Human Rights Centre Annual Report 2015 Summary Human Rights Centre Annual Report 2015 Summary Layoutframe: Werklig Oy Layout: Inari Savola Illustrations: Ilja Karsikas Pictures: Hanne Salonen Eduskunta / Riksdagen (p. 25, 30 & 32), Laura Oja (p. 11, 13 & 15)

Published originally in Finnish and Swedish, published in English only in electronic form INDEX

1 ’s National Human Rights Institution 4

2 Operation of the Human Rights Centre in 2015 8 2.1 Promotion of information provision, training, education and research 9 2.1.1 Information provision 9 2.1.2 Education and training 11 2.1.3 Research 15 2.2 Reports on the implementation of fundamental and human rights 16 2.2.1 Follow-up to the study on human rights education and training 16 2.2.2 Persons with disabilities and their access to their rights 19 2.3 Initiatives and statements 19 2.4 Participation in European and international cooperation 21 2.5 Cooperation with other fundamental and human rights actors 22 2.6 Cooperation with Parliament 23 2.7 Other tasks associated with the promotion and implementation of fundamental and human rights 23 2.7.1 Promoting the bringing into force of human rights conventions and monitoring the implementation of Finland’s international human rights obligations 23 2.7.2 Preparing for functioning as the national monitoring mechanism for the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities 24 2.7.3 Participating in a survey on fundamental and human rights actors 25 2.7.4 Second national action plan on fundamental and human rights 26

3 Operation of the Human Rights Delegation in 2015 28 3.1 Human rights education and training section 31 3.2 Section for monitoring the implementation of fundamental and human rights 31 3.3 Working group for preparing the establishment of a disability section 32

Abbreviations 34

3 XXXX 1

Finland’s National Human Rights Institution

4 FINLAND’S NATIONAL HUMAN RIGHTS INSTITUTION

THE HUMAN RIGHTS CENTRE and its Human • to participate in European and international Rights Delegation, together with the Parliamen- cooperation related to the promotion and tary , constitute Finland’s National protection of fundamental and human rights Human Rights Institution (NHRI). NHRIs are • to perform other comparable tasks associat- statutory bodies for the promotion and pro- ed with the promotion and implementation tection of human rights. Their responsibilities, of fundamental and human rights. composition and methods of operation are defined in the so-called Paris Principles, which The Centre does not handle complaints or were adopted by the UN General Assembly in other individual cases. 1993. According to the Paris Principles, national The Parliamentary Ombudsman appoints human rights institutions should be established the Centre’s Director for a four-year term, after by the government by law, be autonomous and having received a statement on the matter from independent, and have a pluralist composition. Parliament’s Constitutional Law Committee. They must be vested with a broad mandate to Parliamentary Ombudsman Petri Jääskeläinen protect and promote human rights at national appointed Sirpa Rautio, Master of Laws trained level, and they should also have adequate on the bench, for a second term as the Director resources and powers of investigation. of the HRC on 21 December 2015. Rautio’s sec- The International Coordinating Commit- ond four year term will begin on 1 March 2016. tee of National Institutions for the Promotion The Human Rights Delegation functions as a and Protection of Human Rights (ICC) granted statutory national cooperative body of funda- Finland’s NHRI an ‘A’ status in 2014. Institutions mental and human rights actors, deals with accredited with ‘A’ status are considered to be fundamental and human rights matters of a far- in full compliance with the Paris Principles. The reaching significance and principal importance status entitles Finland’s NHRI to participate and and yearly approves the HRC’s plan of action take the floor in the sessions of the UN Human and annual report. The Delegation has 20 to 40 Rights Council and to vote in ICC meetings. members, who are appointed by the Parliamen- The Human Rights Centre (HRC) was tary Ombudsman. The Ombudsman appoints established through an act which entered into the members for four years at a time after hear- force on 1 January 2012 (Act on the Amend- ing the view of the Director of the HRC, who ment of the Parliamentary Ombudsman Act, Act chairs the Delegation. 535/2011 of 20 May 2011). The HRC operates The Parliamentary Ombudsman oversees autonomously and independently, although that the authorities and civil servants obey the administratively it is part of the Office of the law and fulfil their obligations. The Ombuds- Parliamentary Ombudsman. man’s oversight also covers other actors en- According to the law, the HRC has the fol- trusted with public authority. The duties of the lowing tasks: Ombudsman are defined in the and in the Parliamentary Ombudsman • to promote information provision, training, Act. As part of his duties, the Ombudsman pays education and research on fundamental and particular attention to the implementation of human rights fundamental and human rights. He also has the • to draft reports on the implementation of special responsibility to monitor how the police fundamental and human rights employ coercive measures affecting telecom- • to take initiatives and give statements for the munications and conduct undercover opera- promotion and implementation of funda- tions. At Parliament’s request, he also oversees mental and human rights that the rights of children are implemented. The Ombudsman also acts as the National Preven-

5 FINLAND’S NATIONAL HUMAN RIGHTS INSTITUTION

tive Mechanism (NPM) under the Optional The Human Rights Centre and the Office of the Protocol to the UN Convention against Torture Parliamentary Ombudsman are also in practice (OPCAT). The NPM is responsible for inspecting engaged in close cooperation with each other. places of detention where persons deprived of The HRC is administratively connected to the their liberty are held. Office of the Parliamentary Ombudsman, and Finland’s National Human Rights Institu- they have shared premises. The Centre’s Direc- tion adopted its first joint long-term operative tor weekly attends the meetings of the Office’s strategy in June 2014. The strategy forms the management team, and its experts participate basis for developing cooperation to achieve in the Office’s internal working groups. The par- common objectives. ties also benefit from cooperation when prepar- ing statements and organising trainings.

Main objectives in the strategy of Finland’s NHRI:

1. General awareness, understanding and knowledge of fundamental and human rights is increased, and respect for these rights is strengthened.

2. Shortcomings in the implementation of fundamental and human rights are recognised and addressed.

3. The implementation of fundamental and human rights is effectively guaran- teed through national legislation and other norms as well as through their application in practice.

4. International human rights conven- tions and instruments should be rati- fied or adopted promptly and imple- mented effectively.

5. Rule of law is implemented.

6 FINLAND’S NATIONAL HUMAN RIGHTS INSTITUTION

7 XXXX 2

Operation of the Human Rights Centre in 2015

8 OPERATION OF THE HUMAN RIGHTS CENTRE IN 2015

THE HUMAN RIGHTS CENTRE’S Plan of Action In accordance with the Plans of Action for 2015 defined the priorities of the Centre’s 2014 and 2015, the HRC website is being activities for 2015. These included human rights gradually developed into a comprehensive education and training, information provision human rights portal within the limits of the and the improvement of cooperation among Centre’s resources. However, the HRC’s current different actors, for example through the Hu- resources do not allow for building a compre- man Rights Delegation. Thematic priorities hensive fundamental and human rights portal included in particular broad and cross-cutting or information bank. issues that are of structural and principal im- portance, such as implementing equality and ensuring people’s access to their rights. Human Rights Centre’s newsletters This section describes the HRC’s activities in 2015 in relation to its statutory tasks. In the Plan of Action 2015, the development of information provision activities played a key role. Thus, the HRC focused during the year 2.1 particularly on transmitting news on current hu- Promotion of information provision, man rights affairs. training, education and research In February, the HRC began to publish an international newsletter which compiles human One of the most important tasks of the Hu- rights news from key international actors. The man Rights Centre is to promote information international newsletter contains news concern- provision, training, education and research ing, for example, the UN, the EU, the European on fundamental and human rights as well as Union Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA) cooperation in these issues. Because the HRC’s and the Council of Europe, including significant duty is to promote both human rights and rulings of the European Court of Human Rights. fundamental rights, its information provision, During the year, six issues of the international training, education and research activities focus newsletter were published, approximately on national fundamental rights, international every two months. human rights or the fundamental rights dimen- In September, the HRC also began publish- sion of the , depending on the ing a domestic newsletter. It was published target group and the topic. twice before the end of the year. Topics cov- ered in the domestic newsletter included Fin- land’s progress in ratifying treaties and conven- 2.1.1 tions, Finland’s reports to the bodies monitor- Information provision ing human rights treaties, national reports and studies on fundamental and human rights, and Website important court decisions. The newsletters are targeted at the HRC’s The Human Rights Centre’s website (www.hu- stakeholders and anyone else interested in cur- manrightscentre.fi) provides basic information rent human rights issues. The newsletters are on the HRC and its Delegation. It also includes published in Finnish and in Swedish. Readers topical press releases and news on fundamen- can receive the newsletter directly via e-mail tal and human rights, HRC’s publications and by subscribing to it on the HRC website. The statements as well as links to websites, materi- newsletters are sent to Parliament’s Constitu- als and documents published by other human tional Law Committee, the Supreme Court and rights actors. the Supreme Administrative Court, the Ministry

9 OPERATION OF THE HUMAN RIGHTS CENTRE IN 2015

for Foreign Affairs, and other HRC’s stakehold- and, in particular, human rights treaties and ers. The newsletters are also published on the their monitoring systems. The terms are given HRC website and the Edilex legal information in Finnish, Swedish and English. For some of service (www.edilex.fi). the entries, short explanations are provided to clarify their background and meaning. The aim of the glossary is to help harmonise and stand- Social media ardise the human rights terminology used in Finland. The Centre hopes that the glossary will The Human Rights Centre actively uses its be useful to, for instance, translators, interpret- Facebook page to provide information on its ers, journalists and others using the terminol- own activities and topical matters concerning ogy of the field. fundamental and human rights. At the end of The HRC also published unofficial Finnish the year, the Centre’s Facebook page had 1,343 and Swedish translations of the publication likes. At the end of 2014, the corresponding Core Human Rights in the Two Covenants pub- figure was 918, which means the growth has lished by the Office of the United Nations High been significant. Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR). To increase its social media visibility and to The guide discusses the non-derogable rights reach a wider audience, the HRC also set up included in the International Covenant on Civil a Twitter account (@FIN_NHRI) in December and Political Rights and the International Cov- 2015. enant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights.

Publications HRC’s publications in 2015:

With its publications, the Human Rights Centre • Human Rights Centre Annual Report aims to raise awareness of fundamental and hu- 2014 (full text available in Finnish man rights and to support the related education and Swedish, a summary available in and training. The HRC’s publications are free of English) charge, and most of them are freely available • Recommendations of the Human on the Centre’s website. For example, various Rights Delegation for promoting hu- human rights organisations have used the HRC’s man rights education and training in publications in their own education and training Finland (electronic publication, in Finn- activities. ish and Swedish) In February 2015, the recommendations • Translations into Finnish and Swed- of the Human Rights Delegation for promot- ish of Core Human Rights in the Two ing human rights education and training were Covenants (original publication by the published as a separate electronic publication. OHCHR) The recommendations had been previously pub- • Human Rights Glossary (available on lished in 2014 as a part of the HRC’s study on the HRC website) human rights . In June 2015, • HRC’s international newsletter (6 is- the recommendations were also published in sues) Finnish sign language on the HRC website. • HRC’s domestic newsletter (2 issues) In the autumn, the HRC published on its • A reprint of the HRC’s brochure in website a human rights glossary that includes English. a selection of terms concerning human rights

10 ABOVE: Hustle and bustle at the registration desk at the conference organised by the HRC, the Parliamentary Ombudsman and the Council of Europe in December.

2.1.2 Advocacy Education and training After publishing its study on human rights Promoting education and training on funda- education and training in 2014, the Human mental and human rights has been one of the Rights Centre has publicised the results of the Human Rights Centre’s priority activities during study and promoted the implementation of the its first four years of operation. Among other recommendations put forward on the basis of things, the HRC has published the first national the study. The follow-up on the study and the baseline study on human rights education in practical implementation of the recommenda- Finland, promoted human rights education and tions are discussed in section 2.2.1. training based on the results of the study, and In 2015, a special priority was to ensure supported communication, cooperation and that fundamental and human rights education coordination between different actors. The pro- and training are included in the next national motion of human rights education and training action plan on fundamental and human rights. is also one of the objectives set in the common The Government intends to draw up an action strategy of Finland’s National Human Rights plan on fundamental and human rights in 2016, Institution. and fundamental and human rights education and training have been a central element in the preparatory work. An HRC representative par-

11 OPERATION OF THE HUMAN RIGHTS CENTRE IN 2015

ticipates in an advisory role in the Government Education and training on fundamen- network of contact persons for fundamental tal and human rights are central in the and human rights, which is preparing the action preparation of the second national plan. The HRC has also provided the network action plan on fundamental and human with expert support particularly for those parts rights. of the action plan that concern human rights education and training. Efforts to influence the reforms of national curricula for basic and upper secondary educa- tion have been an essential part of promoting Events human rights education and training. In 2015, the HRC monitored the progress in the practical Events are an important way of providing infor- implementation of the national core curriculum mation and training on topical fundamental and for basic education that will enter into force in human rights themes. The HRC’s events have August 2016. In the spring of 2015, the HRC is- been popular, and the Centre has received sued a statement to the Finnish National Board positive feedback on them. Events are often of Education on the draft core curriculum for planned and organised together with other ac- upper secondary education, emphasising the tors. In 2015, events were organised in cooper- role of human rights as legally binding interna- ation with, for instance, the Ministry of Justice, tional norms. The need to strengthen human the Northern Institute for Environmental and rights education and training was also regularly Minority Law, the Office of the Parliamentary brought up in other statements. For example, in Ombudsman and the Council of Europe. August the HRC emphasised the importance of The HRC organised the following events in providing judges with training on fundamental 2015: and human rights in its own-initiative statement to the Ministry of Justice on the new courts act The new Non-Discrimination Act – What has and on developing the training of judges. changed? 5 February 2015 During the year, the HRC also sought new The reformed Non-Discrimination Act entered channels for reaching education and training into force on 1 January 2015. In the event professionals. In collaboration with the Finnish organised in cooperation with the Ministry of National Board of Education, the HRC published Justice, participants were presented a sum- an advertisement in the Opettaja trade union mary of the contents of the Act as well as the magazine for educators. The advertisement was changes and obligations it has brought about. published in the December issue of the maga- They also heard about the experiences gained zine, and it encouraged teachers to celebrate in Sweden in the application of non-discrimi- the international Human Rights Day at school nation legislation. The speakers included, for on 10 December using the educational mate- example, Minister of Justice Anna-Maja Hen- rial that the HRC collected on the edu.fi website riksson, Non-Discrimination Ombudsman Eva maintained by the National Board of Education. Biaudet and the Swedish Equality Ombudsman Agneta Broberg.

Meeting of the Nordic Council of the Deaf, 10 April 2015 In cooperation with the Finnish Association of the Deaf, the HRC hosted a meeting of the Nor- dic Council of the Deaf, with participants from

12 ABOVE: Morten Kjaerum, director of the Raoul Wallenberg Institute of Human Rights and Humanitarian Law, at the conference organised by the HRC, the Parliamentary Ombudsman and the Council of Europe in December.

all Nordic countries. In the meeting, participants monitoring mechanism of the Convention. The discussed the promotion of the linguistic and workshop focused on the promotion, protec- cultural rights of the deaf and Nordic coopera- tion and monitoring of the Convention, and tion between different actors. The speakers in- participants learned about other European cluded Parliamentary Ombudsman Petri Jääske­ monitoring mechanisms’ experiences in similar läinen, Director of the Human Rights Centre tasks. In addition to Delegation members, the Sirpa Rautio, Ombudsman for Children Tuomas participants included representatives of various Kurttila, Senior Adviser Robin Harms from the stakeholders. Office of the Non-Discrimination Ombudsman, and Director Johanna Suurpää, the head of the How to develop research on human and Unit for , Language Affairs and Fun- fundamental rights in Finland? damental Rights at the Ministry of Justice. 10–11 September 2015 To mark the 30th anniversary of the Northern Human Rights Delegation’s workshop on Institute for Environmental and Minority Law the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons (NIEM) at the University of , NIEM with Disabilities, 25 May 2015 and the HRC organised a two-day seminar on The purpose of the workshop was to prepare fundamental and human rights research in Ro- for the NHRI’s upcoming task as the national vaniemi, Lapland. The seminar focused on the

13 OPERATION OF THE HUMAN RIGHTS CENTRE IN 2015

current state of research in Finland, its future the HRC’s representatives spoke , for example, prospects, and the development of collabora- at a national seminar for municipal disability tion among researchers. The seminar partici- councils, a seminar on social rights organised pants included university researchers as well as by the National Institute for Health and Welfare people working with fundamental and human (THL), the Faculty Day of the Faculty of Law at rights matters in Finland and abroad. the University of , a round table discussion on a child’s right to physical integrity organised and news portals’ by the Ombudsman for Children, a Kepa work- liability on the internet – judgment of the shop on Sustainable Development Goals, the European Court of Human Rights in Delfi v. publishing event of a study on the implementa- Estonia, 6 October 2015 tion of youth rights conducted by the Finnish The lunchtime information session organised Youth Co-operation – Allianssi and the Finnish for Members of Parliament discussed the ruling Youth Research Society, and an event organised of the Grand Chamber of the European Court by the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, the European of Human Rights issued in June 2015 on the Parliament, the UN Association of Finland and liability of an internet news portal for the com- the Finnish Committee for European Security ments posted on its page. An introduction to STETE on Finland’s role in the UN, the OSCE the case was provided by Associate Professor and the EU. Riku Neuvonen from the University of .

Council of Europe, National Human Rights Training and lectures Institutions, Equality Bodies and Ombuds- man Offices Promoting Equality and Social Even though the Human Rights Centre is not a Inclusion, 10–11 December 2015 training organisation, its Director and experts The conference organised in cooperation with regularly give lectures on fundamental and hu- the Council of Europe and the Parliamentary man rights in training events, seminars and oth- Ombudsman presented good examples on er events. During the year, the HRC provided how national human rights actors can work speakers particularly to training events organ- together to remove stereotypes in order to en- ised for authorities, for example at the Ministry able access to all human rights by all persons. for Foreign Affairs, the HAUS Finnish Institute Participants also discussed how national bodies of Public Management Ltd – a state-owned and international and regional intergovern- company training civil servants – and a train- mental organisations can support each other in ing event for court system representatives held combating stereotypes and discrimination to at the Ministry of Justice. In August, the HRC improve the human rights situation in Europe. participated in training human rights profes- The event attracted more than 150 participants, sionals and researchers in an intensive course including authorities from different countries, on human rights and development organised representatives of national and international in Turku by the Åbo Akademi Institute for Hu- civil society organisations, national human man Rights. In October, the HRC organised a rights institutions, equality bodies, offices of training on human rights in public procurement ombudsmen, and researchers. Former Presi- for the staff of the Office of the Parliamentary dent of Finland honoured the Ombudsman. In addition, numerous groups event with her presence. of university students visited the HRC to learn about its activities. The HRC is often invited to speak at events organised by other actors. During the year,

14 ABOVE: Heli Aikio and Jessika Lampi’s Aila Duo performed at the dinner event organised for the partici- pants of the December conference.

2.1.3 fundamental and human rights research semi- Research nar aiming to find ways to develop research conducted in Finland. The event was a success, The Human Rights Centre’s limited resources and the seminar is intended to become an an- hardly enable the Centre to pursue its own nual event, with universities conducting funda- research. However, the Centre has regularly mental and human rights research taking turns discussed the promotion of research on funda- organising it. mental and human rights with various research When preparing the event, NIEM conducted bodies. In 2015, the HRC paid special attention a preliminary mapping of Finnish human and to improving collaboration among researchers fundamental rights research, and seminar in the field of fundamental and human rights participants further discussed the idea of and on disseminating information on human creating a network of researchers working with rights research. fundamental and human rights issues. In early During the operating year, the HRC collabo- 2016, NIEM will conduct a study on human and rated with the Northern Institute for Environ- fundamental rights research in Finland, a pro- mental and Minority Law (NIEM) of the Univer- ject commissioned by the HRC. The shared-cost sity of Lapland Arctic Centre to support Finnish project will map the current state of research in research on fundamental and human rights. different fields and determine future research In September, NIEM and the HRC organised a needs. Once the survey is completed, the aim is

15 OPERATION OF THE HUMAN RIGHTS CENTRE IN 2015

to create a cooperation network for researchers 2.2 working with fundamental and human rights Reports on the implementation of issues. The HRC will also participate in the fundamental and human rights network. The HRC also worked with other research 2.2.1 institutes in the sector by providing speakers to Follow-up to the study on human rights various events and training courses. In March, education and training the HRC participated in an international confer- ence titled Minority Protection at a Crossroads, In 2014, the Human Rights Centre published organised by the Åland Islands Peace Institute. the first national baseline study on the imple- In September, one of the HRC’s experts chaired mentation of human rights education and train- the Scholars at Risk panel discussion on aca- ing in the Finnish education system. In 2015, demic freedom and human rights organised at the HRC focused on raising awareness of the the University of . In October, the HRC results of the study, particularly among authori- participated in a round table meeting with rep- ties and actors in the education and training resentatives of the National Institute for Health sector, as well as on the practical implementa- and Welfare (THL) to discuss the role of funda- tion of the recommendations that the Human mental and human rights in THL’s activities and Rights Delegation adopted on the basis of the opportunities for cooperation. A separate meet- study, and on monitoring the impact of the ing on the rights of persons with disabilities study. was organised among THL, the HRC and the Towards the end of the year, the HRC con- Office of the Parliamentary Ombudsman. ducted a mid-term evaluation of the implemen- tation of the Human Rights Delegation’s recom- mendations and the effectiveness of the study. The table below summarises the recommenda- tions and the progress made. Some positive steps have been achieved with regard to all recommendations. Thus, it can be concluded that the study has had a significant impact on human rights education and training in Finland and the authorities are familiar with its results. The study has been referred to, for example, in the Government of Finland Human Rights Report 2014. It has contributed to the report’s policy guideline no. 33, which recommends that the next national action plan on fundamen- tal and human rights should contain a section on human rights education and training. The study has also been of great benefit to other actors in the field, such as civil society organisa- tions, which have been able to promote human rights education and training by referring to the reliable and comprehensive research data included in the study.

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Recommendation Progress

The Government will draft an action plan on 1. The Government should draft an action plan for human rights education and fundamental and human rights in 2016. Human training. rights education and training are a central ele- ment in the preparation of the action plan.

2. Human rights should be included in all Some progress has been made: e.g. human forms of education and training. rights have been given a more prominent role in the new national core curricula for basic educa- tion and upper secondary education. The new core curricula will be gradually implemented, starting from autumn 2016. Local and school- specific curricula have not yet been finalised, making it impossible to evaluate the practical impact of the reforms.

3. Human rights education should support Recommendations 2 and 3 go hand in hand. In and promote the realisation of a learn- the new national core curricula for basic and up- ing environment where human rights are per secondary education, human rights are also respected. taken into account in sections concerning the school learning environment.

4. The human rights knowledge and skills A working group established by the Ministry of teachers and educators should be of Education and Culture published in 2014 a strengthened. report on how democracy and human rights objectives are implemented and their content processed in teacher training in universities and polytechnics. The report included several rec- ommendations for improving teacher education and training. The HRC baseline study contrib- uted to the launch of this survey.

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Recommendation Progress

5. The human rights knowledge and Responsibility for the training of public of- skills of public servants and other ficials lies primarily with the Government. persons exercising public power and Human rights training for public servants functions should be ensured. and other persons exercising public power and functions will hopefully be included in the future action plan on fundamental and human rights. Since the study was complet- ed, the HRC has provided training for public officials at the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Justice and HAUS. The Ministry of Justice published in 2013 a new version of a guidebook for those drafting legal texts (Lainkirjoittajan opas). The guide provides comprehensive information on how to take fundamental and human rights into account when drafting legislation.

6. The materials and methods for teaching The more central role of human rights human rights should be developed. education in the national core curricula will be reflected in the teaching and learning materials used in comprehensive schools and upper secondary schools.

7. Human rights education, teaching, Representatives of the Office of the Parlia- learning and knowledge should be mentary Ombudsman met representatives monitored, evaluated and devel- of the Finnish Education Evaluation Centre oped. (FINEEC) in the autumn of 2015. Among other things, they discussed the importance of human rights education and training in the evaluation of education. The Parliamen- tary Ombudsman and the HRC will continue to draw attention to the matter.

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2.2.2 Concerns were also expressed regarding the Persons with disabilities and their access to subjecting of services to competitive tendering their rights and the privatisation of services, the pressure of austerity in public finances, and the imple- In the autumn of 2015, the Human Rights mentation of the municipalities’ obligation to Centre conducted a broad round of interviews provide advice. Moreover, disabled people’s with the lawyers and other advisory employees inclusion, individual needs and ability to influ- of organisations representing persons with dis- ence decisions affecting their own lives are not abilities. The aim was to map the advisory ser- currently implemented and taken into account vices complementing the services provided by in a manner that would enable them to fully the authorities and to obtain information about participate in society. the most common problems disabled persons A report on the survey will be published in face in their everyday lives. Through the meet- early 2016. ings, the HRC was also able to significantly expand its network of contacts among disabled people’s organisations, and the organisations In the interviews conducted by the HRC, received information about the HRC’s activities. disabled people’s organisations high- The survey focused particularly on the rep- lighted numerous problems that affect resentative organisations and rights of persons the daily life of disabled persons and with disabilities, but meetings were also held the implementation of their fundamental with organisations representing the interests and human rights. of other vulnerable groups. The purpose of the survey was to map the coverage, volume, type and target group of the advisory services pro- vided by the organisations. The interviews also 2.3 highlighted more extensive themes and shared Initiatives and statements problems. According to disabled people’s organisations, shortcomings concern, for exam- In 2015, the Human Rights Centre gave sev- ple, interpretation services provided to persons eral statements and comments to parliamen- with disabilities, the accessibility of information, tary committees, ministries and international electronic services and access to information bodies. The statements are listed in the boxes as well as mobility and transportation services. below.

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Statements by the HRC in 2015:

• Own-initiative statement to the Administration Committee of Parliament on the govern- ment bill (HE 298/2014 vp) to the Parliament for an act to amend the Public Servants Act and for certain related acts • Statement to the Administration Committee of Parliament on the Government’s Human Rights Report • Statement to the Foreign Affairs Committee of Parliament on the Government’s Human Rights Report • Statement to the Social Affairs and Health Committee of Parliament on the government bill (HE 284/2014 vp) to the Parliament on accepting the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and its Optional Protocol as well as on acts bringing into force the provisions of the Convention and its Protocol pertaining to legislation and amending the Parliamentary Ombudsman Act • Statement to the Ministry of Education and Culture on a draft government bill for an act on early childhood education and care • Statement to the Finnish National Board of Education on a draft core curriculum for upper secondary education • Statement to the Ministry of Justice on a draft government decree on a network of contact persons for fundamental and human rights • Own-initiative statement to the Ministry of Justice on the draft government bill for the courts act and certain related acts as well as on the report Developing the training of judges (Tuomareiden koulutuksen kehittäminen, Reports and statements 38/2015) related to the project • Statement to the Ministry for Foreign Affairs on the draft explanatory memorandum of the Recommendation of the Council of Europe Committee of Ministers on the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights • Statement to the Ministry of Justice on draft guidelines on consultations in statute drafting • Statement to the Ministry of Education and Culture on a draft government bill for a new youth act • Statement for the 2016 annual report of the Ombudsman for Children

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Statements to international organisations in 2015:

• Statement to the European Parliament’s rapporteur on the situation of fundamental rights in the EU Member States • Statement to the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights on equal participa- tion in political and public affairs • Statement to the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights on the role of pre- vention in the promotion and protection of human rights • Statement to the International Coordinating Committee of National Institutions for the Pro- motion and Protection of Human Rights on the participation rights of A-status NHRIs in the UN system • Statement to the UN Special Rapporteur on the rights of persons with disabilities on the right of persons with disabilities to social protection • Statement to the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights on civil society space • Statement to the UN Independent Expert on the enjoyment of all human rights by older persons on the human rights implications of the implementation of the Madrid International Plan of Action on Ageing (MIPAA) • Statement to the UN Special Rapporteur on the rights of persons with disabilities on the right of persons with disabilities to participate in decision-making

In addition, responses were submitted to questionnaires and queries sent by, for example, the UN Special Rapporteur on minority issues, the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights, the European Ombudsman as well as NRHIs and their networks.

2.4 received by Director Sirpa Rautio and Expert Participation in European and Kristiina Kouros from the HRC together with international cooperation Parliamentary Ombudsman Petri Jääskeläinen and Secretary General Päivi Romanov from the In accordance with its statutory tasks, the Hu- Office of the Parliamentary Ombudsman. man Rights Centre participates in European The European Network of National Human and international cooperation related to the Rights Institutions (ENNHRI) is one of the HRC’s promotion and protection of fundamental and most important international partners. During human rights. The most important coopera- the year, the HRC participated in the work of tion bodies and partners for the HRC are the ENNHRI’s Working Group on the implementa- networks of NHRIs, as well as the human rights tion of the UN Convention on the Rights of bodies of the UN, the bodies of the Council of Persons with Disabilities, Business and Human Europe, and the EU Agency for Fundamental Rights Working Group and the advisory group Rights (FRA). of ENNHRI’s EU-funded project on the human The ‘A’ status granted to Finland’s NHRI at rights of older persons and long-term care. the end of 2014 was officially awarded to the At the ENNHRI General Assembly meeting institution at the ICC General Meeting in Gene- in November, the HRC as the representative of va in March 2015. The accreditation status was Finland’s NHRI was elected as a member of the

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European Coordinating Committee of NHRIs 2.5 and to the ICC Bureau as of 1 March 2016. Cooperation with other fundamental and During the operating year, the HRC collabo- human rights actors rated with the Council of Europe particularly in connection with the conference held on In addition to the actors represented in the 10–11 December. The HRC also participated Human Rights Delegation, the Human Rights in a meeting on economic, social and cultural Centre also cooperates with other authorities, rights organised in Strasbourg by the Council of organisations and research institutions working Europe, FRA, ENNHRI and Equinet, the Euro- with fundamental and human rights matters. pean Network of Equality Bodies. Cooperation involves, for instance, meetings, Cooperation with the FRA was intensified af- information exchange, advocacy and the or- ter the HRC’s Director Sirpa Rautio was appoint- ganisation of events. Key cooperation partners ed as the independent representative of Finland among the authorities are the Government in the FRA Management Board in summer 2015. network of contact persons for fundamental In September, the Management Board appoint- and human rights, the Unit for Democracy, ed Michael O’Flaherty from Ireland as the Agen- Language Affairs and Fundamental Rights at cy’s new director. In November, the HRC partici- the Ministry of Justice, and the Unit for Human pated in the FRA’s national stakeholder meeting Rights Policy and the Unit for Human Rights organised in Vienna. The aim of the meeting was Courts and Conventions at the Ministry for to strengthen cooperation between FRA and its Foreign Affairs. various networks and for the first time to bring During the year, the HRC further expanded together all of the Agency’s national partners. its network of contacts through numerous The Director of the HRC participated in prepar- meetings with various civil society organisa- ing the event and held the opening speech. tions. The HRC’s activities were presented in a In connection with the theme “access to meeting organised for the network of lawyers rights”, the HRC also participated in the FRA’s working in different organisations, and the Cen- Clarity project. The aim of the project is to cre- tre met, for example, representatives of disa- ate an online portal that provides information bled people’s organisations and the experts of on where to turn to if one’s rights are violated in the national umbrella organisation SOSTE, the an EU country. The FRA launched a pilot version Finnish Federation for Social Affairs and Health. of the tool in the autumn of 2015. In November, the HRC organised a meeting In October, an HRC representative took part with the Finnish Immigration Service (Migri) on in an Asia-Europe conference on global ageing asylum and refugee issues. In the meeting, the and human rights of older persons, organised organisations discussed the asylum seeker situ- in Seoul, South Korea. In connection with the ation and their legal protection in the asylum conference, a special NHRI session was held in process and family reunification matters. order to discuss and plan global cooperation to Since February 2014, the HRC has invited promote the rights of older persons. authorities responsible for monitoring fun- During the operating year, the HRC also damental and human rights to joint meet- participated in the UN Forum on Business and ings. These authorities are the Parliamentary Human Rights, a European Commission work Ombudsman, the Chancellor of Justice of the forum on the UN Convention of the Rights of Government, the Ombudsman for Children, Persons with Disabilities, and international the Ombudsman for Equality, the Data Protec- training events on, for example, collaboration tion Ombudsman and the Non-Discrimination between NHRIs and international and regional Ombudsman. In 2015, these meetings were organisations. convened twice. Among other things, the par-

22 OPERATION OF THE HUMAN RIGHTS CENTRE IN 2015

ties discussed improving their cooperation and 2.7 exchanged information on current matters. Other tasks associated with the promotion The participants have considered the meetings and implementation of fundamental and useful and have expressed a wish to continue human rights cooperation in this form.

2.7.1 In 2015, the HRC expanded it networks Promoting the bringing into force of human particularly among civil society organisa- rights conventions and monitoring the imple- tions and researchers operating in differ- mentation of Finland’s international human ent fields. rights obligations

The duties of the Human Rights Centre also include other tasks which are associated with 2.6 the promotion and implementation of funda- Cooperation with Parliament mental and human rights but are not explicitly stated in its statutory tasks. According to the The Human Rights Centre maintains a dialogue Government Bill on establishing the HRC, the with Parliament through, for example, state- most important one of these would be to follow ments, committee hearings, events and meet- independently that Finland complies with inter- ings. Cooperation has been closest with the national human rights conventions, implements Constitutional Law Committee and the Parlia- the recommendations and decisions given by ment’s Human Rights Group. international monitoring bodies, and enforces Due to the parliamentary elections held in the judgements of the European Court of Hu- the spring, a central focus during the operating man Rights. year was raising awareness of the HRC among The HRC monitors the implementation of the new Members of Parliament. The HRC pre- Finland’s international human rights obligations sented its activities in a training event organ- particularly on the basis of the recommenda- ised for new MPs in May. The members of the tions given by international monitoring bodies. Constitutional Law Committee visited the Office It also presents written and oral opinions in of the Parliamentary Ombudsman and the HRC connection with periodic reporting and regu- in October, and in November a meeting was larly replies to questionnaires and queries of held with the members of Parliament’s Human UN human rights bodies concerning the human Rights Group. In October, the HRC’s Director rights situation in Finland. was called to speak to the Constitutional Law During the operating year, the HRC did not Committee about the FRA and its activities issue statements associated with periodic re- before the Committee’s visit to the FRA. porting. A list of the Centre’s other statements to UN bodies can be found in section 2.3. During 2015, some matters concerning the ratification of international human rights conventions were being prepared by the Gov- ernment and debated at Parliament. The HRC actively monitored the ratification processes and shared information on them through the HRC website, newsletters and Facebook. During the operating year, the HRC continued

23 OPERATION OF THE HUMAN RIGHTS CENTRE IN 2015

to promote the implementation of the UN Guid- protect and monitor the national implementa- ing Principles on Business and Human Rights at tion of the Convention. In Finland, this role the national level, for example by providing train- will be taken on by the entity consisting of the ing and information on the matter. In early 2015, Parliamentary Ombudsman, the Human Rights one of the HRC experts chaired a retail round Centre and its Delegation. This is the first statu- table convened by the Ministry for Foreign Affairs. tory duty assigned to Finland’s NHRI as a whole. The process resulted in the participants’, i.e. the Finland is expected to complete the ratifica- representatives of trade, civil society organisa- tion of the Convention in 2016. Even though tions and authorities, shared vision on how the UN the ratification process was still under way in principles should be implemented in the supply 2015, the HRC was already preparing for its up- chains of consumer goods retail. coming duties as part of the CRPD monitoring In May, the Director of the HRC chaired a mechanism. In February, the HRC issued a state- session in the event Combating Racism and In- ment to the Social Affairs and Health Commit- tolerance in Finland organised by the European tee of Parliament emphasising the importance Commission against Racism and Intolerance of the speedy ratification of the Convention. (ECRI) and the Non-Discrimination Ombuds- The Human Rights Delegation has a work- man. The event focused on ECRI’s report on ing group preparing the establishment of a Finland and the recommendations put forward disability section. During the year, the group in the report. discussed how persons with disabilities could In October, the HRC met the Advisory Com- be involved and participate in the work of the mittee monitoring the implementation of the monitoring mechanism, and the May meeting Council of Europe Framework Convention for of the Delegation focused on preparing for the the Protection of National Minorities during the new duties. The rights of persons with disabili- Committee’s visit to Finland. At the meeting, ties were a special focus area in the survey on the parties discussed the position and rights access to rights. In connection with the survey, of minorities in Finland. Deputy-Ombudsman meetings were held with Finnish disabled peo- Maija Sakslin and university researchers work- ple’s organisations. These meetings helped the ing in the field also took part in the meeting. HRC to prepare for its new task both in terms of gathering information and forming contacts with the organisations. During the operating The HRC provides information on the year, the HRC also conducted a preliminary human rights situation in Finland to, for mapping of the information provision needs example, the bodies of the UN and the on the CRPD and its ratification. In December, Council of Europe. the Director of the HRC spoke at a national event for municipal disability councils, explain- ing the Centre’s future role in promoting and monitoring the Convention. Moreover, the HRC 2.7.2 participated in the meetings of the Ministry for Preparing for functioning as the national Foreign Affairs’ coordination group on interna- monitoring mechanism for the UN Convention tional disability policy. on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities The HRC also took part in international cooperation concerning the Convention, for According to Article 33(2) of the UN Conven- example in ENNHRI’s CRDP Working Group. tion on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities The Working Group organised a two-day (CRPD), States Parties shall designate or estab- workshop in October, and Diane Kingston, a lish an independent mechanism to promote, member of the UN Committee on the Rights

24 ABOVE: The UN Special Rapporteur on the rights of persons with disabilities Catalina Devandas Aguilar (left) visited the HRC and the Parliamentary Ombudsman in May. On the right: Director Sirpa Rautio from the HRC.

of Persons with Disabilities, also attended the Promoting, protecting and monitoring the event. Even though Finland had not yet ratified UN Convention on the Rights of Persons the Convention, the HRC got to participate in with Disabilities is the first statutory duty April in a meeting between the EU Framework jointly assigned to Finland’s NHRI as a for monitoring the CRPD and national moni- whole. toring mechanisms to discuss cooperation between national and EU-level actors. In May, Catalina Devandas Aguilar, the UN Special Rapporteur on the rights of persons with dis- abilities, visited the HRC and the Parliamentary 2.7.3 Ombudsman during her visit to Finland to Participating in a survey on fundamental learn about the rights of persons with disabili- and human rights actors ties in Finland and the NHRI’s preparations for its new duties. In the spring of 2015, a working group es- tablished by the Ministry of Justice drew up a report on the position, division of responsibili- ties, and resources of national fundamental and

25 OPERATION OF THE HUMAN RIGHTS CENTRE IN 2015

human rights actors. The Director of the Human plan to promote fundamental and human rights Rights Centre chaired the working group, and in Finland. the Centre also provided the group with secre- According to the Human Rights Centre’s tarial assistance. Plan of Action 2015, monitoring the prepara- The report was the first survey of funda- tion of a potential new action plan on funda- mental and human rights actors operating in mental and human rights was one of the focus Finland. When conducting the survey, the work- areas of HRC’s monitoring activities. During the ing group organised several consultations with year, the HRC closely monitored the process the actors examined and civil society organisa- and promoted the launch of preparations for tions. The survey focused on, for example, the the action plan through its advocacy activities. tasks of the supreme overseers of legality, the In its dialogues with the authorities and other NHRI, special ombudsmen, advisory boards ap- actors in the field, the HRC particularly empha- pointed by the Government, and the network sised the importance of education and training of contact persons for fundamental and human on fundamental and human rights. In its state- rights. The actors’ own views on potential areas ment on the protection of fundamental and of development were also discussed. human rights in Government activities, adopted In its recommendations for improvements, on 5 October 2015, the Human Rights Delega- the working group emphasised that the con- tion also encouraged the Government to draw clusions and recommendations addressed to up a second national action plan on fundamen- Finland by international bodies monitoring hu- tal and human rights without delay. man rights treaties should be seen as tools that The preparation of the action plan moved the authorities and non-governmental actors forward in October 2015 when the Ministry of should use in their work. Moreover, consulta- Justice established a Government network of tions with organisations and other civil society contact persons for fundamental and human actors should be increased and their oppor- rights, consisting of representatives of differ- tunities to be involved and participate should ent ministries. One of the network’s tasks is to be enhanced. Different actors should have prepare the second national action plan on clearly defined tasks, and the effectiveness of fundamental and human rights during the year activities should be continuously evaluated. 2016 and to monitor its implementation. The Operating methods and forms of cooperation HRC participates in the network in an advisory should also be constantly developed to ensure role. efficiency.

The HRC participates in the Government 2.7.4 network of contact persons for fundamen- Second national action plan on fundamental tal and human rights in an advisory role. and human rights

The Government adopted Finland’s first Na- tional Action Plan on Fundamental and Human Rights 2012–2013 in March 2012. According to the Government Human Rights Report pub- lished in the autumn of 2014 and the position adopted by the previous Parliament in March 2015, the Government should during this term of Parliament prepare a second national action

26 OPERATION OF THE HUMAN RIGHTS CENTRE IN 2015

27 XXXX 3

Operation of the Human Rights Delegation in 2015

28 OPERATION OF THE HUMAN RIGHTS DELEGATION IN 2015

THE HUMAN RIGHTS CENTRE’S DELEGATION The meeting in May was organised as a functions as a national cooperative body of workshop focussing on the promotion, protec- fundamental and human rights actors, deals tion and monitoring of the UN Convention on with fundamental and human rights issues of a the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. The aim far-reaching significance and principal impor- of the workshop was to prepare for the new tance, and yearly approves the HRC’s plan of task assigned to Finland’s NHRI. In addition to action and annual report. The Delegation has a the members of the Human Rights Delegation, working committee that prepares the Delega- the over 40 participants at the event included tion’s meetings and sections which also include representatives of civil society organisations, external experts. The Delegation is chaired by ministries, regional state administrative agen- the Director of the HRC. The HRC’s representa- cies, the National Supervisory Authority for tives also chair the sections and act as their Welfare and Health (Valvira) and the Office of secretaries. the Parliamentary Ombudsman. The year 2015 was the last full operating In the workshop, participants received basic year of the first Human Rights Delegation. The information on the Convention and on legisla- Delegation met four times. The HRC and its tion on the right of self-determination, which Delegation paid special attention to the rights plays a key role in the ratification of the Con- of persons with disabilities and other vulner- vention. Smaller working groups discussed dis- able persons and monitored the new Govern- abled people’s participation in the promotion, ment’s actions in fundamental and human monitoring and protection of the Convention, rights issues. In accordance with the plan of the monitoring and indicators of the Conven- action, the dialogue among different actors tion, and the use of complaints and inspections within the Delegation was further developed in protection activities under the Convention. and strengthened. Visiting speakers were Marianne Schulze, a The Human Rights Delegation’s long-term human rights consultant from the Austrian theme “access to rights” was reflected particu- independent monitoring committee, Johannes larly in the HRC’s activities when the Centre Carniel, a legal expert from the Austrian Om- surveyed the advisory services provided by budsman Board, and Maria Ventegodt Liisberg, disabled people’s organisations and drew up the director of the Equal Treatment Department a report based on the survey in the autumn. at the Danish Institute for Human Rights. The HRC kept the Delegation informed about At the October meeting, the Human Rights the progress of the survey, and the report work Delegation adopted a statement on the protec- plan was discussed in the Delegation’s working tion of fundamental and human rights in all committee. Government activities. With the statement, the The Delegation held its first meeting of the Delegation wanted to remind the Government year in March. At the meeting, the Delegation of the legally binding nature of fundamental adopted the HRC’s Annual Report 2014 and and human rights and of the fact that the funda- its Plan of Action 2016, in accordance with its mental rights enshrined in the Constitution of statutory tasks. The Delegation also adopted Finland apply to all people residing in the coun- its rules of procedure. Parliamentary Ombuds- try. The Delegation considered it very important man Petri Jääskeläinen gave a presentation on that the Government assess in advance how the key observations and shortcomings concerning measures it proposes, such as spending cuts, fundamental and human rights. After the talk, affect the implementation of rights. Moreover, the Delegation discussed, for example, access the Delegation encouraged the Government to to services and the implementation of funda- draw up an action plan on fundamental and hu- mental and human rights in Finland. man rights. It also drew attention to the rights

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ABOVE: Legal Adviser Juha-Pekka Konttinen (second from the left) from the Office of the Parliamentary Ombudsman presents the contents of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities at the Hu- man Rights Delegation’s workshop. Also included in the picture are Elina Hakala, Kalle Könkkölä and Liisa Murto.

of the Sámi people, Finland’s refugee and asy- 2012–2015. After the presentation, the partici- lum policy and the increase in hate speech. pants discussed, for example, strengthening In addition to adopting the statement, the viewpoint of fundamental and human rights the Delegation heard representatives of the in teaching and learning materials. Moreover, Ministry for Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of the chairs of the Delegation’s sections de- Justice, who spoke about current fundamental scribed the sections’ work during the year. and human rights matters in the ministries’ One of the key themes of the meeting was work. Timo Koivurova, a member of the Del- enhancing the advocacy work and communica- egation, also gave a short presentation on the tion concerning fundamental and human rights. outcomes and benefits of the 30th anniversary The theme was introduced by Non-Discrimina- seminar of the Northern Institute for Environ- tion Ombudsman Kirsi Pimiä, a member of the mental and Minority Law held in autumn 2015 Delegation, and Senior Advisor Heli Suominen and the research days organised in connection from the Miltton communications agency. The with the seminar. Delegation discussed, among other things, at At the last meeting of the year, the Delega- what point in the bill drafting process and how tion was given a presentation on the HRC’s organisations and other actors should try to report on its activities concerning fundamental influence the contents of acts. There was also and human rights education and training in colourful discussion on the means and target

30 OPERATION OF THE HUMAN RIGHTS DELEGATION IN 2015

groups of communication. The Delegation of human rights education. Visiting experts considered the presentations and discussions have also given presentations at the meetings. useful and would like advocacy-related themes The section has contributed to the advocacy to remain on its agenda in the future. work and exchange of information concerning All Delegation meetings also dealt with the human rights education and training and the current activities of the HRC. In addition, the coordination of related activities in Finland. In members of the Delegation informed others 2015, it convened three times. Topics covered about the events and training sessions they had in the meetings include monitoring the impact organised and about topical legislative reforms. of the study on human rights education and To select the members of the next Delega- training, human rights education and training in tion, an open application procedure for the the future national action plan on fundamental term from 1 April 2016 to 31 March 2020 was and human rights, the UN World Programme organised from 8 December 2015 to 8 January for Human Rights Education, the reform of the 2016. A total of 110 applications were received core curricula for basic and upper secondary by the deadline. education, and the HRC’s future activities in the field of human rights education and training. During the year, the section also discussed the In 2015, the Human Rights Delegation human rights education and training projects paid particular attention to the rights carried out at universities and the need to de- of persons with disabilities and other velop the human rights education and training vulnerable groups and monitored the new provided at universities. Government’s actions in fundamental and human rights issues. 3.2 Section for monitoring the implementation of fundamental and human rights 3.1 Human rights education At its last meeting in 2014, the Human Rights and training section Delegation decided to continue the mandate of the section for monitoring the implementation The human rights education and training of fundamental and human rights (‘the monitor- section was established on 12 June 2012 to ing section’) until the end of the Delegation’s function as a steering group for the national term. baseline study on human rights education and 2015 was a year of parliamentary elections, training and to help prepare recommendations and a new Government was formed. Thus, the based on the study. The study was published year was exceptional in terms of monitoring on 14 February 2014. A decision was made to fundamental and human rights, which is why extend the section’s mandate beyond the publi- the section only convened once. During the cation. It was entrusted with the task of promot- year, the section waited for the fundamental ing and monitoring the implementation of the and human rights policies of the new Govern- study and in particular of the recommendations ment and Finland’s report on the implementa- based on it. This task also covers international tion of the UN’s International Convention on recommendations. the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Dis- In addition to Delegation members, the sec- crimination. The report was not completed until tion has included expert members representing December. The topics covered at the section the academia and key organisations in the field meeting included the direction and priority ar-

31 ABOVE: Members of the Human Rights Delegation and Human Rights Centre staff on a meeting break. From left to right: Hamed Shafae, Tiina Valonen, Ida Sulin, Tuomas Kurttila, Markku Jokinen, Aija Salo, Kirsi Pimiä, Esa Ylikoski, Maija Sakslin, Pirkko Mäkinen, Sirpa Rautio (HRC), Kimmo Hakonen, Riitta Ollila, Göran Johansson, Kristiina Kouros (HRC), Jouni Mykkänen, Amina Sarpola (HRC) and Hanna Rönty (HRC).

eas of the Human Rights Centre’s own monitor- According to Article 33(3), civil society, in par- ing activities and the schedule for international ticular persons with disabilities and their repre- periodic reports. The members of the section sentative organisations, shall be involved and considered it necessary to enhance the moni- participate fully in the monitoring process. The toring activities and to raise awareness of them involvement and participation of persons with so that scattered information could be gathered disabilities and their representative organisa- in a more systematic manner. tions will be realised through a permanent dis- ability rights section established for the Human Rights Delegation. 3.3 A working group for preparing the estab- Working group for preparing the lishment of the section was appointed by a establishment of a disability section decision of the Human Rights Delegation on 9 December 2013 for the period of 1 January to The Parliamentary Ombudsman, the Human 30 June 2014. The term was extended until the Rights Centre and the Human Rights Delega- actual section is established. The members of tion will perform the duties of promoting, the working group have included members of protecting and monitoring the UN Convention the Delegation representing disabled people’s on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, as organisations. Representatives of the Ministry laid down in Article 33(2) of the Convention. for Foreign Affairs, the Office of the Non-Dis-

32 OPERATION OF THE HUMAN RIGHTS DELEGATION IN 2015

crimination Ombudsman and the Office of the group also discussed progress in the ratification Parliamentary Ombudsman have participated of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons in the group’s work as expert members. with Disabilities and considered different ways In 2015, the working group convened three in which the HRC and the Parliamentary Om- times to discuss the rules concerning the dis- budsman could involve persons with disabili- ability section to be included in the rules of pro- ties in their tasks under the Convention. cedure of the Human Rights Delegation. The

33 XXXX

Abbreviations

34 ABBREVIATIONS

CRPD Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities ECRI European Commission against Racism and Intolerance ENNHRI European Network of National Human Rights Institutions EU European Union FRA European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights HRC Human Rights Centre ICC International Coordinating Committee of National Institutions for the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights NHRI National Human Rights Institution NIEM Northern Institute for Environmental and Minority Law OHCHR Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights OSCE Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe STETE Finnish Committee for European Security THL National Institute for Health and Welfare UN United Nations

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