On July 10, 2015, the Human Rights Summer School was inaugurated in the framework of the joint program of the Office of Public Defender of Georgia and the Centre of Human Rights. The Human Rights Summer School is a seven-day long educational program, which aims at raising awareness of the youth in the regions of Georgia about the basic knowledge on human rights protection.

The welcoming speech at the opening ceremony of the Summer School was delivered by the First Deputy Public Defender, Paata Beltadze. In his speech, the First Deputy Ombudsman emphasized the role of youth in building an inclusive and democratic society, in promoting peaceful coexistence and equality, and building the culture of tolerance.

“Each of you shall realize the importance of your contribution in building the democratic institutions, which are based on the pillar of respect of human rights. It is you, who can play a decisive role in creating the environment free from stereotypes, stigma and violence, the society in which various ethnic minorities live together peacefully and have an opportunity to fully participate in civil and political life. The knowledge that you acquire through this school shall be shared with your peers in the regions so that they are also capable to contribute to establishing high standards of human rights with their high level of civic awareness“ – stated the First Deputy Ombudsman.

The formal trainings and thematic lectures will be delivered through the Summer School. The participants will acquire the basic knowledge about human rights, significance of democratic development, peaceful transformation of conflicts and civic activities.

The program covers the fundamental principles of human rights, civic activism and human rights, sensitivity of conflicts, as well as the seminars and discussions. The famous Georgian human rights’ activists and experts, employees of the Public Defender’s Office of Georgia will deliver seminars on the rights of internally displaced persons, tolerance and discrimination; concrete cases will be discussed, which will help the participant to understand and identify the cases of human rights violations in their communities.

The participants of the Summer School are 15-20 years old young people from Shida Kartli, Samegrelo and the regions of Samtskhe-Javakheti and Kvemo Kartli inhabited by ethnic minorities.

The project is funded by the OSCE Office of High Commissioner on National Minorities (OSCE HCNM).