Activities

The HRAA believes human rights to be a value above all politicalideologies and worldviews. It believes that rights can only be improved bydeveloping an understanding of the source of the problem and by usingappropriate tactics and strategies for the implementation of proposals forreform.

Information and Experience-Sharing Seminars on the Implementation of Supranational and International Human Rights Law in National Law

 Information and Experience-SharingSeminars on the Implementation of Supranational and International Human RightsLaw in National Law” examining the application of European Convention of Human Rights and its Additional Protocols in the judgments of the European Court of Human Rights were held with the participation of lawyers in Izmir.This work was supported by the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Ankara.

The Rights of Mentally Disabled Persons: Towards a Local Initiative

In February 2005the HRAA and the Mentally Disabled Rights Initiative (MDRI) conducted a jointactivity with the aim of forming a new initiative to protect the human rightsof mentally disabled persons in Turkey. This activity was supported by the Open Society Institute.

Reform of the Penal Code for Human Rights

The contraventionby some articles of the new Turkish Penal Code of international human rightsstandards were specified and presented to the public. Some 40 articles were examined that raise questions related to freedom of expression in workshops that were carried out. As a result, alternative wording was prepared for these 40 articles. This activity was supported by the National Endowment forDemocracy (NED).

Human Rights Education

The HRAA started a project together with teachers aimed at meeting the basic need for human rights education in our country. Prof. Richard Pierre Claude’s book on “Popular Human Rights Education: 24Participatory Exercises for Facilitators and Teachers” was translated intoTurkish. Workshops are being carried out in nine provinces across the country.This work is supported by the Finnish Foundation for Human Rights (KIOS).

Prevention of Torture

TheHuman Rights Agenda association is working together with the Helsinki Citizens’Assembly on the preparation of a “Strategic Maping of Torture“ (STRA-MAP) for the prevention of torture in Turkey. STRA-MAP aims to build the capacity of human rights groups working against torture and impunity in Turkey.This activity is supported by the EU.

The International Criminal Court

TheHRAA participated in the round table discussion with the FederationInternationale des Droits des L’Hommes (FIDH), the Coalition for an International Criminal Court (CICC), the Human Rights Foundation of Turkey(HRFT) and the Human Rights Association under the title of “Turkey’s Ratification and Implementation of the Statute of the International CriminalCourt” on 16 and 17 June 2005.

Country Visits

  • First visit to Azerbaijan on the application of the European Convention of Human Rights in national law and sharing experiences of the code of criminal procedures.
  • First visit to the Kosovo and Macedonia to monitor the human rights situation