1st Hellenic Model United Nations on Human Rights for high school students
“Students take on the role of diplomats”
Thessaloniki, 16 -18 December 2016
The Hellenic Model United Nations on Human Rights will simulate the work of the main United Nations human rights mechanisms. It will, for the first time, have Greek as a working language and it will take place with the participation only of high school students from different parts of Greece.
This important programme aims to sensitize students to issues relating to the promotion and protection of human rights around the world, and to enable students to familiarize themselves with the observance and implementation of the fundamental international human rights standards. The participants will have the opportunity to further understand the procedures and working methods of the simulated human rights mechanisms and to enhance their knowledge on specific provisions enshrined in the core United Nations human rights treaties.
In addition, the programme will be an occasion for the students to develop their analytical, communication and interpersonal skills through debate and negotiation. They will learn to listen and respect the views and opinions of their interlocutors and to build their positions and arguments with the view to present well-structured and convincing statements. It will be an opportunity for teamwork and fruitful exchanges in the context of a broader forum of knowledge sharing and creation of ideas.
The President of the Coordination Committee, Dr. Dr.h.c. Paroula Naskou-Perraki, Professor of International Law and International Organisations, f. ad hoc judge of the European Court for Human Rights, and founder of the Model United Nations-Thessaloniki (ThessISMUN) and F.U.N. (Friends of the United Nations), believes that the students, through their participation in UN Models, they can better appreciate the important work of United Nations and the progress made in the area of human rights. By educating students all over the world in human values and rights, through initiatives and programmes, such as the UN Models, we lay the foundations for a better future of peace and dialogue.
The programme adopts a simplified version of the Model United Nations procedures, and it will include the following UN human rights mechanisms and specific issues:
UN Human Rights Council
- The right to peace
Human Rights Committee (CCPR)
- Right to life
- Freedom of opinion and expression
- Freedom of religion or belief
Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (CESCR)
- Right to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Right to food
Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD)
- Prohibition of racial discrimination
- Prohibition of racial propaganda and hate speech
Committee on the Elimination of all forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW)
- Equal representation
- Elimination of violence against women
- Older women and protection of their human rights
- Equal pay for work of equal value for men and women
Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC)
- Respect for the views of the child
- Right to education
- Right of the child to rest, leisure, play and recreational activities
- Right to health
Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD)
- Accessibility
- Awareness-raising
- Access to work and to vocational training
For more information, please contact us at: http://roh.gr/epikinonia/
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