religious discrimination

Language and Minority Rights: A Dialogue Forum with the Special Rapporteur on Minority Issues

The United Nations Charter (Article 1) and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (Article 2) affirm the right to non-discrimination based on language while the Declaration on the Rights of Persons Belonging to National or Ethnic, Religious and Linguistic Minorities (Article 2) asserts that persons belonging to minorities have the right to “use their own language, in private and in public, freely and without interference or any form of discrimination.”  Yet linguistic minorities throughout the world continue to experience challenges to their language rights as well as inequitable access to other civil and human rights.

In this session, current Special Rapporteur on Minority Issues Fernand de Varennes will discuss the intersection of language and minority rights, including implementational challenges and possibilities. Representatives of NGOs, Secretariat and UN agency staff, colleagues from Member States, scholars, and others interested in linguistic minority rights are invited to participate in an open dialogue with the Special Rapporteur.

Register here by November 27!

About the Special Rapporteur:

Professor Fernand de Varennes, a globally recognized expert on linguistic and human rights, has served as the Special Rapporteur on Minority Issues since 2017 Reporting to the Human Rights Council and to the General Assembly, the Special Rapporteur promotes the implementation of the Declaration on the Rights of Persons Belonging to National or Ethnic, Religious and Linguistic Minorities and guides the work of the Forum on Minority Issues, among other responsibilities.

Programme:

  • 8:45 – 9:00am  Sign In
  • 9:00 – 9:05am  Introduction – Francis M. Hult, Chair, Committee on Language and Languages
  • 9:05 – 9:35am  Fernand de Varennes, Special Rapporteur on Minority Issues
  • 9:35 – 9:55am  Open Dialogue
  • 9:55 – 10:00am  Closing Remarks – Humphrey Tonkin, Vice-Chair, Committee on Language and Languages

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CoNGO Notes: The NGO Committee on Language and Languages is a Substantive Committee of the Conference of NGOs in Consultative Relationship with the United Nations. For more information, please email the chair at fmhult@umbc.edu. Likewise, for more information on the NGO Committee on Education, Learning, and Literacy, please visit facebook.com/NGOCELLatUN. For more information on the NGO Committee on Social Development, please visit ngosocdev.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, please visit un-ngocrip.net. 

NGO Committee on Freedom of Religion or Belief/NY Annual General Meeting

Dear Friends,

The NGO Committee on FoRB (NY) will host its Annual General Meeting at the Baha’i Center (866 United Nations Plaza #120) on Wednesday, October 12, from 1:15 – 2:30pm (EDT). A light lunch will be provided. (For those unable to attend in person, we will have a Zoom option for virtual attendance.)

Annual General Meeting:

The bureau will provide a brief overview of recent developments in the international FoRB space. We will also discuss ideas for upcoming events. We will conclude by holding our biannual bureau elections. Attached please find the proposed slate for the election. 

Please RSVP for the Annual General Meeting at info@unforb.org by Monday, October 10, 2022.

A Zoom link will be sent out to those who have RSVP’d for virtual attendance approximately an hour prior to the start of the event.

For more information on the Committee, please visit our website: unforb.org.

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CoNGO Notes: The NGO Committee on Freedom of Religion or Belief is a Substantive Committee of the Conference of NGOs in Consultative Relationship with the United Nations. Likewise, for more information on the NGO Committee on Spirituality, Values, and Global Concerns/NY, please visit csvgc-ny.org. For more information on the Committee of Religious NGOs at the United Nations, please visit rngos.wordpress.com. For more information on the NGO Committee on Social Development, please visit ngosocdev.org. 

International Day of Commemoration in memory of the victims of the Holocaust

Dear Colleague,

I am pleased to invite you to attend to the observance of the International Day of Commemoration in memory of the victims of the Holocaust on Thursday, 27 January 2022 at 12 noon in Room XX the Palais des Nations, in accordance with General Assembly resolution 60/7 of 2005. English and French interpretation will be provided. This year, due to COVID-19, the ceremony will be exceptionally organized in a hybrid format, with a limited presence in the room.

Registration is now open for this commemoration under this link https://indico.un.org/event/37258/.

Once the seating capacity is reached, the registration for in-person participation will be closed and confirmation emails will be sent. Participation in person will be possible upon presentation of the confirmation e-mail only. The event will be webcast live on the UN Web TV platform http://webtv.un.org/ as well as on Facebook (@UNGeneva) to allow interested participants to attend the event virtually. The provisional programme of the commemoration is attached. I look forward to your participation in this ceremony.

Yours sincerely,

Tatiana Valovaya

NGO Liaison Unit, Political Affairs and Partnerships Section
Office of the Director-General, United Nations Office at Geneva
Palais des Nations

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CoNGO Notes: For more information on the NGO Committee on Security, Peace, and Disarmament, please visit ngocdps.wordpress.com. For more information on the NGO Committee on Human Rights, please email the co-chairs at bobbinassar@yahoo.com or bknotts@uua.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Social Development, please visit ngosocdev.org. 

Holocaust Education in Crisis? Challenges and Responses

To mark the anniversary of the November 1938 Pogrom, The Holocaust and the United Nations Outreach Programme and UNESCO are hosting an online discussion Holocaust education in crisis? Challenges and responses to examine the implications of recent surveys about Holocaust education and possible responses to the challenges and opportunities they raise.
Discussions about Holocaust education usually focus on three main questions: what should be taught, how should it be taught, and to what end? Recent surveys have shown that historical knowledge of the Holocaust is in decline, while related dis- and misinformation is on the rise. Simultaneously, research suggests a connection between students’ positive attitudes towards human rights and activism and their exposure to Holocaust education. Our diverse expert panel considers the implications of this research for their field.
Speakers:

Gretchen Skidmore, Director of Education Initiatives, U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum, United States

Debórah Dwork, Founding Director, The Center for the Study of the Holocaust, Genocide, and Crimes Against Humanity, Ralph Bunche Institute for International Studies, The Graduate Center – CUNY, United States

Stuart Foster, Executive Director of the Center for Holocaust Education, University College London, United Kingdom

Elke Gryglewski, Head of the Educational Department, Memorial and Educational Site House of the Wannsee Conference, Germany

Yael Siman, Associate Professor at the Department of Social and Political Science, Iberoamericana University, Mexico

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CoNGO Notes: For more information on the Committee of Religious NGOs at the United Nations, please visit rngos.wordpress.com. For more information on the NGO Committee on Freedom of Religion or Belief, please visit unforb.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Spirituality, Values, and Global Concerns-NY, please visit csvgc-ny.org. For more information on the Decolonization Alliance, please email President Bautista at lbautista@umcjustice.org. 

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