, Professor and Distinguished Resident Fellow, Southern Education Foundation – USA
  • Ms. Mucha Shim Quiling Arquiza, Secretary-General, Qalam, Asian Muslim Action Muslim Network in the Philippines (AMANPHIL) – Philippines
  • Mr. Marius Taba, Monitoring and Evaluation Officer, Roma Education Fund - Hungary
  • Mr. Lal Perera, Director-General, National Institute of Education – Sri Lanka
  • Mr. Leonardo Reales, Coordinator International Human Right Committee, Afro-Colombian National Movement CIMARRON – Colombia / USA
  • Ms. Pamela MacKenzie, Education consultant, International Network for Development, India and Bangladesh – UK

Participants

Item VIII – Concluding Remarks

  • Ms. Gay McGougall, Independent Expert on Minority Issues
  • Ms. Anna Frangoudaki, University of Athens, Center of Intercultural Research and Pedagogic Intervention – Greece
  • Ms. Sawsan Zaher, Attorney, Adalah – the Legal Centre for Arab Minority Rights in Israel – Israel
  • Mr. Kishore Singh, Senior Programme Specialist for the right to education, UNESCO
  • Mr. Yusuf Sayed, Senior Researcher, University of Sussex - UK
    Human Sciences Research Council - South Africa
  • Ms. Bamo Ayi, Professor, Central University of Nationalities, Beijing - China
  • Mr. Biram Dah Abeid, Lawyer and researcher, Save Slave Organisation - Mauritania
  • Mr. Leonardo Reales, Coordinator International Human Right Committee, Afro-Colombian National Movement CIMARRON – Colombia / USA
  • Mr. Tahir Alam, Education Policy and Community Engagement Advisor for the Muslim Council of Britain – UK
  • Ms. Erica Daes, Professor, Expert on Minority Issues
  • Mr. Patrick Thornberry, Rapporteur
  • Member of the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination
  • Mr. Vernor Muñoz Villalobos, Special Rapporteur on the right to education
  • Ms. Viktória Mohácsi, Chairperson of the Forum on Minority Issues
  • Ms. Gay McGougall, Independent Expert on Minority Issues

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