– Human Rights Houses can facilitate protection, said Norwegian MP Thorbørn Jagland, who spoke at the Opening of the HRH Anniversary Conference 13 October. 
Thorbjørn Jagland is the Head of the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs of the Norwegian Parliament. Jagland emphasized the importance of networks: – Attack on one of them is an attack on all. It is easier to do away with one of them than to do away with all, he said.
– Courage and stamina
Addressing the human rights defenders present, Mr Jagland said he appreciate their “courage and stamina to move the world in the right direction. ” He emphasized that human rights is an integral part of development policy, and said he was pleased with the EU guidelines on human rights defenders.
Government support to human rights houses
Norway supports the establishment of Human Rights Houses worldwide, and has a solid backing from the Norwegian Parliament. In its report no 21 to theNorwegian Parliament (the Governments Plan of Action on Human Rights from 1999), the government says the following about supporting the establishment of human rights houses:
“The Government wishes to contribute to the establishment of new Human Rights Houses and strengthening of the network between these centres. These efforts have thus far proved effective and action-oriented. Through improved flow of information, enhancement of local expertise and reinforcement of civil society, the impact could be substantial and with a substantial ripple effect. The Norwegian authorities see it as positive that minor actors are gathered under the same roof as this achieves greater cost-effectiveness and enhanced professionalism of partners. On the other hand, the danger of being subject to surveillance and exposed to assaults in some countries when human rights groups are concentrated in the same premises, should not be overlooked.”
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