Roma Rights Summer Workshop 2008

09 April 2008

The European Roma Rights Centre (ERRC) shall conduct its Roma Rights Summer Workshop in Budapest from 4 July 2008 to 13 July 2008. The workshop will be a ten-day long intensive training and capacitation initiative for young Romani activists, students, and Roma/Human rights activists. The program will be implemented, as in previous editions, with a number of organisations and institutions with the main goal of developing the capacity of a new generation of Romani human rights activists, to use international, regional and domestic human rights instruments and mechanisms to advance the rights of Roma, both domestically and internationally. The European Roma Rights Centre is an international public interest law organisation monitoring the situation of Roma in Europe, and engaging in a range of activities aimed at combating anti-Romani racism and human rights abuse of Roma, in particular strategic litigation, international advocacy, research and policy development, and training of Romani activists. Objectives The objectives of the Summer Workshop are to enable participants to:

Analyse issues and situations affecting Roma in their respective countries based on internationally accepted human rights values and principles

Develop skills in using domestic mechanisms (such as national legislation) and international human rights instruments (i.e., United Nations Treaties, European Court system, European Union legal and political mechanisms) to protect and promote the rights of Roma

Strengthen skills in monitoring and reporting human rights violations and racial discrimination as well as advocacy skills

Increase their capacity to apply their learning within their organisations and their societies/communities

Explore and facilitate opportunities for networking and developing partnerships with NGOs and government officials to further advance the cause of Roma rights throughout Europe

Participants The Roma Rights Summer Workshop is a component of ERRC programming aimed at capacitating Romani activists, and is therefore only open to persons of Romani ethnicity. We welcome applications from Romani individuals who are interested in human rights. Applicants must be at least 18 years of age and must have a sufficient command of English to enable them to actively participate in the Workshop. Applicants are preferably students of law, public administration and social sciences, or hold a degree in one of these fields. The ERRC also encourages activists who do not hold a formal degree to apply. The ERRC additionally welcomes applications by persons of Romani origin engaging in human rights work on behalf of other disadvantaged groups. Application Procedure Applicants must: 1.Complete the application form provided below. Download the application form: 2.Provide a letter of recommendation from a teacher, professor or lecturer familiar with the applicant's work, a community leader, church leader, or their current employer. The letter should explain the nature of their relationship, how long they have known the applicant and highlight the main attributes of the applicant and whether they would be a suitable candidate for the ERRC Roma Rights Summer Workshop. 3.Submit a 500-750 word essay in English:

explaining any Human Rights/Roma Rights activities in which they have been involved to date

expressing why they would like to participate in the ERRC Roma Rights Summer Workshop and how it would be useful for them and any future actions they would like to undertake in their Roma rights/human rights work

We kindly request that all materials be submitted to the ERRC in one package. Applications missing one or more of these requirements will not be considered by the selection committee. Completed applications should be submitted to European Roma Rights Centre, 1386 Budapest 62, P.O. Box 906/93, Hungary, or by fax to (+ 36 1) 413-2201, or by e-mail to Dora.eke@errc.org. The closing deadline for all applications is 20th May 2008. Please take note that this is an absolutely final deadline and any applications received after this date shall not be considered.