1st Regional forum on human rights adopts charter for city and human rights
“A city worthy of its inhabitants” was the theme of the 1st Regional Forum on Human Rights, held by the Regional Human Rights Commission of Rabat-Kenitra on 27-28 Sept. 2014, in Rabat. The Forum adopted the City and Human Rights Charter, a reference document that aims to protect fundamental human rights and provide material and immaterial tools to ensure access to these rights.
The Charter also aims to reduce forms of discrimination and social and territorial inequalities. It can help strengthen the capacities of the movers and shakers of the city and enable them to carry out their roles accurately and to engage in local, national, regional and international policies, programs and projects on the city and human rights.
All movers and shakers in the city are concerned by Charters. These include all stakeholders concerned by the restructuring programs and projects in the city, services, and decision making mechanisms, which draft, implement and assess all kind of decisions that affect the lives of individuals and groups.
The Forum was an opportunity for experts, academicians, civil society and public officials to share and generate ideas and reflect about the general principles that should determine the relationship between the city and human rights. To enjoy life in the city, all citizens shall enjoy their human rights, with no regard to their age, sex, religion and social status.
Three plenary sessions were scheduled for the 1st Regional Forum on Human Rights: “The city and participatory democracy”, “Civil and political rights and citizenship” and “Human rights and the city: social, economic, cultural and environmental rights”. Three thematic workshops were also held in the Forum: “Human rights and territorial management and advanced regionalization”, “Human rights protection mechanisms and vulnerable groups” and “The city, knowledge and media”, in addition to an “African City and Human Rights” roundtable and a seminar “For a city worthy of its youth”.
More than 400 participants took part in the activities of the first day of the Forum and 224 in the second-day workshops and the closing sessions, 40% were women.