Scottish Human Rights Commission – Online Event
Invitation: Online Event
Wednesday 13 December 2023
10.00 to 12.00
Shaping your Human Rights Commission
2024-2028 Strategic Plan
What are the biggest human rights issues affecting people and communities in Scotland? What human rights are at risk, who do you turn to? What can public bodies in Scotland do to realise the human rights of all the people they serve?
The Commission is interested in doing more work to bear witness to human rights violations and monitor how human rights are actually being experienced by people in Scotland.
We want to hear from people about what you think about this as our focus for the next Strategic Plan; and how the Commission can work alongside people, communities, civil society, duty bearers and decision makers to protect and promote human rights in Scotland.
Meet the Commission:
The SHRC would like to invite you to attend an interactive online event on the Wednesday 13 December 2023 where you can meet our Commissioners, hear more about the Commission and our role, and tell us your thoughts on how we should prioritise our work for the next four years.
You can sign up on the Eventbrite page by Friday 8th December.
Other ways you can get involved:
If you cannot attend, but would still like to share your views you can complete an online survey by visiting the survey page on Survey Monkey. An Easy Read version of the survey is available. The deadline for this is Monday 18th December 2023.
Background:
The Commission is a public body tasked with promoting and protecting the human rights of everyone in Scotland.
It is required by law to publish a new Strategic Plan every four years and is currently preparing its fifth strategic plan for the period 2024-28, to lay before the Scottish Parliament in early 2024.
The Commission is undertaking this task at a vital time for human rights in Scotland. In 2023, the Commission has identified key emerging priority issues and themes which impact on the human rights of the people of Scotland.
Whilst Scotland has developed a strong human rights narrative in policy and legislation since 2006, evidence available to the Commission suggests its impact hasn’t yet been fully felt in progressive outcomes in people’s lives.
Currently, there is a movement to establish a series of new public bodies (Commissions and/or Commissioners) in Scotland to uphold the rights of particular groups of people. The Commission believes this should be seen as a positive challenge to reform accountability mechanisms and the ways individuals can access justice around systematic denials of their human rights. The Commission is part of that system.
For more information on the Commission’s work to transition throughout 2023 into its next phase, please see the following key publications:
- An article from the Commission asking What Next for Upholding Human Rights in Scotland?
- A discussion paper: At a Crossroads: Which Way Now for the Human Rights System in Scotland?
- Independent Governance Review of the Scottish Human Rights Commission
- A discussion paper: Access to Justice For Everyone? How Might A New Human Rights Legal Framework Improve Access to Justice in Scotland Today?
- A Stronger Human Rights Commission for Scotland