Lebanon Centers

Known Centers based in Lebanon

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Lebanon Centers The Institute for Human Rights (Beirut Bar Association) The Institute for Women's Studies in the Arab World (IWSAW)

The Institute for Human Rights (Beirut Bar Association)

Year Established:

Short Historical Background

The Institute for Human Rights is a specialized body within the Beirut Bar Association. Headed by the President of the Bar Association, the Institute is run by a member of the Bar Association known for his competence and experience in the field of human rights. The director is appointed for a period of three years by the executive board of the Bar Association.

Objectives

The Institute aims at promoting universal values stated in the Lebanese constitution and in the United Nations conventions of human rights. The Institute strives to distribute the texts of these conventions, monitor their implementation in Lebanon by publishing special reports, as well as prepare draft laws designed to harmonize the domestic legislations with the international human rights standards. It also seeks to establish a series of precedents and special legal opinions which, in due time, will lead to the integration of principles of the conventions in local legislation.

Programs and Activities

Training - the Institute offers, in cooperation with international organizations and institutes specialized in human rights, training sessions on the subject of human rights, to all members of the legal, administrative and judicial professions. These sessions include practical training on the implementation of the principles of international conventions on human rights in the internal judicial system; training to study, in a comparative perspective, the judicial practices in other countries; and training sessions to understand the monitoring mechanisms and regulations adopted by human rights treaties in order to promote their implementation.

Seminar and Conference Organizing – since its establishment, the Institute has held periodic seminars and conferences on various issues regarding human rights in Lebanon in particular, and human rights in general. These events are held in Arabic, English, and French, and are attended by participants from Lebanon and abroad.

Research and Publication - the Institute distributes a series of publications including conference proceedings and various human rights materials. These materials range from books to newsletters and are available in Arabic, English, and French. Some of the institute’s works are accessible on its website (http://www.humanrightslebanon.org/index.html).

Publications

• Qadaya – periodic newsletter (Arabic)

• Combating Torture: A Compilation of International Instruments on the Elimination of Torture (2002)

• Introduction to the Lebanese Criminal Code (2001)

• Making Standards Work: an International Handbook on Good Prison Practice (1997)

Other Information

The Bar Association has a library located at the Courthouse in Beirut that offers various books and other publications on human rights in Arabic, English, and French languages.

Address

Institute for Human Rights

- Beirut Bar Association

Court House Beirut - Lebanon

ph (961) 01422204 /01-422205 ext. 220 or 222 /01-423943

fax (961) 01-423943

e-mail: idh@inco.com.lb

www.humanrightslebanon.org/index.html

The Institute for Women's Studies in the Arab World (IWSAW)

Year Established: 1973

Short Historical Background

The Lebanese American University founded the Institute for Women's Studies in the Arab World (IWSAW) in 1973. The history of the Institute is closely linked to that of the first women's college in the Middle East, the America Junior College for Women, which was established in 1924 by the Presbyterian Mission. The College, which educated Middle Eastern women for half a century, became coed in 1973. In order to honor the college's unique heritage as the first educational institution for women in the region, the Institute for Women's Studies in the Arab World was established that same year.

Objectives

IWSAW aims

1) To serve as a catalyst for policy changes regarding the rights of women in the Arab world

2) To engage in academic research on women in the Arab world

3) To empower women in the Arab world through development programs and education

4) To facilitate networking and communication among individuals, groups and institutions concerned with women in the Arab world.

Programs

IWSAW mainly designs and implements development programs aimed at promoting literacy and enhancing social and political awareness. Here are some examples of IWSAW's development programs:

Basic Living Skills - the Basic Living Skills Program is a non-formal integrated educational kit in Arabic geared towards illiterate and semi-literate women in the Arab world, available in both hard and digitized form. Its users are social workers and educators affiliated to non-governmental organizations, governmental institutions and international organizations involved in community development programs.

Empowering Arab Women Through Literacy, 2005 - Empowering Arab Women through Literacy is a series of twelve second-level literacy booklets based on IWSAW's Basic Living Skills Program. Through short stories, it addresses issues such as civic education and conflict control, women's empowerment, violence against women, health, and the environment.

Rehabilitation and Vocational Training Program for Women in Lebanese Prisons - in view of the precarious living conditions of incarcerated women in Lebanon and the overwhelming needs observed and expressed by these women, IWSAW initiated rehabilitation and intensive vocational training programs in the Lebanese women's prisons. Lebanese and non-Lebanese incarcerated women benefited from the program, namely in Tripoli.

Activities

Training - the IWSAW conducts training sessions on the use and implementation of the Basic Living Skills Program. Moreover, IWSAW offers training on the new literacy program throughout Lebanon.

Academic Activities - a variety of women's studies courses are offered at the Lebanese American University through IWSAW. The institute also sponsors research in women related issues.

Event Organizing - IWSAW hosts national, regional, and international conferences, in addition to seminars and workshops related to women's issues. Moreover, the institution hosts special events such as an annual Film Festival (since 2000) and the International Women's Day (since 1998).

Research - IWSAW undertakes research on various issues such as the following:

• Women and the Environment

• Women and Education

• Women in Literature

• Women and Economic Development

• Women in Management

• Women in the Media

• Women in History

• Women and Politics.

Publications

• Al-Raida - quarterly journal (Arabic and English)

• Women, media, and sustainable development (1996)

• Women and work in Lebanon (1985)

• Women in Islam (Arabic) (1990)

• Contemporary women's movement (Arabic) (1988)

• Women in time: Profiles of activists in the Lebanese women's movement up to 1975 (Documentary)

Address

Institute for Women's Studies in the Arab World

Lebanese American University

P.O.Box: 13-5053,

Chouran Beirut: 1102 2801, Lebanon

ph (961)-1-791645

e-mail: dima.sensenig@lau.edu.lb

http://www.lau.edu.lb/centers-institutes/iwsaw/index.html