Australia funds Human Rights Project in India
The Australian Government has decided to fund a Human Rights Project in India, under the Australian Human Rights Fund Small Grants Scheme, which seeks to provide assistance to developing countries for promoting and protecting human rights.
At a function organised by the National Law School of India, Bangalore on 9 July 1999, the Australian High Commissioner Mr. Rob Laurie presented a cheque of Australian $20,000 to Prof. N.L. Mitra, Director, NLSIU. This fund will be utilised for a project whose other collaborators will be the National Institute of Human Rights Education, Research and Development set up by NHRC in the NLSIU in Bangalore, and the State Judicial Academy of Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka.
The project envisages conducting a workshop on human rights training for Judges in Bangalore and Hyderabad and developing and printing a Human Rights Manual. The model so developed will provide a prototype, which can be needed in after States for the training of Judges. About 60 newly appointed Judges will be trained in the Andhra Pradesh academy in the first stage, which is expected to start in the middle of August 1999. In the second stage, in September 1999, refresher courses will be held in Karnataka for Session Judges already in position.
Speaking on the occasion, Mr. Laurie said that the Australian Government is committed to providing a clear and practical framework for supporting human rights activities. This framework ranks civil and political rights equally with economic, social and cultural rights and places a particular emphasis on the creation of durable institutional capacity to promote and protect human rights. Appreciating the National Law School’s attempt to build capacity on human rights issues amongst the judiciary in this country, he said that the judiciary in India, as in Australia, played an important role in the preservation and promotion of human rights. The project of the National Law School firstly, to hold human rights sensitisation courses for judges in Karnataka and Hyderabad and secondly, to develop a National Human Rights Manual from their experiences, recognises this role of the judiciary.
Australia will give a further amount A$ 5000 after the first stage of the training course is completed.
The Australian Government had approached the National Human Rights Commission for guidance in funding a suitable project in India. The Commission, after evaluating some project proposals, had recommended a project of the National Law School of India University.
At a function organised by the National Law School of India, Bangalore on 9 July 1999, the Australian High Commissioner Mr. Rob Laurie presented a cheque of Australian $20,000 to Prof. N.L. Mitra, Director, NLSIU. This fund will be utilised for a project whose other collaborators will be the National Institute of Human Rights Education, Research and Development set up by NHRC in the NLSIU in Bangalore, and the State Judicial Academy of Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka.
The project envisages conducting a workshop on human rights training for Judges in Bangalore and Hyderabad and developing and printing a Human Rights Manual. The model so developed will provide a prototype, which can be needed in after States for the training of Judges. About 60 newly appointed Judges will be trained in the Andhra Pradesh academy in the first stage, which is expected to start in the middle of August 1999. In the second stage, in September 1999, refresher courses will be held in Karnataka for Session Judges already in position.
Speaking on the occasion, Mr. Laurie said that the Australian Government is committed to providing a clear and practical framework for supporting human rights activities. This framework ranks civil and political rights equally with economic, social and cultural rights and places a particular emphasis on the creation of durable institutional capacity to promote and protect human rights. Appreciating the National Law School’s attempt to build capacity on human rights issues amongst the judiciary in this country, he said that the judiciary in India, as in Australia, played an important role in the preservation and promotion of human rights. The project of the National Law School firstly, to hold human rights sensitisation courses for judges in Karnataka and Hyderabad and secondly, to develop a National Human Rights Manual from their experiences, recognises this role of the judiciary.
Australia will give a further amount A$ 5000 after the first stage of the training course is completed.
The Australian Government had approached the National Human Rights Commission for guidance in funding a suitable project in India. The Commission, after evaluating some project proposals, had recommended a project of the National Law School of India University.