MRG Training on Minority Rights and Advocacy
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From: MINELRES moderator <[email protected]>
Date: Wed, 11 Apr 2001 11:34:50 +0300 (EEST)
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Subject: MRG Training on Minority Rights and Advocacy
From: MINELRES moderator <[email protected]>
Original sender: Magdalena Syposz <[email protected]>
MRG Training on Minority Rights and Advocacy
Advocacy and Rights Training Seminar
Minority Rights Group International (MRG)
Budapest, Hungary - 20-25 June 2001
Minority Rights Group International (MRG), will conduct a five and a
half day training seminar for 30 minority rights activists from
Central and Southeast Europe. The objectives are to:
-increase knowledge of minority rights standards and mechanisms
operating through the UN, OSCE, and Council of Europe;
-increase participants' awareness of and ability to apply relevant and
effective strategies for lobbying these fora;
-increase knowledge of advocacy opportunities for minority rights
protection within the European Union and World Bank;
-explore how international standards and mechanisms can be useful for
addressing local problems and how local problems can be brought to the
various international fora; and
-engage in follow-up activities, with ongoing consultation support
from MRG for participants' advocacy initiatives, as requested.
Participants: The seminar is intended for people already engaged in
human or minority rights advocacy in their country and for people able
to train others in their community about minority rights and
international institutions. As this will not be an introductory level
programme, participants should have some knowledge of legal and
political systems (although law degrees are not required). Due to
resource constraints, English will be the language of the seminar.
However, we are considering providing Serbo-Croat interpretation, on
the basis of need. Participants will be selected on the basis of an
application form. We will endeavour to have at least 50 per cent of
participants from minority organisations and will aim to ensure gender
balance, and a balance between countries and communities represented.
Target Countries: Priority will be given to applicants from Albania,
Bosnia-Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Greece, Kosovo, Macedonia, and
Yugoslavia. Most participants will come from Southeast Europe;
however, to broaden the comparative framework, we would also like to
invite 4-5 participants in total from Hungary, Latvia, Romania and
Slovakia. So, interested persons from the latter countries are also
encouraged to apply.
The Programme: Each day of the seminar will focus on a different
topic, as outlined below. The training methodologies will consist of
some presentations, combined with a focus on practice. This will
include case studies, discussions and participants' sharing their
skills and experiences. There will also be exercises for enhancing
participants' technical skills, such as drafting interventions for
presentation at international meetings and alternative reports for
submission to treaty monitoring bodies. It is hoped that participants
and trainers will be a resource to each other in future work.
Participants will be invited to share specific problems they are
currently confronting and seek the group's advice for addressing them.
Wednesday, 20/6*
Arrival; Introductions and Overview: development of a minority rights
paradigm; mapping out the main international standards + institutions;
relevance of international law for domestic situations + the role of
advocacy (MRG staff)
Thursday, 21/6
United Nations: relevant instruments and procedures, enforcement
mechanisms and advocacy opportunities (Gudmundur Alfredsson, Director,
Raoul Wallenberg Institute)
Friday, 22/6
Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe and World Bank:
relevant instruments and procedures; enforcement mechanisms + advocacy
opportunities (Tunde Buzetzky, World Bank and OSCE trainer to be
established)
Saturday 23/6
Council of Europe: relevant instruments and procedures, enforcement
mechanisms and advocacy opportunities (Gaspar Biro and Alan Phillips,
Vice-Presidents, Advisory Committee on the Framework Convention for
the Protection of National Minorities)
Sunday, 24/6
European Union relevant departments + associated procedures and
Developing an Advocacy Campaign Strategy (Ron Korver, EC Delegation to
Hungary and Eva Orsos, Former Secretary of State of the Office for
Ethnic and National Minorities, Hungary; advisor to EU, and MRG staff)
Monday 25/6
Case Study: Hungary, Office of Ombudsman for National Minorities and
Evaluation and Follow-up Activities (Office of Ombudsman, and MRG
staff)
Resource Materials. Advocacy Trainer's Resource Pack, with practical
information for advocates, developed by MRG. It includes case studies
and materials which participants can then use to train others. In
addition, participants will be provided with a range of MRG and other
publications on minority rights that will contribute to the their
organisations' libraries.
The following is a preliminary list of the publications to be
provided:
* MRG thematic reports:
* New Approaches to Minority Protection
* Constitutional Law and Minorities
* Education Rights and Minorities
* Minorities and Autonomy in Western Europe
* Minority Rights: A Guide to United Nations Procedures and
Institutions
* The Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities:
A Guide for NGOs
* The International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of
Racial Discrimination - A Guide for NGOs
* Background studies:
* UN Declaration on (...) Minorities, P. Thornberry
* International Center for Ethnic Studies report, G. Biro
* Contemporary Legal Standards on Minority Rights, P. Thornberry
* The OSCE and the Issue of National Minorities, A. Bloed
* The Oslo Recommendations Regarding the Linguistic Rights of National
Minorities and Explanatory Note
* The Hague Recommendations Regarding the Education Rights of National
Minorities and Explanatory Note
* The Lund Recommendations Regarding the Effective Participation of
Minorities in Public Life
* Universal Minority Rights, Phillips and Rosas, Eds.
* A Compilation of Minority Rights Standards, Alfredsson and Melander
Other titles will also be included, based on recommendations from the
trainers.
Follow-Up Activities: Partners in the Southeast Europe: Diversity and
Democracy programme have stressed the importance of follow-up to the
regional training seminars at the local or national levels. In order
to make sure that some of the ideas from the regional training can be
taken forward, MRG has secured a small amount of money for follow-up
activities. Follow-up activities can include anything that is useful
for participants' organisations and communities and that aims to
increase understanding of minority rights and enhance intercommunity
cooperation, and contribute to the effective implementation of
minority rights standards. Projects could, for example, include
translation of materials, organising a training seminar, researching /
writing / publicising an alternative report, organising an informative
TV programme/debate. Follow-up activities will be discussed during
ARTS and the money will be allocated by MRG following the training on
the basis of application forms.
For application forms, please email to: [email protected]
Application deadline is 15th May 2001.
* The participation of some of the trainers has to be confirmed. The
timetable is subject to change, based on trainer availability.
Advocacy and Rights Training Seminar (ARTS) is part of MRG's three
year programme to promote minority rights and intercommunity
cooperation in Southeast Europe. For more information about Advocacy
and Rights Training Seminar or MRG's work in general, please contact
Anna-M�ria B�r�, Central and Eastern Europe Project Manager, on tel.
+36.1.391.5734, fax + 36.1.391.57.45, email [email protected] or
Magdalena Syposz, Europe/Central Asia Programme Coordinator, on tel.
+44.20.7978.9498 ext. 211, fax +44.20.7738.6265, email
[email protected] Please note that Anna-M�ria will be out
of the office from 3-20 May,
so please contact Magdalena only during this time.
See also WWW.minorityrights.org
Southeast Europe: Diversity and Democracy programme is financially
supported by Charles Stewart Mott Foundation, UK Department for
International Development - Know How Fund and the European Commission.
ARTS is also financially supported by Constitutional and Legal Policy
Institute of the Open Society Institute.
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