 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
| |
 |
 |
 |
Fulbright Association
1100 G Street, N.W.
Suite 525
Washington, D.C. 20005
Phone: (202) 347-5543
Fax: (202) 347-6540 |
|
 |
Fulbright Prize Award Donated to UN Decade
for Human Rights Education |
| |
| In accepting the J. William Fulbright Prize for International Understanding,
United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Mary Robinson announced that
she would donate the $50,000 prize award to the United Nations Decade for Human
Rights Education. The initiative seeks the involvement of governments, national
institutions, non-governmental organizations, professional associations,
individuals, and all sectors of civil society in building a global partnership
for human rights through education, training, and public information. The
Decade was proclaimed by the United Nations in December 1994, in response to a
suggestion made at the World Conference on Human Rights in Geneva the previous
year. As high commissioner for human rights, Mrs. Robinson is responsible for
overseeing the activities of the Decade, which began in 1995 and will continue
through 2004. |
| The Plan of Action developed for the Decade states five objectives: assessment
of needs and formulation of strategies; building and strengthening human rights
education programs; developing educational material; strengthening the mass
media; and global dissemination of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
Various activities have been undertaken in support of these objectives. The
Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) is developing manuals
for training in international human rights standards aimed at specific groups,
such as prison officials, teachers, human rights monitors, lawyers, and judges.
A booklet for teachers has already been published, containing practical
suggestions for teaching primary and secondary school students about human
rights. Activities include role-play and problem-solving exercises designed to
boost self-esteem and awareness of the rights of others. |
| The United Nations has also created guidelines for national plans of action, to
stimulate involvement by governments and other interested organizations in the
implementation of the Decade’s objectives. Tunisia, for example, has founded a
national commission for human rights education and a human rights center for
research, documentation, and publication. Other Tunisian initiatives include
the establishment of human rights chairs in law schools, implementation of human
rights training for teachers and law enforcement officials, awarding of an
annual human rights prize, and strengthening civic education in schools.
The OHCHR encourages human rights activities by individuals and organizations at
the local level through a project known as Assisting Communities Together (ACT).
The ACT Project awards a limited number of grants of up to US$2,000 each, in
support of efforts to strengthen the promotion and protection of human rights in
local communities. In her Fulbright Prize address, Mrs. Robinson shared two
examples of how ACT grants are being used.
|
| The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which has to date been translated
into over 270 of the world’s languages, is available in translation on OHCHR’s
web site at http://www.unhchr.ch/. Several pictorial versions of the
declaration and versions for children have also been published.
In a foreword to an OHCHR publication on the Decade, Mrs. Robinson wrote, “…I
firmly believe in the fundamental role of human rights education in empowering
individuals to defend their rights and those of others. This empowerment can
also make a critical contribution to the prevention of human rights violations. |
| This theme of prevention, often stressed by Mrs. Robinson, echoes Senator
Fulbright’s belief that a program of international educational exchange could
prevent conflict by promoting international understanding. It is more than
fitting, therefore, that the Fulbright Prize award be used to support the work
of the United Nations in the field of human rights education. |
| See also: |
|
|
|
