The Human Rights Defender
Ms. Anahit Manasyan is on a working visit to Slovenia from December 3-6, at the
invitation of the Human Rights Ombudsman of Slovenia Mr. Peter Svetina, to
participate in the international conference and official meetings dedicated to
the 30th anniversary of the Human Rights Ombudsman institution of Slovenia.
The event is organized under
the theme " the Effectiveness of Ombudsman Institutions and NHRIs:
Tackling Contemporary Challenges."
The Advisor of the Human
Rights Defender of Armenia Angelica Movsesova is also attending the working
visit.
Within the framework of the
event, on December 5, Ms. Manasyan spoke at the first panel discussion on the
topic " Effective Human Rights Advocacy: Is there a need to enhance the
impact and effectiveness of Ombudsman Institutions and NHRIs?".
During her speech, the
Defender congratulated the Slovenian Ombudsman on the institution's 30th
anniversary, and referred to the problems in the field of human rights
protection in the modern world, including Armenia, the challenges facing the
activities of the Ombudsman institutions, and the activities implemented to
overcome them.
The Defender presented the
main directions of the Human Rights Defender's activities in the sphere of
equality, referring to the rights of women, children, national minorities,
persons with disabilities, hate speech, gender equality, the atmosphere of
intolerance, and the fight against discrimination. The Defender specifically
emphasized that as a result of the activities implemented in these spheres, she
is often targeted by legal professionals and public figures, which is a
dangerous trend.
From the viewpoint of human
rights protection, Ms. Manasyan also presented the division of rights into
"important" and "unimportant" as a very serious and common
problem in society and the social environment.
"When attention is
focused on any area of law, for example, the rights of persons in vulnerable
situations, it is publicly presented by many, including some lawyers, as an
unimportant type of right, and a secondary activity. This distorts perceptions
of the system of human rights protection" stated the Defender.
Ms. Manasyan also addressed
the cases of gender-based targeting of women, specifically noting that women
are very often targeted on grounds that men would never be targeted on. The
Defender presented the cases when she was targeted as a woman, and the public
practices of the actors who implement this, contradicting the existing international
standards in the field.
Dr. Milan Brglez, State
Secretary of the Ministry of Justice of the Republic of Slovenia, Mr. Andreas
Pottakis, the Ombudsman of Greece, and Maria Lúcia Amaral, Ombudsperson of
Portugal also participated in the panel discussion.
The event was attended by
heads and representatives of human rights institutions from around 20
countries, as well as representatives of various Slovenian state structures,
organizations, academic institutions, diplomatic missions in Slovenia, and
civil society.
On December 5, the
Conference was opened by the Ombudsman of the Republic of Slovenia, Mr. Peter
Svetina, the President of the National Assembly of the Republic of Slovenia,
Urška Klakočar Zupančič, and the Council of Europe Commissioner for Human
Rights, Mr. Michael O'Flaherty (in online format).
The keynote address was
delivered by Mr. Marko Bošnjak, the President of the European Court of Justice.
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