KOR
News

2021 Closing of the 11th World Human Rights Cities Forum

페이지 정보

조회 660 Views 작성일 21-10-31 17:02

본문

Closing of the 11th World Human Rights Cities Forum


feea1408c76fc9e91dd247a430cb9c80_1635727988_5501.jpg


Despite the difficulties caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, the 11th World Human Rights Cities Forum was held successfully over the course of five days from the pre-forum sessions on October 6th to the closing ceremony on October 10th under the theme of Human Rights in Times of Challenge: A New Social Contract with its 51 sessions attracting nearly 3,000 participants from around 322 cities representing 76 countries.


feea1408c76fc9e91dd247a430cb9c80_1635731468_2145.jpg


The Closing Ceremony started off with closing remarks speech, and was followed by sharing the reports on the results of discussions from the Forum’s various sessions, such as the plenary sessions, special sessions, etc. What followed was a brief presentation of the summary of the Forum Declaration. The ceremony was wrapped up by the Forum highlight video screening, as well as the overall impression sharing by the Forum participants.


In the 11th Forum's reports presentations, eight officials from the Forum’s main co-organizers and co-hosts organizations (UNESCO, UN Human Rights, UCLG-CSIDPHR, Raoul Wallenberg Institute, etc.) selected out the main points from each of their respective meetings. The presentations’ main contents reflected on the "role between local governments and the UN Human Rights system to strengthen the human rights cities movement" and "a plan to establish new social contract based on human rights and equality".


feea1408c76fc9e91dd247a430cb9c80_1635731596_0447.jpg


In the Declaration summary presentation, the director of the Gwangju International Center (and Senior Advisor for HR & International Affairs of Gwangju Metropolitan City), SHIN Gyonggu, specifically recommended that in times when human rights and democracy become threatened by various disasters, such as those of climate change or COVID-19 pandemic, human rights cities should be the ones to take the lead. In addition, he suggested that, among other topics, a more active response on the UN level, as well as a new discourse on the role of the local governments and citizens' rights should be proactively discussed.


feea1408c76fc9e91dd247a430cb9c80_1635731668_9036.jpg


This year’s Forum was joined by International Organizations as co-hosts for the second consecutive year and welcomed the participation of the UN Secretary-General for the first time. In addition, through the in-depth discussions with the participation of local governments, experts of civil society organizations, and academic institutes, the Forum expects the strengthening of cooperation between the human rights stakeholders both at home and abroad for the further human rights cities movement.


The Forum also expanded programs for the youth (Human Rights Translation Volunteers, Human Rights supporters (HURO), Youth Talk session, UNESCO’s Dialogue Session on Youth Engagement, etc.) and debated about main human rights issues (Refugees, Violence against Women, Right to Food, Special Session on Rights Economy, etc.) Furthermore, during this year’s Forum, as the number of participating organizations grew, the Pre-Forum event was added, together with the human rights educations conducted through the Blended Learning Course (BLC), the Opening Concert by the participation of Percussion Group Eolsu, GIC Musicians, and GIC Choir, and the Human Rights Artworks Exhibition that showcased spreading the human rights culture among the citizens of Gwangju. 


We are sincerely grateful for your participation and engagement in the 11th World Human Rights Cities Forum, and are looking forward to meeting you all in person in the 12th Forum next year!