Follow-up Seminar on Business and Human Rights
HURIGHTS OSAKA organized a seminar on business and human rights on 9 January 2018 as a follow-up to the 6th United Nations Forum on Business and Human Rights (Geneva, 27-29 November 2017) and to report on the Japanese National Action Plans (NAP) Forum held in Tokyo in December 2017. The first session focused on the past UN Forums, the current trend on business and human rights, and the gender aspect of the 6th UN Forum 2017. The second session was a briefing on the NAP Forum including the main subjects and the missing items in the discussions. Twenty-seven people attended the seminar, mainly from corporations and NGOs.
Seminar on Human Rights Situation in Japan: Towards the Future and For Prevention of the Loss of Our Rights
HURIGHTS OSAKA organized a seminar on 12 January 2018 with Ms Sanae Fujita, a fellow of the Human Rights Centre, University of Essex, as speaker. Ms Fujita discussed the report made by Mr David Kaye, United Nations Special Rapporteur on the freedom of expression, and the 18 May 2017 letter of Mr Joe Cannataci, Special Rapporteur on the right to privacy, to Prime Minister Shinzo Abe which warned about the violation of right to privacy by the “anti-conspiracy bill.” She discussed the disagreement between the Special Rapporteurs and the Japanese government regarding the situation in Japan, along with the Japanese media report that the Japanese government asserted that Mr Cannataci acted only in a “private capacity” and “did not represent the UN.” Twenty-three people participated in the seminar.
25th One World Festival: Workshop on “Kicking Out Discrimination”
HURIGHTS OSAKA organized a human rights education workshop with Ms Michiko Tomioka, a cross-cultural communication trainer, on 3 February 2018. The workshop provided an opportunity to the participants to think about eliminating hate speech in sports events. Ms Tomioka recalled the recent cases of hate speech in sports events in Japan and encouraged the participants to think of the reasons for such incidents and how they became problematic. She also spoke about the need to raise empathy on the victims of hate speech. She ended the workshop by asking the participants to individually think of an action that would “kick out” hate speech and discrimination. Thirty-three people participated in the workshop.
The workshop was held on the occasion of the 25th One World Festival, the biggest event in western Japan for exhibition of the activities of international and governmental-related organizations and NGOs/NPOs that are involved in international cooperation.
