OSCE Centre holds human rights law lectures at Turkmenistan Institute of International Relations

ASHGABAT, 4 November 2010 - A series of lectures on international human rights law, organized by the OSCE Centre in Ashgabat and attended by 35 students at the Foreign Ministry's Institute of International Relations, ends tomorrow.

The week-long lecture series, organized by the OSCE Centre in co-operation with the Foreign Ministry, addresses the main features of international public law and international human rights standards.

The course, taught by Icelandic professor Gudmundur Alfredsson, comprises lectures and discussions to give an insight into topics such as the main human rights treaties on civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights as well as specific rights of children, women and minorities. The course also focused on international monitoring and the role of non-governmental organizations. In addition, students discussed concrete examples of specific rights and the respective case law.

"By organizing this course, the OSCE Centre supports the Institute as it upgrades students' knowledge about international human rights standards. The course also offers students an opportunity to interact with a foreign professor with vast international lecturing experience," said Begoña Piñeiro Costas, the Centre's Human Dimension Officer.

Alfredsson added: "Including human rights education is an obligation of all states under existing international instruments. I am pleased to note the students' genuine interest in and attention to the topic, as demonstrated by their questions and active participation in discussions."

The Centre has organized similar courses in the past.