Oral statements delivered at the Forum

Agenda Item 1 Opening remarks:

• Statement by the Vice-President of the Human Rights Council, H.E. Negash Kebret Botora
• Statement by the High Commissioner for Human Rights, Mr Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein
• Statement by the Special Rapporteur on Minority issues, Ms Rita Izsák-Ndiaye
• Remarks by the Chair of the Forum on Minority Issues, Dr Mario Yutzis

Agenda Item 2 Legal Framework and Key Concept

• Presentation by Prof. Geoff Gilbert, Professor of International Law, University of Essex
• Presentation by Dr Sandra Krähenmann, Research Fellow, Geneva Academy of International humanitarian law and human rights
• Presentation by Ms Christine Knudsen, Director, The Sphere Project, Humanitarian Charter and Minimum Standards in Humanitarian Response
• Presentation by Dr Felipe González, Professor of International Law and former President of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights

List of Speakers:

1. European Union of Coptic Organisation for Human Rights
2. Patriotic Vision
3. Bangladesh Hindu Buddhist and Christians Unity Council Europe
4. Austrian Coptic Association
5. Southern Mongolian Human Rights Information Center
6. Montenegro
7. United Copts of Great Britain
8. Khiam Rehabilitation Center for Victims of Torture
9. Dutch Coptic Association
10.  Association for Human Rights in Kurdistan of Iran - Geneva
11. Islamic Republic of Iran
12. Patriotic Arab Democratic Movement in Ahwaz (PADMAZ)
13. Direction aux Affaires Savoisiennes
14. Association Culturelle Kurde de Genève
15. Argentina
16. ADF International (Alliance Defending Freedom)
17. Georgia
18. Association des Nations de l’Hexagone
19. Peoples’ Republic of China
20. Kurdocide-Watch
21. United States of America
22. European Union
23. Triest NGO
24. Colombia
25. Council of Europe – Advisory Committee on the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities
26. Ecumenical Federation of Constantinopolitans
27. Chaldean International League [Arabic]
28. Ahwazi Centre for Human Rights

Agenda Item 3 Preventing or mitigating the impact of humanitarian crises on minorities

• Presentation by Dr Volker Türk, Assistant High Commissioner for Protection, United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Refugees, UNHCR
• Presentation by Dr Ojot Miru Ojulu, Former OHCHR Minority Fellow and Advocacy Officer at Lutheran World Federation
• Presentation by Ms Sara Sekkenes, Conflict Prevention Adviser, United Nations Programme for Development, UNDP
• Presentation by Ms Erlendy Cuero Bravo, Vice-president of the National Association of Displaced Afro-Colombians, AFRODES

Discussions:

1. Russian Federation
2. Kurdish Center for Legal Studies - YASA
3. Organization for Defending Victims of Violence (ODVV)
4. Jaffna Civil Society for Equality (JCSE)
5. OHCHR
6. Association pour la Promotion de la Francophonie en Flandre (APFF)
7. Institute for the Protection of Minority Rights
8. National Campaign for Dalit Human Rights (International Dalit Solidarity Network)
9. Asociatia Pro Regio Siculorum
10. Pouya Institute for Communications and Social Development
11. Iraq
12. Yazidi Child Survivor from ISIS Camp
13. Nareen Shammo
14. African Rights Monitor
15. Republic of Indonesia
16. Organisation of Kurmanj People
17. Civic Engagement Movement
18. Anti-Discrimination Centre Memorial
19. China Ethnic Minorities Association for External Exchanges (CEMAEE)
20. Federation of Western Thrace Turks in Europe (ABTTF)
21. World Barua Organization
22. Austria
23. Yezidis Cultural Centre
24. Yazidis Foundation - Netherlands
25. IRA – Mauritanie
26. AfriForum
27. Ogaden Peoples’ Rights Organisation (OPRO)
28. Liberation
29. Trieste United INGO
30. Voices for Peace
31. World Uyghur Congress
32. Freedom Front Plus
33. Comitato per il Censimento e il Riconoscimento del Popolo Veneto
34. Ogaden Young Women Group
35. Mbororo Social and Cultural Development Association
36. ARC.DH Association for the Defence for People of Azerbaijan
37. Information Group on Crimes Against the Person (IGCP)
38. Balochistan Human Rights Group
39. Ahwaz Human Rights Organization

Agenda item 4 Protecting minority rights during crises

• Presentation by Ms Michele Klein-Solomon, Director of the Migrants in Crisis Initiative (MICIC), International Migration Organisation (IOM)
• Presentation by Dr Chaloka Beyani, Professor of International Law, London School of Economics, and former UN Special Rapporteur on the human rights of Internally Displaced People
• Presentation by Ms Laura Ronkainen, Field Support Manager, Joint Internally Displaced Persons Profiling Services (JIPS)
• Presentation by Dr Farah Mihlar, Minority Rights Expert

Discussions:

1. Austria
2. Minority Rights Group Europe
3. Association Solidarité Internationale pour la Paix
4. Finland
5. Kurdish Committee for Human Rights in Syria
6. Pakistan (on behalf of the OIC)
7. Centre Zagros pour les Droits de l’Homme
8. Italy
9. Zero Discrimination Association [Turkish]
10. Hungary
11. Greece
12. Norway
13. Mr Andra Bethlendi
14. Minority Rights Group
15. Ukraine
16. UN Fellow for People of African Descent
17. Council Popular of Chaldean Syriac Assyrians
18. Stichting Hope for Niger Delta Campaign
19. Anglophone Cameroon Bloggers Network
20. Roma Women Network from Moldova
21. Asian Institute of Poverty Alleviation – India
22. Maloca Internationale
23. Christian Democratic Union of Poles in Vinnytsia
24. International Movement Against All Forms of Discrimination and Racism
25. Mr Makarios Al Qomos Samuel
26. Maspero Youth Union
27. Crimean Tatar Resource Center, Mejlis of the Crimean Tatar People
28. International Educational Development (INC)
29. People’s Empowerment Foundation
30. Iraq

Agenda Item 5: Recovering from crisis: ensuring durable solutions

• Presentation by Mr Andrew Wyllie, Director of Programme Support Branch, Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, OCHA
• Presentation by Ms Cecilia Jimenez-Damary, UN Special Rapporteur on human rights of Internally Displaced Persons
• Presentation by Ms Erivan Mahdi, OHCHR Minority Fellow and Yazidi activist from Iraq
• Presentation by Dieudonné Cardinal Nzapalainga, Archbishop of Bangui and President of Caritas Central African Republic

Discussion:

1. Pakistan
2. Nepal National Dalit Social Welfare Organisation (NNDSWO)
3. Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights
4. Argentina
5. Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organization
6. TAU South Africa
7. Egypt
8. Association du Développement et de la Promotion des Droits de l’Homme
9. Women’s Group for Human Rights
10. Armenia
11. South Africa
12. Canada
13. Ms Sanaa Al neamat
14. Syrian Arab Republic
15. The Union of Hungarian Students in Vojvodina
16. Mr Jalal Lazgeen
17. Russian Federation
18. Pakistan Dalit Solidarity Network
19. Ms Saba Al-nadawi
20. OHCHR Minority Fellows
21. Georgia Reforms Associates Grass
22. International Council Supporting Fair Trial and Human Rights
23. Sawa Organisation for Human Rights
24. Romania
25. Hungarian Round Table in Slovakia
26. Association for the Human Rights of the Azerbaijani People in Iran
27. Red Mujeres Afro Latinoamericanas Caribeñas Diaspora
28. Hungarian Cultural Association of Transcarpathia
29. Peace Makers
30. National Papoea Vereniging
31. Ms Suham Vacek
32. Ahwaz Education and Human Rights Foundation
33. Acheh-Sumatra National Liberation Front (ASNLF)
34. Republic of Indonesia
35. People’s Republic of China
36. Ethiopia
37. Iraq
38. Serbia
39. Islamic Republic of Iran

Closing Statements

• Closing remarks by the Special Rapporteur on Minority Issues, Ms Rita Izsak-Ndiaye