The Human Rights Centre is an integral part of the Faculty of Law of Ghent University.The Centre aims at bringing together the expertise on human rights and freedoms within the Faculty of Law of the Ghent University.

There is a vacancy in the Human Rights Centre, a PhD fellow for the IAP project. Apply before 15 June 2013.

Contact details

Main address (Postal address): Human Rights Centre, Universiteitstraat 4, 9000 Gent, Belgium; email: hrc@ugent.be

Research group Prof. dr. Yves Haeck and Prof. dr. Johan Vande Lanotte: Visiting address: Paddenhoek 5, 2nd floor, 9000 Gent. tel: ++32 (0) 9 2646818, fax: ++32 (0) 9 2646995, email: hrc@ugent.be

Research group Prof. dr. Eva Brems: Visiting address: Universiteitstraat 6, 4th floor, 9000 Gent. tel: ++32(0) 9 2646911, fax: ++32 (0) 9 2646911, email: hrc@ugent.be

Research group Prof. dr. Dirk Voorhoof: Visiting address: Korte Meer 11, 2nd floor, 9000 Gent

Research

The main objective of the Centre is to promote and coordinate research in the field of human rights, provide education and disseminate nformation on human rights and freedoms, both in Belgium and abroad. Amongst others, special attention will be paid to cooperation with African and Latin American based universities, institutes and research centres. More on Research Projects...

An important part of the research conducted within the Centre has a legal orientation, encompassing both Belgian law and European and international law, as well as comparative analyses in the field of human rights. Apart from legal research, the Centre is also involved in interdisciplinary research related to human rights. It organises seminars and conferences at regular intervals on topics relating to human rights.

Third Party intervention in ECHR case Konstantin Markin v. Russia

In May 2011, the ERC research team of the Human Rights Centre submitted its first third party intervention to the Grand Chamber of the European Court of Human Rights in the case of Konstantin Markin v. Russia (May 2011), concerning gender discrimination.

Third Party intervention in ECHR case SAS v. France

In July 2012, the ERC research team of the Human Rights Centre submitted a second third party intervention to the European Court of Human Rights in the case of S.A.S. v. France, concerning face-veil ban in France.

Third Party intervention in ECHR case ES v. Sweden

In February 2013, the ERC research team of the Human Rights Centre submitted a third third party intervention to the European Court of Human Rights in the case of ES v. Sweden, concerning positive obligations.

Staff

The staff of the Human Rights Centre consists of experienced professors and researchers in the area of human rights and constitutional law. A number of the staff members are attached to the Centre as external researchers on a project basis. Various members of staff are involved in expert activitities concerning legislative reforms in the area of constitutional law and are giving advisory opinions with regard to matters of human rights law, amongst others at governmental level.

The staff members of the Centre are teaching in Belgium and are regularly invited abroad as speakers at seminars conferences on themes and issues related to human rights law and constitutional law.

Financing

The activities of the Centre are financed partly through the general budget of the Department of Public Law of the Faculty of Law and partly through external funding on a project basis, such as the Belgian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Department of European Affairs), the Belgian Federal Office for Scientific, Technical and Cultural Affairs (DWTC) and the Fund for Scientific Research Flanders (FWO-Vlaanderen).

Cooperation

The Human Rights Centre has established cooperation agreements and works together with the Netherlands Institute of Human Rights (SIM), the Norwegian Institute of Human Rights (NIHR) and the Department of Public Law of the University of the Western Cape (UWC), for example on the coordination of the International Human Rights Academy, IHRA i.e. a two weeks annually organized international course on human rights.