International Conference on Connecting Law and Memory
Kazerne Dossin, Mechelen, 20-22 September 2016
Mr. Jan Deboutte – Conference Chair of Connecting Law & Memory
CHAIR’S CONCLUSIONS
On the initiative of Kazerne Dossin: Memorial, Museum and Documentation Centre on the Holocaust and Human Rights, the Belgian Federal Police and the Council of Europe with the cooperation of the Mechelen City Festival ”Op.Recht Mechelen” (Up.Right. Mechelen), the Government of Flanders, the Belgian Interfederal Centre for Equal Opportunities (UNIA), the KZ Gedenkstätte Flossenbürg, the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) gathered in Mechelen (Belgium) from 20 to 22 September 2016 representatives of relevant national and international governmental and non-governmental institutions and organizations , decision makers, educators, academics, legal experts and scholars, specialists in musea and memorials as well as representatives of civil society and parliamentarians.
The participants discussed policies, programs and actions undertaken at national, regional and international level
- to protect and promote the fundamental rights of all populations, including minorities, irrespective of their ethnicity, ”race”, religion or nationality
- to prevent incitement to violence, hate or discrimination based on ethnicity or religion;
The participants drew on the knowledge and expertise gained by musea, memorials and research institutons in examining and reflecting on the grave violations of international humanitarian and human rights law perpetrated on an unprecedented scale during the Second World War, in particular the Holocaust, and in genocides and mass atrocities of the twentieth century;
Whereas they stressed the need to continue to fight impunity for perpetrators of crimes against humanity and grave violations of human rights, they were inspired by the many examples of righteousness -frequently at the risk and even the cost of own life – demonstrated during the Second World War and during mass atrocities;
The participants shared experiences and good practices in outreach programs and training courses on human rights especially these designed for law enforcement, i.c. police officers and judicial authorities and other civil servants aiming at strenghtening
the civil service resilience through discussion, reflection, roleplay and dilemna training. They examined tools and approaches to prevent racist, antisemitic, xenophobic and homophobic behavior or other forms of intolerance – frequently aggravated by peer pressure and group loyalty – within law enforcement and other civil service institutions;
They agreed to set up a coordinating forum (platform) to permanently connect, share and benchmark existing outreach programs, good practices and experiences between interested institutions and to foster innovative approaches on dealing with collective violence. They expressed their resolve to stimulate and support new partners in developing their programs;
They agreed to establish Working Groups on selected topics, inter alia…
First conclusions of the conference ”Connecting Law and Memory” and of the initiatives and work in progress resulting from it will be presented and discussed at the Up.Right European Forum organized by Op.Recht. Mechelen (Up.Right.Mechelen) from 26 to 28 April 2017 in Mechelen;
The participants agreed to continue their exchanges inter alia on-line in particular on the methodology, outline and content of outreach programs and training courses and will take stock of the progress made in the fall of 2017;
They thanked KZ-Gedenstätte Flossenbürg for its generous offer to organize the 2017 meeting and projected to conclude the three year cycle ”Connecting Law and Memory” in Mechelen in 2018.
Mechelen, 22 September 2016
