Djerba, Tunisia, 23-28 October 2021
A workshop on parallel reporting for the UN Committee on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights (CESCR) was launched on 23 October 2021, on the Tunisian island of Djerba as part of a cooperation program between No Peace Without Justice (NPWJ), the Libyan Bar Association and the General League for the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. The workshop is part of a comprehensive program implemented with the Ministry of Justice aiming at strengthening the capacity of Libyan government institutions and civil society organizations to cooperate with international human rights mechanisms and use them to promote Human Rights in Libya.
30 participants, representing various Libyan Non-Governmental Organizations working in the field of Human Rights and Persons with Disabilities, are attending this workshop.
The workshop’s main objective is to provide participants with specific knowledge on the International Covenant on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights, ratified by the Libyan State in 1970- and the working methods of the committee of experts in charge of monitoring the level of respect of the Covenant by State parties to the covenant, enabling them to prepare and submit shadow reports to the committee on behalf of the civil society organizations.
“Economic, Social and Cultural Rights are important in the current context of Libya. Cooperation with international human rights mechanisms allows civil society to present its views and recommendations aiming at improving those rights, especially for the most vulnerable groups in Libya.”, according to Mr. Frej Fenniche, the Regional Director of NPWJ.
Mr. Mohamed Allagui, former Minister of Justice and former President of the National Council for Human Rights and Freedoms speaking on behalf of the Libyan Bar Association, considered that “Protecting human rights is the issue of society as a whole and is not the sole responsibility of the State, and cannot be advanced without the full participation of civil society”. “The General Bar Association has a fundamental role to play in the protection of those rights in Libya” added Mr. Allagui.
Recalling that the President of the Government of National Unity instructed the National Council for the Rights of Persons with Disabilities to accelerate the preparation and submission of the Libyan State’s report on the International Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, Mr. Bashir AlFitouri, President of the General League of Persons with Disabilities and rapporteur of the National Council for the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, said: “Paying further attention to the economic, social and cultural rights of persons with disabilities in Libya is essential, given the deteriorating situation of their rights in the context of the armed conflict.”
This workshop is the third of its kind after a first workshop on the International Convention against Torture and a second workshop on the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. It will be followed by a fourth workshop focusing on the International Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.
Several international experts are participating in the workshop including Mr. Frej Fenniche, Mr. Bassam Aisha, Dr. Fethi Jarray, Dr. Hatem Qotran, Mr. Joseph Schechla, and Mr. Ibrahim Salama.
This program is supported by the Human Rights and Rule of Law division of the United Nations Support Mission in Libya, the European Union, and the Canadian Fund for Local Initiatives.
For further information, please contact: Frej Fenniche: ffenniche@npwj.org – +216 56 441 505 (English, French, العربية)
