Youth Human Rights Movement – Sweden

World Day against Death Penalty. For the first time held in 2003 on initiative from the World Coalition Against the Death Penalty.

From: YHRM Human Right Calendar

International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women. On this day in 1961, on orders of Dominican ruler Rafael Trujillo, three Mirabal sisters, political activists in the Dominican Republic, were brutally assassinated.

From YHRM Human Rights Calendar

International Student Day. On this day in 1939, a student demonstration in Prague, occupied by German forces, was violently suppressed.

From: YHRM Human Rights Calendar

International Day for Tolerance, declared in 1995 by UNESCO.

From: YHRM Human Rights Calendar

YHRM’s cooperation with the Council of Europe is raised to a new level

In the beginning of November the Youth Human Rights Movement received official notification that from January 2009 onwards it will enjoy participatory status with the Council of Europe. Such a decision was taken by the NGO Unit of the organization after reviewing the application submitted by the Movement in April 2008.

Participatory status is granted to international NGOs which “are particularly representative in the field(s) of their competence at European level, and which through their work are capable of supporting the achievement of closer unity as stated in Article 1 of the Statute of the Council of Europe, by contributing to its activities and by publicising its work among European citizens”. This status gives organisation’s representatives right to be involved in the definition of Council of Europe policies, programmes and concrete actions jointly with the bodies of the Committee of Ministers, to be present at the sessions of the Parliamentary Assembly and the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities and to interact with the other CoE institutions. All the organizations enjoying participatory status form the INGO Conference of the Council of Europe (http://www.coe.int/t/e/NGO/Public).

At present about 400 international non-governmental organizations enjoy participatory status. However, only 6 NGOs having their headquarters in Russia until now enjoyed such a status: International “Memorial” society, Foundation of Political and Law Research “Interlegal”, Federation for Peace and Conciliation, Russian Peace Foundation, “Social Ecology” Foundation and Association “Nature and Creativity”.

YHRM’s cooperation with the Council of Europe has rather a long history. In 2000 – 2002 the Movement’s leader Andrey Yurov was a member of the Advisory Council on Youth of the Council of Europe. Since 2001 the Movement’s representatives took an active part in developing the CoE Youth Human Rights Education programme, creating the “COMPASS” manual, joined the trainers’ pool and on a regular basis act as trainers and experts at events organized by the Council of Europe. Its representatives also participated in the work of the European Steering Group of the “All Different – All Equal” campaign and drafting the European Convention on Human Rights Education.

But now a new page is opened in the relations between the YHRM and the Council of Europe, they are raised to a different, higher level. Granting participatory status to the Movement is in fact an acknowledgement of its achievements and deserts in promoting fundamental values of the Council of Europe – Democracy, Human Rights and Rule of Law – and provides it with greater opportunities for doing this. It is especially important today, when the organization experiences a hard period of devaluation of these principles and needs support from powerful NGOs in order to retain and strengthen its unique role and significance.

YHRM International service

int@yhrm.org

Statement of the Ombudsman of the Russian Federation

The Ombudsman of the Russian Federation Vladimir Lukin let out the statement “On the right of citizens to publicity of executing judicial powers”.

According to Lukin, “the problem of publicity and openness of legal proceedings in the present situation of loss of trust of the population to justice is one of the most actual ones in a state governed by the rule of law… Publicity of legal proceedings renders useful educational and precautionary influence on people at a hall of judicial session, provides strengthening of legality and helps to prevent breach of the law”.

The statement concludes with the words: “Fairness and impartiality of justice are inconceivable without publicity”.

Full text of the statement is available at: http://ombudsman.gov.ru/doc/vistup11/z13_11_08.shtml (in Russian).

International Day against Fascism and Anti-Semitism. On this day in 1938, a nation-wide attack on Jews, called Night of Broken Glass (Kristallnacht or Pogromnacht), broke out in Germany and Austria. Extreme violence towards Jews portended the events of the Holocaust.

From: YHRM Human Rights Calender

This Sunday people in St Petersburg will take to the streets for the fifth consecutive year running to demonstrate against racism in Russia. Members of Amnesty International from all over the world are sending messages of solidarity to the organisers of the ”March Against Hatred”.

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