Ref: 39/2007
Date: 23 August 2007
PCHR Concludes the 1st in a Series of Training Courses on Women’s Rights in Khan Yunis
On Thursday, 23 August 2007, PCHR has concluded the first in a series of training courses on women’s rights and gender, organized in cooperation with women’s organizations in the Gaza Strip.
The 20-hour course was held at PCHR’s office in Kahn Yunis. It targeted 37 activists representing 11 women’s organizations in Khan Yunis. The training was conducted by a number of specialized trainers: Bassam al-Aqra, Director of PCHR Training Unit; Hamdi Shaqqura, Director of Democratic Development Unit; Muna al-Shawa, Director of Women’s Rights Unit; Majeda Shihada and Sameer Hasaniya, from Women’s Rights Unit Dr. Bassam Abu Hashish, a lecturer at al-Aqsa University in Gaza, also contributed to the training.
Mr. Bassam al-Aqra’, Director of PCHR Training Unit, stated that this course is the first one in a series of specialized courses organized by PCHR focusing on women’s rights, based on the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW). The course covered a variety of topics related to women’s rights included in CEDAW, including: CEDAW historical development; the concept of discrimination, obligations of States towards women’s rights; women’s legal rights; women’s political participation; women’s economic, social and cultural rights; violence against women; reservations of Arab States with regard to CEDAW; the concept of gender; and the death penalty.
In his concluding speech, Mr. Hamdi Shaqqoura, Director of Democratic Development Unit, said that the course gave clues to understand human rights, and that PCHR is ready to carry out additional activities to promote the culture of human rights and tolerance in the Palestinian society. He emphasized the importance of maintaining contacts between the participants and PCHR following the course. He further called upon the participants put the knowledge they gained in the course into practice.
The participants thanked PCHR for its efforts to promote the culture of human rights and called for organizing more of such courses in other areas.
In the end, Mr. Hamdi Shaqqoura and Mr. ‘Abdul Halim Abu Samra, Public Relations Officer at PCHR’s office in Khan Yunis, handed certificates to the participants.
