Human Rights Programs of Human Asia
SOH ChangrokFounded in January 2006, Human Asia is striving to establish an
Asian regional human rights protection system and to realize a peaceful coexistence of the diverse cultures of Asia. In order to improve
the human rights situation in Asia, Human Asia carries out human rights
advocacy activities and campaigns, organizes field activities utilizing humanitarian aid, coordinates educational and training programs to nurture
young human rights activists, and regularly publishes human rights reports. In July 2015, Human Asia became associated with the United Nations
Department of Public Information (dpi) that enabled it to collaborate with
the UN Information Centers in the area of communications and outreach.
Human Rights Education Program
Human Asia offers a wide range of educational and training opportunities tosupport and train the youth (particularly teenagers), young adults, and human rights activists, and help them to acquire experience and knowledge ofhuman rights situations in Asia. Valuing the youth who are ultimately leading the future, Human Asia believes that the youth are the ones who haveto know their human rights, and take responsibility to protect themselves,
their peers and their communities. Thus, Human Asia developed a series ofhuman rights programs for different age groups and tailored to their level ofunderstanding. The programs aim to raise awareness about the challenges
faced in Asia, and to make them active in the cause of human rights.
Human Rights School for Teenagers
This program takes place once every spring and autumn with various
human rights topics targeting lower and upper secondary students. Lectureson human rights and group activities allow the students to learn and shareknowledge with peers. The three-hour classes are held in Korean language.
Students who participate in this program are generally more interested inhuman rights than average peers, and likely to join every human rights classdue to their interest on various topics being offered. Students are not only
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able to learn contemporary human rights issues, but also engage in activities
that promote equity, justice, and human dignity for all people.
The most recent human rights school for teenagers took place in
September 2017. Titled “Women’s Rights through Films,” students learned
the history of women’s rights and how the rights of women were portrayedin current films. Topics on women’s rights include suffrage, fight against
discrimination and sexual abuse, and initiatives to realize women’s rights.
Students watched short clips of movies, expressed their thinking about themain theme or topic related to the movies, and listened to lectures related
to the topics that arose in the movies. For example, students watched twoto three-minute movie clips of Suffragette (2015) and learned the meaningof women’s suffrage followed by a discussion of the opposition to women’s
suffrage in the past. In discussing the fight against discrimination, some students brought up problems that they themselves witnessed inside classes
or school. As a final activity, students presented their opinions discussed insmall groups on movies assigned to them.

Human Rights School for Teenagers.

Global Human Rights School
This program is held in English every summer for Korean students
studying abroad or non-Korean speaking students in Korea who have interest in human rights issues. Lectures on various human rights topics andgroup activities are held to allow the students to gain in-depth knowledge ofhuman rights. The classes under this program run for eight hours including

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lectures, lunch and group activity. They are encouraged to take advantageof the invited lecturers and staff to fully understand the human rights topic
and to closely work with fellow participants in the group discussion. Similar
to the Human Rights School for Teenagers, students in this program are not
only able to learn the contemporary human rights issues, but also learn how
to take action that promote equity, justice, and human dignity for all people
through a street campaign activity.
The Global Human Rights School of 2017 was a joint activity withthe 3rd Korea Refugee Film Festival that took place in Deahan Theater in
Chungmuro, Seoul on 24 June 2017. The students worked as volunteers bypromoting the film festival to passersby early in the morning before the startof the festival. They attended the morning session of the 3rd Korea Refugee
Film Festival, and watched two documentary films (Salvation and Limbo).
After showing the movies, the director and the movie star, Jung Woosung,shared the stories behind them. The discussion was meant to make the participants become familiar with the term “refugee” and what people aroundthe world were working on to make the situation better. In the afternoon,a lawyer gave a lecture while a former refugee from Australia did a handson learning activity. The film festival participants were able to understandhow refugees were removed from their homes against their will for various
reasons and the difficulty of preparing the appropriate personal belongings
to bring in their precarious journey ahead. After the lecture, students joineda street campaign by holding signs and information panels to raise publicawareness on refugee rights.

Global Human Rights School.

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Visiting Human Rights School for Teenagers
Similar to above programs, Human Asia organizes visits to schools or
their human rights clubs upon request to undertake educational activities.
These activities are tailored to the request received. A minimum number ofthirty students is required for the school visit to be held.
Human Asia recently visited Hankuk Academy of Foreign Studies located in Yongin (outside Seoul). The school was celebrating its annual “Human
Rights Festival,” and the human rights club in the school specifically wished
to learn about the North Korean human rights situation and the plight ofdefectors. The club members made posters to show the human rights violations faced by North Koreans. Human Asia invited the President of New
Korea Women’s Union, an organization promoting the rights of North
Korean women defectors to speak before the students. As a former soldier, she told vivid stories on the life of ordinary people in her home region,
Hamkyeongbuk-do, in North Korea and the human rights violation cases
involving the army. The students were very knowledgeable on the North
Korean human rights situation, and asked questions regarding freedom of
religion or freedom of movement based on the documentaries they previously watched.

Visiting Human Rights School, Yonging.

Asia Human Rights Forum
The Asia Human Rights Forum aims to create a strong regional networkthat will contribute to the establishment of an effective human rights protection mechanism in Asia. Every year, the forum deals with human rights
issues that are of common concern in the region. Human rights practitio-

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ners, scholars, and government representatives come together to identify
and contemplate on possible solutions to these problems.
The forum was first held in 2006 and has been held annually since thento deal with the following issues: Child Labor and Trafficking; Regional
Cooperation for Migrant Children; Migrant Workers and Local Perceptionsof their Contribution; Protection of Ethnic Minority Refugees; and most recently on Business and Human Rights.
It offers both general sessions on the international human rights norms
and human rights protection mechanisms, and thematic sessions on contemporary issues and case studies in Asia.
In August 2016, the 10th Asia Human Rights Forum took place under
the title of “Prospects and Challenges of Regional Cooperation for Human
Rights Protection and Promotion in Asia.” The forum hosted a variety of extensive and comprehensive discussions while highlighting the need for governance and human rights improvements in the international community.
The forum took a multilateral approach in promoting unity and peace by advocating for the practical and fundamental role of institutional and regional
human rights regime, and by inspiring interest in its foundation not only bySouth Korea but by neighboring countries and the Asian region as a whole.
In April 2017, the 11th Asia Human Rights Forum took place under thetitle of “Human Rights and Asian Corporate Leadership.” The forum recognized the acceleration of the globalization of the world economy and thedramatic increase of the role of corporations in such a situation. The corporations were recognized as critical entities in realizing development goals,
and not passive players that comply with rules and laws of states on laborand environmental issues. The forum brought together corporate and civilsociety stakeholders who shared perspectives, discussed challenges, and devised ways of ensuring greater business respect for human rights. In addition, there were discussions on ways to systematize the implementation of
mechanisms that integrate education and research and enhance corporate
capability in linking human rights to business.
Workshop for Young Human Rights Activists
Human Asia’s annual Workshop for Young Human Rights Activists Program
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10th and 11th Asia Human Rights Forum.

over two hundred prospective local human rights activists attending it. The
training program is aimed at nurturing human rights activists in Asia whowill contribute to making better places to live for the most vulnerable andmarginalized sectors in the region. The topics of the program include childHuman Rights Programs of Human Asia

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labor, human trafficking, migrant children and workers, refugees acrossAsia, transitional justice and protection and promotion of human rights in
Asia through regional cooperation.
In 2017, the 12th Young Human Rights Activists Workshop was held
as a thirty-day project instead of a joint workshop with the Asia Human
Rights Forum. It was sponsored by the city of Seoul and aimed to educate
the North Korean defectors and South Koreans interested in human rights
in North Korea. This workshop also worked to nurture future leaders who
could improve the human rights of North Koreans and North Korean defectors through leadership development and empowerment as human rights
activists. The participants learned of the basic concept of human rights, issues being faced today, and the experience of human rights defenders who
were actively working in the field. They also put into practice their newly-acquired knowledge and skills through group activities, role plays, casestudies and discussion. In addition, the participants interacted with othercommitted individuals facing shared challenges in working for change intheir communities and shared tools and resources through building a network of human rights activists.

12th Young Human Rights Activists Workshop.

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H U M A N R I G H T S E D U C AT I O N I N A S I A - PA C I F I CModel UN Human Rights Council UPR
The Model United Nations (UN) Human Rights Council Universal Periodic
Review (upr), launched in 2013, is an annual program designed to provide agood opportunity for participants (mainly university or graduate students)
to broaden their awareness of international human rights issues and promote understanding of the cooperation between international organizations
and states. It allows them to explore ideas on how to solve human rights issues through international cooperation and develop diplomatic approaches
to human rights issues. The Model UN Human Rights Council upr gave
way to two programs: Model UN Human Rights Council upr Competition
for High Schools and International Model UN Human Rights Council upr.
Background
Since its establishment in 2006 as a new universal mechanism, the UN
Human Rights Council Universal Periodic Review (upr) process has become
an important instrument for the promotion and realization of human rights
in general as well as a uniquely comprehensive monitoring system. After thetwo cycles of the upr, a comprehensive source of information on the overallnational situation of human rights and the critical concerns relating to all of
the UN member-states has developed. The upr likewise encouraged the engagement of non-state actors including civil society and citizens on humanrights issues that contributed to the strengthening of the national humanrights system. In this regard, upr is playing an increasingly important rolein initiating and resuscitating multi-stakeholder dialogue and cooperationon contentious human rights issues.
Along with these developments, there is a growing number of students
interested in human rights and actively participating in human rights activities, yet there has always been a lack of interconnected programs to translate knowledge into practice. Students might have learned important humanrights concepts and issues through our human rights education programs
or from other channels, but they have insufficient opportunities to gain
in-depth knowledge or better understanding of human rights protection
mechanisms.
To that end, in 2013, Human Asia along with Korea Human Rights
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the support of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Republic of Korea) initiated an annual human rights training program simulating the procedure of
the upr. Since then, Human Asia has successfully been hosting the model
upr for college and graduate students, which provided better understanding of the inner workings of the upr of the Human Rights Council throughhands-on-learning experience. Its international version is designed to lay
the foundation for cooperation among states to promote and protect humanrights, which is a worthwhile endeavor in maintaining peace and securityin Northeast Asia. Moreover, with the ability to operate and implement the
program, Human Asia expanded its scope to the youth in secondary schoolby successfully hosting the first and second model UN upr competitions
with grants from the U.S. Embassy in Seoul in 2016 and 2017.

4th Model UPR.

Human Asia firmly believes that the continuity of this project is important in order to further develop and broaden the scope of younger “humanrights resources” through a comprehensive educational program that the
project offers.
It will inaugurate the first International Model UN Human Rights
Council upr in 2018.
International Model UN Human Rights Council UPR
Participants from Northeast Asian countries in the International Model
UN Human Rights Council upr are expected to become responsible mem-

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bers of the international community because of higher level of awareness ofcontemporary human rights situations in Asia and to contribute to the creation of a regional mechanism for the promotion and protection of humanrights in Asia. Moreover, Human Asia strongly believes that the International
Model UN Human Rights Council upr, the very first simulating program of
upr in the region, will become a pioneering initiative that can be expanded
to other regions where the framework of this project is applicable.
This project, a simulation of upr of the UN Human Rights Council, aims
to increase understanding of the importance of the upr process as an effective mechanism to strengthen the national human rights system, provide abasis for regional cooperation, and broaden the view of the world throughinteractive discussion of current human rights challenges in Northeast
Asian countries. Through the experience of assuming the roles of representatives/diplomats of different countries and discussing specific human rights
issues, students/youth are expected to develop an appreciation of differing
viewpoints, develop a system for cooperation in the field of human rights
in Northeast Asian countries, and foster human rights sensitivity. They will
also be exposed to diplomatic language and environment, where they candevelop academic and practical skills such as research, public speaking,writing, critical thinking, teamwork, and leadership ability through negotiation agenda preparation, meeting new friends from neighboring countries
with similar interests, and experiencing the use of diplomatic language in a
diplomatic environment.
Program Methods and Design
The sessions in this project are designed to enhance understanding of
the UN Human Rights Council upr process in three ways.
First, an information session will be held to provide overall information on the upr and to introduce the Model UN upr system (along with
its objectives and modalities) as a new experiential human rights training
methodology. The information session will be held for both the participants
and the public to draw the attention of a wider audience.
Secondly, a series of lectures will be offered to participants who will
advance to the finals. Human rights experts will lecture on the international
human rights protection system and the diverse aspects of human rights.
A simulation of model upr will be also held to make participants increase
familiarity with the upr mechanism.

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Lastly, the finals will have a similar format as the UN Human Rights
Council upr process, comprising of a State under Review and the
Recommending States. Through a simplified UPR process, the participants
will have the opportunity to review some UN member-states. The working
language of the finals sessions will be English.
Activities of Model UN UPR
Participants taking part in the project will compete as a paired-up teamand as a national team. They are expected to research as a team on the contemporary human rights issues and foreign relations policies of the state
they represent as well as the recent upr recommendations (or those fromcurrent on-going cycle) and their implementation status. This will help
them prepare for answers when asked to represent a government agency of
the “State under Review (SuR).” Participants are also expected to raise questions, comments, and make recommendations to the state being reviewed,
when they take on the role of “Recommending States (RS).” This interactive
exercise will offer in-depth learning of human rights situations in represented states and contemporary challenges faced in Northeast Asian countries.
This project will also develop the academic and practical skills of participants by engaging in research, public speaking, writing, critical thinking,teamwork, and taking leadership role through a series of assignments. During
the preparation period, it will require immense teamwork in researchingnational reports, reports from the treaty bodies, special procedures andUN agencies, such as undp and unicef, and recommendations from theprevious two cycles of upr or current on-going cycle of upr. Students will
have opportunities to develop their ability to articulate social issues from ahuman rights perspective and to broaden their view of the world by taking
diplomatic relations and international human rights norms into account.
They will also be able to learn and develop public speaking skills using diplomatic language by delivering statements at the finals. Finally, participants
will learn about responsibility and cooperation while working as a team.
Concluding Statement
Training and education employing the experimental cognitive approachproved to be useful in building solidarity and activism for social justice at
local, national and international levels among the youth. Human Asia will

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continue to innovate and act as the leader in the human rights education
movement in Asia for the next few years through programs that are greatly
enriched by the participation of Asian human rights activists working on
diverse human rights challenges, and intensively engaged in human rights
programs.