BCU to train human rights professionals with Geneva hub

Birmingham City University's Centre for Human Rights will help train human rights professionals from around the world after signing an agreement with the Geneva Human Rights Hub.

The centre has signed a memorandum of understanding with the hub, and its three directors have been invited to design and deliver training in Geneva.

What the course covers

The course, Implementing Human Rights: Engaging with UN Mechanisms at the National Level, looks at how the different parts of the United Nations human rights system work. It covers treaty bodies, which monitor how countries keep their human rights promises, special procedures such as independent experts, fact-finding missions and the Universal Periodic Review, in which every UN member state has its record examined by others.

The aim is to help professionals understand how these international processes connect with what happens in their own countries.

Who is involved

The training will be led by Professor Amna Nazir, Professor in International Human Rights Law, Dr Alice Storey and Professor Jon Yorke, who direct BCU's Centre for Human Rights.

"Being invited to contribute to its professional training programme in Geneva is an important recognition of the Centre's expertise," Professor Nazir said.

A place for a Birmingham researcher

As part of the agreement, the Geneva Human Rights Hub will offer one fee-waived place on the course to a PhD researcher from BCU's Department of Law.

About the centre

BCU's Centre for Human Rights is based at the university's City Centre Campus. Its staff and students have worked on issues including the death penalty around the world, and they regularly contribute evidence to UN bodies and international organisations.

Why Geneva

Geneva is home to the UN Human Rights Council and the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, making it a centre for international human rights work.