Geneva (Switzerland), June/July 2024 | Tasked with the worldwide protection and promotion of human rights, the Human Rights Council (HRC) is a key intergovernmental body within the United Nations system. It comprises 47 States elected by the General Assembly and its core functions include conducting Universal Periodic Reviews to assess human rights practices of UN Member States, responding to violations, and advocating for the integration of human rights mechanisms worldwide. This past month, OIDEL attended the 56th regular session of the Human Rights Council, which took place from the 18th of June and the 12th of July at the Palais des Nations in Geneva, Switzerland.
Special Rapporteur on the Right to Education
One of the essential elements of the Human Rights Council’s work is the appointment of Special Rapporteurs, or independent experts who report on specific human rights issues or issues in specific countries. The position of the UN special Rapporteur on the Right to Education is currently held by Farida Shaheed, whose mandate involves evaluating and informing on the global realization of the right to education, identifying obstacles, and offering recommendations to enhance access, quality, and equity in education. The Special Rapporteur undertakes country visits, engages with governments and civil society, and submits findings and recommendations to the Human Rights Council and the General Assembly, aiming to grant the right to education for all.
On the 25th of June 2024, Farida Shaheed presented her latest report to the Human Rights Council on Academic Freedom. The report details present threats to this freedom, such as surveillance mechanisms, pressure from armed forces or funding imbalances and suggests
solutions including the need for governments to define educational goals without dictating specific teaching materials. While she refers to the intersection of academic freedom with the right to education, the right to freedom of expression, and the right to access scientific knowledge, the Special Rapporteur on the Right to Education advocates for recognizing academic freedom as an autonomous human right that ought to be more carefully protected.
More on the report: https://oidel.wordpress.com/2024/07/01/academic-freedom-report-of-the-un-specialrapporteur-on-the-right-to-education/
Following the report presentation, OIDEL organized a private meeting with Farida Shaheed and the NGO Platform on the Right to Education to discuss how civil society can best support her mandate. The discussion centered around her latest report on Academic Freedom, and gave insights into her future projects, including plans for specific country visits and her next report on Artificial Intelligence which will be presented to the General Assembly in New York.
When discussing NGO support for her mandate, the Special Rapporteur on the Right to Education underlined the importance of youth engagement for change to take place not just in theory but in action. She equally asked for dissemination of the principles for the implementation of the right to academic freedom and participation in side events organized by the mandate and called for more concrete submissions to the drafting of her reports, link to be found at: https://www.ohchr.org/en/special-procedures/sr-education/
OIDEL also actively participated in two side events organized by UNESCO and the Special Rapporteur on the Right to Education, one on Academic Freedom and the other on right to early childhood education. While the first one focused on the content of her report, the second made the point that children accessing early childhood education had better and higher lifetime earnings, were better included in society and showed better learning later on in life.
Other Side Events and Resolutions
OIDEL closely followed both resolutions discussion related to educational matters, the first on the optional protocol on the Convention of the Rights of the Child and the second on safety of children in the digital context. Among other things, we advocated for the inclusion of parents as key stakeholders in the education of children. In addition, we contributed to and participated in a Side Event organized by the International Office of Catholic Education (OIDEC) titled “Paralysis in the Education System: The Case of Haiti.” This event aimed to highlight and address the deteriorating educational situation in Haiti, exacerbated by the security crisis and the proliferation of armed groups.