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Human Rights in the City of Light WHRCF-10 Is Coming to Town
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www.gwangjunewsgic.com
September 2020
he World Human Rights Cities Forum (WHRCF), marking its 10th anniversary this year, will be held under the theme of “The Future of Human Rights Cities: Local Memories and Global Sharing” from October 7 to 10 at the Kim Daejung Convention Center in Gwangju. The 10th Forum will be further enriched by the presence of two organizations: the UN OHCHR and UNESCO as co-hosts of the forum for the first time. The 10th WHRCF is paying special attention to the temporal arrangement of the human rights cities with reflection on the history of human rights at the local level being and being shared on the global level. It will assess the present while planning for the future of human rights cities – all within the continuous flow of time from past, to present, to future – as an effective way to enhance the sustainability of human rights cities. Therefore, it will be a place to discuss how we can inherit and incorporate historical memories and legacies of the past into a future human rights city through human rights education as a modern form of remembrance. In the plenary sessions, the mayors of human rights cities will discuss ways to broaden the Human Rights Cities movement and share the human rights policies implemented by local governments to mitigate the COVID-19 crisis as well as to talk about further challenges. In addition to thematic sessions, examining practical tasks to promote human rights for all citizens including the elderly, women, the disabled, and other minority groups; networking sessions; and special sessions will be scheduled to discuss and find solutions for ways to deal with human rights issues and to expand and cooperate within the human rights
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cities network. There will also be a workshop to discuss overall management of the Gwangju International Human Rights Training Center and the Blended Learning Course on Human Right Cities for local governments of the AsiaPacific region. Citizens can also participate in the special events and side events such as the Human Rights Discussion Groups and the Dark Tour via VR (virtual reality). The WHRCF is introducing advanced conference technology, creating the new goal of being a model for “digitect” international conferencing. “Digitect” refers to a new cultural reality allowing face-to-face interaction remotely through cutting-edge digital technology. Although it is difficult for foreign speakers to attend a face-to-face meeting due to the COVID-19 situation, participation by overseas mayors, which was previously difficult, has increased
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