By Brendan Sweeney
For the first time, high-level politicians and human rights professionals from Europe and the Arab world gathered together to discuss how to protect human rights while continuing to combat terrorism. The conference, which took place in the Jordanian capital, Amman, on 18-19 April, was organized jointly by the National Center for Human Rights of Jordan (NCHR) and the Danish Institute for Human Rights (DIHR), two organizations which have been collaborating on the Joint Arab European Human Rights Dialogue for a number of years.
The conference delegates - including former UN Secretary General, Boutros Boutros-Ghali, Chief of the UN Human Rights Office in Iraq, Gianni Magazzeni, and Ahmad Obeidat, the former Jordanian Prime Minister - discussed how to merge the political dimension of Arab-European relations with international human rights issues. The participants also highlighted the role of the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) in combating terrorism, and the impact of anti-terrorism legislation on basic human rights such as the right of assembly, the right to a fair trial and protection from discrimination.
Attending the conference were representatives from a broad range of Arabic and European National Human Rights Institutions (NHRIs) as well as Morten Kjærum, the Director of DIHR. Dr Boutros-Ghali participated in his capacity as chairman of the National Council for Human Rights in Egypt, while Ahmad Obeidat, as chairman of NCHR, represented its Jordanian counterpart.
The UN Deputy High Commissioner for Human Rights, Ms Kyung-wha Kang, praised the initiative when attending the 20th Anniversary of DIHR on 3 May, stating that:
"A recent good example of inter-region cooperation is the Joint Arab European Human Rights Dialogue, organized by the Jordanian Center for Human Rights and the Danish Institute for Human Rights...It represented a valuable opportunity for cooperation among NIs from different regions of the world which we support and would like to see expanded to other regions as well. The regional and international networking of NIs represents a uniquely powerful tool for the advancement of human rights globally, regionally and nationally."
The conference concluded by backing up the international bill of rights and other human rights instruments, emphasizing that states are obliged to ensure that anti-terrorist measures comply with human rights standards, and stressing the importance of National Human Rights Institutes in advising governments and monitoring anti-terrorist legislation. The delegates also urged governments, politicians and the media not to resort to discriminatory ethnic stereotypes in their battle against terrorism.
In addition, the delegates recommended the establishment of an Arab-Euro working group, consisting of representatives from two Arab and two European National Human Rights Institutes. These working groups would be able to enter into dialogue with governments and politicians as well as engage with professionals employed in the police force, intelligence services, the courts, civil society and the media.
The full text of the conference’s conclusions and recommendations can be found here (PDF)
For further information please contact:
Morten Kjærum 40 32 52 99
Birgit Lindsnæs 32 69 88 59 (direct)
