You are cordially invited to the kick off conference of Turkish Cypriot Human Rights Foundation (TCHRF)’s long standing project ‘Mapping Human Rights in the Northern Part of Cyprus’ which has started as of March 2010 and financed by the European Commission.

Please find attached the agenda of the conference as well as short info about the project.

ho is TCHRF?
Turkish Cypriot Human Rights Foundation (TCHRF) which was founded in 2005 by 52 persons coming from different professions in Turkish Cypriot society, deals with several  human rights issues arising from the Cyprus problem such as property, citizenship and minority rights as well as universal human rights issues ranging from refugees rights, rights of the child, LGBT rights to combating all forms of discrimination. TCHRF conducts comprehensive reporting, offers legal opinion and organize activities such as seminars, conferences, trainings in order to raise awareness and educate public about universal human rights across North Cyprus. TCHRF also carries out activities in order to address human rights problems arising from isolations  imposed upon Turkish Cypriot society as a result of the Cyprus Problem to its counterparts abroad proactively in order to defend both Turkish Cypriots’ and all the individuals’ human rights living in Cyprus.  .

MAPPING HUMAN RIGHTS IN THE NORTHERN PART OF CYPRUS

Mapping Human Rights in the Northern Part of Cyprus Project kicks off as of March 2010. The project will continue for 2 years and aims at an unprecedented human rights awareness in North Cyprus. Through the project which could be defined as a ‘Human Rights Emergency Campaign in North Cyprus’, 11 themes of human rights  (Women, persons with disabilities, refugees, persons victims of property rights violations, detainees, missing persons, persons belonging to minority groups, children, persons victims of human smuggling and trafficking, persons being lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender, migrant workers and their families) will be examined and published. The reports will be between 30-60 pages and once completed will then be translated into English and shared with all relevant stakeholders.  Overall objective of the project is to provide a detailed and unbiased “map” of the state of human rights in the northern part of Cyprus allowing to bridge an important gap with regard to European and international human rights standards and to harmonise the situation in the two Cypriot communities.

The reports which will be prepared in the project will look in detail:
a) The relevant local legislation and legal bases
b) Implementation and realities on the ground
c) Recommendations as to how the northern part of Cyprus can attain better standards set by the acquis and other sources of international law

  CONFERENCE PROGRAMME
18:00-18:15 Opening Remarks: Chairperson of TCHRF, Emine Çolak
18:15-18:45 Joint Presentation of Mapping Human Rights in the northern part of Cyprus Project: Project Coordinator Mustafa Abitoğlu and Human Rights Expert Erol Akdağ
18:45-19:00 Presentation on Project’s Methodology: Scientific Research Coordinator of the Project, Assist.Prof.Dr. Umut Özkaleli
19:00-19:15 Examples from hhe Themes of Reports Themes: Öncel Polili, Ceren Göynüklü