To Advance the Cause of Justice in India, Jamia to Establish Human Rights Cell

[Following is a Jamia press release date Dec. 14, 2012]

Mr. Najeeb Jung, Vice-Chancellor, Jamia Millia Islamia has constituted a core group to work out the scope of work, terms of  references and the administrative structure of a Human Rights Cell in Jamia Millia Islamia.  The core group is guided by the constituent principles of Human Rights discourse. The core group will begin the process of consulting members of the Jamia Millia Islamia community, which includes students, teacher and non-teaching staff, as also experts in the field of human rights which includes state and non-state players, along with other interest groups working in the area of human rights, to frame a broad frame of reference for its engagement. This process will be an integral part of the methodology of the work of this cell.

Human Rights Cell shall work on an on-going basis to advance the cause of human rights and justice in India. The Cell shall engage in a range of activities, continuously identifying and pursuing the most promising opportunities for addressing human rights issues, while at the same time advancing understanding about human rights through interdisciplinary studies.

The Human Rights Cell shall utilize the best scholarship and analyses of human rights from the fields of law, politics, sociology, history, and economics in order to set its agenda and select human rights opportunities to pursue. And it shall further use practical engagement in human rights advocacy to improve scholarly understanding.

Typical activities shall include the development and utilization of web-based technologies to advance human rights; conferences, roundtable discussions, and speakers series focused on developing a breakthrough understanding of particular human rights challenges; and field research in conflict and post-conflict societies.

Human Rights Cell’s core mission could include three programmes viz. i) Clinical Programmes ii) Research Programmes and iii) Public Programmes.

Clinical Programmes: the cell will conduct on-the-ground investigations of  human rights abuses, document findings through traditional reports and innovative uses of video and the internet, and advocate before courts, federal, state, and local governments, and the media.

Research programme: To frame and address important questions about human rights, its development, and ways in which it may be used most effectively. Various Centres and Departments at Jamia Millia Islamia could jointly bring together research, training and mentorship to examine various facets of Human Rights.

Public programme: With regular seminars, workshops, lectures, and films.