Welcome!

Dear friends,

We are glad to inform you that after our pleasant experience with the Italian blog, the IIMA Human Rights Office has decided to open a new blog in English.

On this blog, you may follow our main activities with the United Nations and its mechanisms for the protection and promotion of human rights, as well as news from the UN bodies and IIMA offices in different countries related to the right to education.

Do you want to collaborate with us? You can apply for an internship at the IIMA Human Rights Office. Click here!

Have a great time reading!

29.10.15

The Palestine President speaks to the Human Rights Council

On October 28, 2015 the office assisted to the speech of Mahmoud Abbas, President of Palestine, at Palais de Nations during a special session of the Human Rights Council. The speech was carried out two weeks after the Palestinian flag was raised at the United Nations in Geneva.
Mr. Abbas took the opportunity to thank the members of the Council for all their efforts to defend Palestine’s human rights and for the adoption of important resolutions that unveil the systematic violations of human rights in the occupied territories, the longest occupation in modern times.
For 70 years, Palestinians have been suffering the horrors committed against them by Israel and they are tired of Israel’s bloodshed. The President said, they will spare no efforts to protect, defend, and enable the Palestinian people to live in peace in their own land. Peace is still within reach and Palestine is stretching out for it.
He pleaded the Council to help Palestine and avoid pushing its people into further desperation, because there is nothing worse than despair and distrust of the present and the future. He asked the Council to be brethren to Palestine and let justice, peace and harmony prevail in its land; to allow children to dream of a life without violence and the young to have an education and a future to look forward to.o.

23.10.15

On October 24 the world will be painted blue


The 24th of October 2015 the world will be hit by a blue wave reaching all main monuments,
churches, archeological sites of almost 200 countries: blue, the official color of the United Nations that day celebrate its 70th birth anniversary.

The statue of the Christ the Redeemer in Rio de Janeiro, the Eiffel Tower in Paris, the Pisa Tower, the Pyramids in Egypt, the Empire State Building in New York, the Hermitage Museum in Russia, all these monuments will remind us that 70 years ago, on that date, the Charter of the United Nations entered into force establishing the birth of this international organization created to maintain peace and international security, to peacefully solve conflicts and to promote the respect for human rights and sustainable development.

14.10.15

VIDES European seminar “Volunteering changes the reality or the reality changes volunteering? An open horizon.”

This Saturday we had the pleasure to assist to the VIDES European seminar “Volunteering changes the reality or the reality changes volunteering? An open horizon.” together with several Salesian representatives from all over the world and VIDES ex-volunteers.

The speakers were Guido Barbera, president of VIDES International, Eugenio Melandri, Italian activist and politician, European parliamentarian, Co-founder of different associations and director of the magazine ”Solidarietá Internazionale”, Fabio Attard, Salesian’s international responsible of Youth Ministry, Sr. MariaGrazia Caputo, founder of VIDES and main representative to the UN at the IIMA Human Rigths Office in Geneva, Sr. Runita Borja, Councilor for Youth Ministry and four VIDES ex-volunteers.

11.10.15

CULTURAL RIGHTS AND VULNERABLE GROUPS

On Tuesday, September 29, 2015 the office assisted to the “Cultural Rights and Vulnerable Groups” side event held by the UNESCO Basque Country Centre, UNESCO Etxea, and the International Catholic Centre of Geneva (CCIG).
The panel consisted of Mylène Bidault. Human Rights Officer at the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), Gemma Carbó, Director of the UNESCO Chair in Cultural Policies and Cooperation at the University of Girona and Beatriz Barreiro, Professor of Public International Law and International Relations at the Rey Juan Carlos University.

7.10.15

Oral statetment co-sponsored by VIDES



On the occasion of the 30th Session of Human Rights Council, IIMA addressed once again the topic of Youth Empowerment, by delivering an oral statement co-sponsored by VIDES.


The human rights office of IIMA and VIDES urged the  Council to address major challenges youth are facing in regards to the full enjoyment of their rights. The statement highlighted the importance of  young people as an instrument in fostering constructive dialog for the well being of present and future generations.

Accordingly, IIMA called on all Member States to take concrete actions at local and international levels in order to: (i) consider the UPR as an opportunity to share the best practices they have developed to address this problem; (ii) create strong partnership with civil society actors to develop adequate awareness and to disseminate relevant information to empower youth.