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Key date
17 October
International Day for the Eradication of Poverty |
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49 Practical Activities and Methods for Human
Rights Education > Horoscope of poverty |
Conventions - Safeguards of Human Rights
This activity is available on-line only
Themes |
General human rights, Education
, Social rights |
Complexity |
Level 3 |
Group size |
Any (preferably 12 or more) |
Time |
90 minutes |
Overview |
This activity uses group work and diamond ranking to promote
discussion about the ICCPR and the ICESCR, including the issues
of: Human rights under the two Covenants
- Duties and responsibilities under the Covenants
- How to claim the rights
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Related rights |
- Civil, Political, Economic, Social and Cultural human
right
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Objectives |
- To provide knowledge about the ICCPR (The International
Covenant on Civil and Political Rights) and the ICESCR
(The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural
Rights)
- To develop skills to review information critically and
relate it to everyday experience
- To explore the relevance of the Covenants and similar
mechanisms for protection of human rights
- To stimulate feelings of responsibility, solidarity,
justice and equality
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Materials |
- Statement cards - one set per small groupHandout –
summary of the statements for every participant
- A large sheet of paper to make a wall chart
- Markers
- Enough space for small groups to work independently
- Enough space for presentations in plenary
Note: If possible, facilitators for each "double"
working group |
Preparation |
- Review the abridged versions of the two Covenants (available
in form of statement cards at the end of this exercise)
and consult the full-text versions of the Covenants (look
at the end of the exercise for a web-site). List the articles
on the large sheet of paper to make a wall chart.
- Choose which articles will promote the most interesting
discussion with your particular group. Consider which
issues are most relevant to the group members and which
will be the most controversial.
- Prepare one set of cards for each small group. Put each
set in an envelope so that they don't get mixed up!
- For all participants prepare a handout - summary of
all statements from the Covenant they work on. Consider
that not all participants will work on the same Covenant,
hence they need to receive different handouts (some groups
will receive ICCPR, and the others ICESCR).
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Instructions
- Start with a brief review of the different generations of
human rights. Ask what people know about it. Ask them if they
could differentiate between the rights and the main characteristics
of each covenant. Point out the wall chart and go over the main
articles. This brief introduction should not take longer than
5-10 minutes.
- Ask participants to get into small groups of three to five
people. Hand out the envelopes with the statement cards to each
small group and the handouts to each participant.
- Some of the small groups should receive the statement cards
with ICCPR, and the rest the statement cards with ICESPR.
Note: Due to the design of the exercise and the need to create
"double" groups at later stage, it is recommended
to have even number of small groups that will work on each Covenant.
If this is not possible, one solution is to have three groups
joining together and comparing their diamond (see step 5).
- Explain the diamond ranking procedure - Each participant should
individually look at the statements – summarised articles
of the Covenants, and consider how relevant each of those is
to the participant’s own life. Participants could make
their own priority lists, if that coincides with their own thinking
and learning approach. Afterwards, each small group is to discuss
the given statements and explore the different perceptions,
realities and order of relevance and importance for each of
the statements. They should then arrange the statements in a
diamond pattern in order of importance according to participants’
realities / social environments. The decision about the order
in the diamond ranking should be made by consensus as much as
possible in the small groups. The most important statement should
be at the top of the diamond. Underneath it, the group members
should lay, side by side with equal importance, the two next
most important statements. Underneath these, they should lay
out the next three statements of moderate importance. The fourth
row should have four cards. The fifth row should have three
cards, the sixth two and the seventh row one card, the statement
that they thought was the least important. In this way, the
cards will lie in the shape of a diamond (see the Diamond here).
- Give the groups 25 minutes to discuss and decide the order
of ranking. Participants in each group, whenever possible, should
arrive to a consensus in making the diamond ranking. Each group
should prepare their diamond on a big flip-chart paper.
- Once the small groups finish their work, gather groups two
by two into "double" facilitated groups (small groups
working on the same document). In each facilitated group, participants
from two small groups present and compare their own diamonds
and share the outcomes of their group discussion (diamond rankings).
At the end of the discussions, both groups should prepare a
presentation at a joint stand in main working room where all
diamond rankings will be exhibited. All participants should
be ready to explain and present the arguments behind the diamond
ranking of their small groups. Give 20 minutes to the discussions
in the "double" facilitated groups. Note that these
groups are for participants to exchange the different points
of view and analyse the differences and similarities of each
other’s ranking; and not to arrive to a consensus in these
groups.
- Organise the space in the main working room (plenary room)
so as to have sufficient "exhibition spaces", as
many as the number of "double-groups". In each of
those spaces, one "double" group will display their
diamond rankings (2 from each of the small groups) resentations
are to be organised in an "exhibition" style, so
no verbal presentation in plenary!
- To start the exhibition, invite each small group to divide
in half. Half of its members should go in the middle of the
room while the rest should stay next to their stands (diamond
rankings). In the first 10-15 minutes, the group in the middle
will be visitors going to all the stands and getting to know
the results of the other groups, while the other half will stay
next to the stands and be hosts who will provide the inputs
and information to all visitors. After 10-15 minutes participants
swap roles, visitors become hosts and vice versa. Then call
everyone into plenary for the debriefing.
Debriefing and evaluation
Review how participants enjoyed the activity and what they
learned.
- How do the results of the different groups' discussions compare?
What are the similarities and differences?
- Why do different people have different priorities?
- As a result of listening to others, do any of the groups wish
to reconsider their own decisions about the ranking of the cards?
Which arguments were the most persuasive?
- In general, which rights are not respected in your community,
and why?
- Are there any main differences noticed between the civil and
political rights on one hand and economic, social and cultural
rights on the other hand?
- Are there any human rights that are not present in the Covenants
that you suppose should be included?
- How do people in general claim their rights?
- If participation in the democratic process is one way for
people to claim their rights, what can the participants do now
to begin to "claim their rights" in their home country?
- To whom, in your society, can people turn to, if they suffer
from serious violations of their rights?
What other instruments are there in the world (or in Europe)
aiming at protection of human rights?
- What else (other materials, other methods) can serve to inform
participants on the history and background of HR, and its most
important instruments?
Tips for facilitators
There is more information about diamond ranking in chapter 1
"How
to use the manual". Point out to the groups that there
are no right and wrong ways in which to order the cards. They
should recognise that different people have different experiences
and therefore different priorities and these should be respected.
Nonetheless, they should try, in each of their small groups, to
come to a consensus about the order. After all, in real life,
issues have to be prioritised and decisions made in the best interests
of all!
It is important, whenever not obvious to participants, to stress
the interdependence of rights and ask them to avoid ranking the
importance of rights when making the diamond ranking.
It is very useful that there are facilitators in the "double"
groups (if not enough team members, more experienced participants
could take up this role). That will ensure efficient use of the
time and comparable level of discussion in all "double"
groups.
For the presentations in plenary, it is useful to prepare small
post-it notes in two different colours for each participant. One
should write "Visitor", while on the other "Host".
The participants should put, on a visible place on themselves,
one or the other post-it note depending on their function at the
moment: "host" or "visitor".
One can do this exercise also with fewer participants. In this
case, there are two alternatives: to use only one Covenant or
to skip the double facilitated groups and immediately proceed
with the exhibition in plenary.
Variations |
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Instead of providing fifteen
Articles to be ranked, you can provide 1-4 less and leave card(s)
blank for the groups to identify the missing statements ( articles
of the Covenants). Another alternative is to decrease the size
of the diamond and ask participants to choose in total nine statements.
This exercise could be used for discussion and analysis of any
other Convention or Declaration. Consider using it for
Note: This exercise derives from the exercise "Children
Rights" in Compass. Consult that exercise for more ideas
for variations and tips.
Suggestions for follow-up
Invite someone who is familiar with the two Covenants, UN representative,
student or professor of human rights of international relations
(emphasis on UN), human rights activist or trainer in human rights
education to talk to the group. The lecturer could, among other
issues, define the different generations of human rights, present
the International Bill of Human Rights or explain the mechanisms
for reinforcement of these two Covenants (see Compass chapter
4.1 Understanding Human Rights for description of the different
generations).
Ask your participants to make a small research in their hometown
or country and see which of the human rights defined in ICCPR
and/or ICESPR are respected / violated most. Another interesting
assignment for them is to check the national laws and see which
of the rights as defined in the two Covenants are present (part
of) in their national legislation.
These two human rights instruments require states to submit reports.
The states compile these reports following directions of supervisory
bodies. The public, and in particular NGOs examine these reports.
The ICCPR, ICESCR, and the Convention on the Elimination
of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) are examples
of instruments requiring the submission of reports. Participants
could examine and discuss some of these reports that are submitted
to the relevant Committees: UN
Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women
and the UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights.
Further information
For the full text of the ICCPR (The International Covenant on
Civil and Political Rights) and the ICESCR (The International
Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights) Convention consult
http://www.ohchr.org/english/law/cescr.htm.
Other useful UN resources are web-site of the UN
Commission of Human Rights
All relevant UN documents are available in the Official UN Documents
UN System.
For Council of Europe documents and conventions on the same subject
area consult: the
European Social Charter and the HUDOC
Human Rights Documentation of the European Court of Human Rights.
Chapter 4 in Compass contains background information on human
rights. The sub-chapters: 5.5 Education, 5.14 Social Rights and
5.13 Poverty deal more in depth with the specific subjects related
to the social, cultural and economic rights.
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Statement cards
ICCPR (The International Covenant on Civil and Political
Rights) |
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The
right to equality between men and women in the enjoyment
of their civil and political rights.
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The
freedom from inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
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The
right to liberty and security of the person and freedom
from arbitrary arrest or detention.
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The
right to liberty and freedom of movement
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The
freedom from prison due to debt.
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The
freedom of opinion and expression.
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The
right to legal recourse when their rights have been violated,
even if the violator was acting in an official capacity.
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The
freedom from slavery and servitude.
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The
right to life and survival.
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The
right to freedom of association.
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Prohibition
of propaganda advocating war or national, racial or religious
hatred.
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The
freedom of thought, conscience and religion.
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The
right privacy and its protection by the law.
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The
right to peaceful assembly. |
Statement cards
ICESCR (The International Covenant on Economic,
Social and Cultural Rights) |
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Everyone
has the right to take part in cultural life; enjoy the benefits
of scientific progress.
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No
person, group or government has the right to destroy any
of these rights.
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Everyone
has the right to the enjoyment of the highest attainable
standard of physical and mental health.
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Everyone
has the right to an adequate standard of living for himself
and his family, including adequate food, clothing and housing.
Everyone has the right to be free from hunger.
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Everyone
has the right to form and join trade unions, the right to
strike.
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Everyone
has the right to just conditions of work; fair wages ensuring
a decent living for himself and his family; equal pay for
equal work; safe and healthy working conditions; equal opportunity
for everyone to be promoted; rest and leisure.
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Everyone
has the right to social security, including social insurance.
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Those
States where compulsory, free primary education is not available
to all should work out a plan to provide such education.
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Protection
and assistance should be accorded to the family. Marriage
must be entered into with the free consent of both spouses.
Special protection should be provided to mothers. Special
measures should be taken on behalf of children, without
discrimination. Children and youth should be protected from
economic exploitation. Their employment in dangerous or
harmful work should be prohibited. There should be age limits
below which child labour should be prohibited.
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Each
State Party undertakes to take steps to the maximum of its
available resources to achieve progressively the full realization
of the rights in this treaty. Everyone is entitled to the
same rights without discrimination of any kind..
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Everyone
has the right to work, including the right to gain one's
living at work that is freely chosen and accepted.
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The
States undertake to ensure the equal right of men and women
to the enjoyment of all rights in this treaty.
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Limitations
may be placed on these rights only if compatible with the
nature of these rights and solely for the purpose of promoting
the general welfare in a democratic society.
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All peoples have the right of self-determination,
including the right to determine their political status and
freely pursue their economic, social and cultural development. |
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Everyone has the right to education.
Primary education should be compulsory and free to all. |
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Statement cards
The Framework Convention for the protection
of National Minorities |
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Right
freely to choose to be treated or not to be treated as a
minority |
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Right
to enjoy the rights outlined in this Convention individually
or in community with others
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Promotion
of effective equality and prohibition of discrimination
based on a belonging to a national minority.
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Right
to trans border contacts and co-operation
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Freedom
of expression in the minority language
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Free
use of minority language in private and public, orally and
in writing.
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Right
to learn their own language
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Freedom
of peaceful assembly
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Prohibition
of forced assimilation
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Freedom
to peaceful assembly, freedom of association, freedom of
expression and freedom of thought, conscience and religion
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Right
to manifest religion or belief and to establish religious
institutions, organisations and associations
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Right
to set up and to manage own private educational and training
establishments
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Promotion
and preservation of culture, religion, language and traditions
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Right
to effective participation in economic, cultural, social
life and in public affairs |
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Freedom of association |
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The right to access to and use of the media. |
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