Latest
The rights of the Dalits in India
In India, Dalits are subject to flagrant violations of human rights and dignity. Last week at “Wednesday Dialogue” in the Rafto Human Rights House, the situation of Dalit was in centre of discussion. Dag Erik Berg from the University of Bergen was invited to talk about the human rights situation of Dalits in India. (15-FEB-2004)
International war children survey in the making
The War and Children Identity Project, a member of the Bergen Human Rights House, is
currently collecting new and updated information about the situation of war children all over
the world. More accurate information will be added to previously published reports, and a
database for comparative studies of the situation worldwide will be established. (09-FEB-04)
Water – a fundamental human right
Norwegian Church Aid, whose Bergen office has just moved into Raftohuset, will carry out their
annual information and fundraising campaign on March 23rd. This year, the focus will be on
the fundamental right to water. Read what Jannike Hachvaag Grieg, the local project co-
ordinator, has to tell about it. (28-JAN-04)
Mehdi Zana visits the Rafto Foundation
Mehdi Zana, for 40 years among the most prominent writers, politicians and spokespersons
for the Kurds, recently visited the Human Rights House in Bergen. Zana, the husband of the
Kurdish MP and Rafto Prize Laureate of 1994 Leyla Zana, is widely respected for his
advocacy for a non-violent path to Kurdish independence and respect for his people´s cultural
rights. (13-JAN-04)
Drug abusers’ rights and dignity
From January 1st 2004, Norway has ratified a new law concerning the treatment of drug
abusers. The new law entitles drug abusers to ordinary patients´ rights, equal to those of any
other patients. Egil Rafto House Foundation will focus upon the treatment of drug abusers
from a human rights perspective. (28-Dec-03)
Human rights observers educated in Bergen
Last autumn, the Department of comparative colitics at the University of Bergen and the Rafto House Foundation co-taught their course in human rights observation. Tanja Clifford, regional coordinator and human rights education officer for Amnesty International Norway sat through all three parts of the course; human rights in a historical perspective, human rights and good governance, and human rights and realpolitik. (28-DEC-03)
First International War Children Conference to be held in Canada
WCIP, the War and Children Identity Project, based at the Egil Rafto Human Rights House, works to secure war children´s right to nationality and identity. These are children whose parents belong on opposite sides or who face stigmatisation for reasons related to the situation under which they were conceived. WCIP will give a presentation at the first ever conference on such children, to take place in Montreal, Canada mid-March. (28-DEC-03)
Nobel Peace Prize winner launches book
While in Oslo this week to accept the Nobel Peace Prize, Shirin Ebadi will launch her book ´Democracy, Human Rights and Islam in Modern Islamic Republic of Iran. Psychological, Social and Cultural Perspectives´. The book, a critical analysis of contemporary Islamic Republic of Iran focussing on family issues, education and the economy, has been written and edited in co-operation with the Rafto Foundation, one of the organisations at the Human Rights House in Bergen. (8-DEC-03)
The Rafto Prize 2003
The Professor Thorolf Rafto Memorial Prize for 2003 is awarded to the Eritrean human rights activist Paulos Tesfagiorgis. For more than 20 years, Paulos has worked for the empowerment of the people of State of Eritrea, the creation of opportunities for genuine democratic participation, and the widening of space for human rights. (26-SEPT-03)