UNDP launches a new project to support democratization and human rights

Details

22.04.2013

22 April 2013 Kyiv saw the presentation of the “Democratization, human rights and civil society development in Ukraine” Project, which is implemented by UNDP with the financial support of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Denmark throughout 2013-2016.

The presentation was part of the namesake conference that gathered over 100 civic experts, think-tank representatives and delegates from local, oblast and central-level government bodies.

The conference was opened by Ms. Elena Panova, UNDP Deputy Country Director, who noted that “…the issue of democratization in Ukraine is topical as never before. Democratic processes, their development are akin to heartbeat of the society itself. The more irregular it becomes, the worse health condition is and the more at risk the society at large is. Human rights are directly intertwined with democratic developments. The basics of democracy – separation of power branches, rule of law, free elections, a pluralistic political party system, and independent media are all prerequisites for human rights protection. It is exactly the democracy deficit that oftentimes prevents effective enjoyment of such rights, whereas a strong civil society is a cure for it.”

Ms. Maryna Stavniychuk, Advisor to the President, Head of Civil Society Coordination Council, emphasized that one of the priorities for further democratization of the Ukrainian society is the adoption of the Law “On Local Referendum.” Relentless attention has to be paid to the development of legal framework pertaining to participatory democracy in Ukraine. The Presidential Administration Official also underlined the necessity to stimulate citizen pro-activeness at the local level, including the work of civic councils, emphasizing the necessity to take into account community preferences in the process of decision-making. The need to support local initiatives, conduct civic consultations and provide for legal regulation of freedom of peaceful assembly was also underscored.

Analyzing the fulfillment of international human rights obligations of Ukraine, Valeria Lutkovska, Ukrainian Parliament Commissioner for Human Rights, noted the work of the National Preventive Mechanism (NPM). She also emphasized the importance of grassroots work, as it could help the Ombudsman’s Secretariat to fulfill its functions effectively. “Proactive civic work is the prerequisite for Ukraine’s fulfillment of its internal and international human rights obligations”, noted Lutkovska.

Mr. Maksym Latsyba, Programme Office of the Ukrainian Center for Independent Political Research spoke of the importance of civil society education. Specifically, he pointed to the fact that there is no readily available Ukrainian textbook on civil society that could be used by students and faculty alike. An issue that, according to Mr. Latsyba, could be addressed by the Ukrainian expert community. In his further deliberations he highlighted the importance of engaging various stakeholders in civil society development, inlcuding business and government bodies.

During the second part of the conference the presentation of the project took place, including its core activities. The project fosters an open and democratic society which is based on the rule of law, and is governed by the values of human rights supremacy, openness and accountability at all levels of government. It aims at building the capacities of those civil society organizations (CSOs) that systemically and effectively spread democratic values and guard human rights in the country. Moreover, the project will strengthen a participatory and result-oriented dialogue between the CSOs and the state agencies and bodies at different levels.

The initiative is based on the previous UNDP projects for civil society development, corruption prevention, legal aid provision, promotion of equal opportunities and support to the National Human Rights Institution.

The project is composed of three components, which correspond to its name. Thus, the “Democratization” component aims at supporting the civil society actors as promoters of democracy and good governance in Ukraine. Amongst other things, several organizations will be selected to receive organizational development support, and will become regional leaders in their respective areas. The grassroots CSOs will have an opportunity to implement their projects through a granting scheme.

The “Human Rights” component is aimed at supporting human rights community to continue work in defending human rights in Ukraine.

The third component, “Civil Society Development”, shall focus on monitoring the implementation of the Law “On Public Associations”, as well as the oblast target programmes for civil society development, support networking and establishment of regional coalitions, as well as development of effective interaction between the civil society and the government.

As part of the panel discussions within the third section of the conference, concrete avenues for future activities of the Project under the three component were discussed. Results of an internet survey that had been launched earlier to elicit the views and priorities of the civic activists and experts in the areas of democratization, human rights and civil society development, were used as foundation for the discussions.

http://infogr.am/UNDP-DHRP-Crowdsource-of-priorities