EQUALITY MYANMAR ORGANIZATION

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Equality Myanmar
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WHO WE ARE?
Equality Myanmar (formerly HREIB) is a nongovernmental organization which facilitates
a broad range of human rights education and advocacy programs.
EQMM was founded in 2000 with the goal of empowering the people of Myanmar
through human rights education to engage in social transformation and promote a culture
of human rights. The organization envisions a peaceful, tolerant and democratic society
built on respect for dignity and human rights for all. Over the last fifteen years, EQMM
has trained women, university students, monks and pastors, activists, school teachers,
and community leaders, building a strong network of human rights trainers and
advocates across the country as well as along its border regions.
EQMM has played a central role in coordinating a wide range of advocacy campaigns
over the years to raise awareness about the human rights situation in Myanmar at local,
national, regional, and international levels. Additionally, the organization produces a
range of human rights educational materials, audio/visual tools, and other multimedia
resources in order to address the lack of human rights information available in Burmese
and ethnic languages.
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7/22/2018 Who we are?
THE PERCEPTION OF HUMAN RIGHTS
EDUCATION IN THE FORMAL EDUCATION
SYSTEM OF MYANMAR
Vision – EQMM envisions a peaceful, tolerant, and democratic society built on respect
for dignity and human rights for all in Myanmar.
Mission – To empower the people of Myanmar through human rights education to
engage in social transformation and promote a culture of human rights for all.
Goal – To promote respect for human rights in Myanmar
Objectives
To raise awareness of human rights amongst rights holders and duty bearers
through participatory education
To support community and network initiation of human rights based actions through
capacity building
Our target groups
The strategic selection of target groups is aimed at empowering individuals that have the
potential to promote change within their organizations, communities, and constituencies.
Our human rights education trainings and workshops target a range of sectors with a
specific focus on community leaders and representatives from civil society organizations,
including women’s groups, student unions, LGBT activists, political activists, ethnic and
religious minority groups, teachers, and farmer and labor unions.
The selection of beneficiaries and partners is rooted in the belief that the development of
a human rights-based perspective is critical to all sectors and demographics of civil

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society, and a necessary step in the promotion of equality and justice.
Methodology
Equality Myanmar’s education initiatives utilize a learner-centered, non-formal approach
which draws on fifteen years of institutional experience. The methodology emphasizes
transformative learning which occurs at three levels: cognitive, attitudinal, and
behavioural. Cognitive change is grounded in knowledge acquisition and awareness
raising, as developed through the participants’ understanding of human rights principles,
theories, and application. Attitudinal transformation refers to the participants’ beliefs and
values, and focuses on encouraging the promotion of rights by fostering a sense of
empowerment and engagement. Behavioral transformation is manifested through
participants’ actions, including mobilization and action planning, community organizing,
and documentation of human rights violations. Collaboratively, these stages function to
empower the people of Myanmar to identify and analyze the social problems present in
their communities and subsequently initiate rights-based solutions in response.
As a result of individuals’ cognitive, attitudinal, and behavioural transformations, human
rights education has a direct impact on target communities, in particular through the
organization of community members around a common theme, such as forced
relocation, domestic violence, child soldiers, forced labor, and other issues pervasive in
communities throughout Myanmar. EQMM’s human rights education modules are
developed and updated within the framework of Myanmar’s social, cultural, and political
context in order to ensure the human rights principles’ relevance, usefulness, and
applicability. Providing training participants with practical tools to follow-up on human

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rights abuses strengthens both their autonomy as well as their capacity for social
transformation and civic engagement.
EQMM’s strategic selection of target groups is aimed at empowering at the community
level with a focus on groups that have a potential to promote change within their
communities and constituencies. The selection of beneficiaries and partners is rooted in
the belief that the development of a human rights-based perspective is critical to all
sectors and demographics of civil society, and a necessary step in the promotion of
equality and justice. As such, EQMM aims to mitigate conflicts between communities and
bridge social, cultural, and ethnic divides by encouraging the participation and
collaboration of diverse groups in human rights-awareness raising activities.
The participants of EQMM’s training courses act as the central force for EQMM’s
expanding network of human rights activists inside Myanmar. Through the center-based
training model, senior trainers serve as multipliers of human rights knowledge critical to
Burmese civil society. By targeting different sectors, trainers are able to specify material
to empower participants in becoming spokespeople within their respective communities
and places of employment. With every completed training, the community of people
within Myanmar who respect and understand human rights grows, moving one step
closer to EQMM’s goal of building a national culture of human rights.

7/22/2018 Who we are?
Equality Myanmar (formerly HREIB) is a
nongovernmental organization which facilitates a
broad range of human rights education and advocacy
programs.
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Asian Forum for Human Rights and Development (https://www.forum-asia.org)
Equality Myanmar (EQMM)
14 December 2016 11:50 am
Burma/Myanmar
Email: info@equalitymyanmar.org (mailto:info@equalitymyanmar.org)
Website: http://www.equalitymyanmar.org (http://www.equalitymyanmar.org)
Tel: + 95-9 4480 23569/ +95-1 901 605 (Ext. 108)
About:
Equality Myanmar (EQMM), formerly known as the Human Rights Education Institute of Burma (HREIB), was established in 2000. The
organisation facilitates a broad range of human rights trainings, advocacy programmes, and research and documentation projects which target
civil society organisations and grassroots communities while engaging with local authorities, Government ministries, Members of Parliament
and the Myanmar National Human Rights Commission (MNHRC). EQMM aims to contribute to the establishment of a peaceful, tolerant, and
democratic society built on respect for dignity and human rights for all in Myanmar.
EQMM was initially established in northern Thailand in 2000, but re- established itself in Myanmar in 2013 and moved all operations and o ces
to Myanmar. For the past 15 years, EQMM has been working tirelessly to create a culture of human rights in Myanmar through education,
capacity development and advocacy work.
EQMM’s education initiatives utilise a learner-centred, non-formal approach, which emphasises transformative learning that occurs at three
levels: cognitive, attitudinal and behavioural. Collaboratively, these stages function to empower the people of Myanmar to identify and analyse
the social problems in their communities and subsequently initiate rights-based solutions in response. EQMM’s human rights education
modules are developed and updated within the framework of Myanmar’s social, cultural, and political context in order to ensure the human
rights principles’ relevance, usefulness, and applicability. Providing training participants with practical tools to follow- up on human rights
abuses strengthens both their autonomy as well as their capacity for social transformation and civic engagement. Annually, EQMM provides
human rights trainings to approximately 1,600 direct participants.

EQMM also plays an active role in carrying out and coordinating a wide range of advocacy campaigns to raise awareness about the human
rights situation in Myanmar at local, national, regional, and international levels. EQMM has extensive experience in building, supporting and
participating in a strong network of organisations and actors across different sectors and levels of Myanmar society and empowers civil
society actors to engage in advocacy at the national, regional and international level.
Additionally, the organisation produces human rights educational materials, audio/visual tools, and other multimedia resources to address the
lack of human rights information available in Burmese and ethnic languages. The resources, including TV episodes, booklets, posters,
animations, and magazines, provide those who cannot attend traditional face- to-face trainings with an opportunity to learn about various
human rights issues.
Contact Person:
Aung Myo Min (Executive Director): myominburma@gmail.com (mailto:myominburma@gmail.com)
Nay Oo Lwin (Program Manager): nayoolwin@equalitymyanmar.org (mailto:ayoolwin@equalitymyanmar.org)
Address:
Room 803, Level 7, Nawarat Center, No (186), 52nd Street (Middle Block), Pazundaung Township. Yangon, Myanmar
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Equality Myanmar Report
The perception of human rights education in
the formal education system of Myanmar
(Final Report)
Introduction The values of human rights, such as
dignity, equality, inclusiveness and non-
discrimination, have long…
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The perception of human
rights education in the
formal education system of
Myanmar
Final Report
May 2018
Commissioned by Equality Myanmar
Produced by Ms. Lwin Lwin Wai

2 | P a g e
Contents
Acknowledgements........................................................................................................3
Abbreviation...................................................................................................................4
PART I.............................................................................................................................5
Introduction ...............................................................................................................5
Why is HRE important?..............................................................................................7
Problem Statement of the Research .........................................................................9
Research Objectives and Methodology...................................................................10
PART II..........................................................................................................................11
Definition of Human Rights Education ....................................................................11
Human Right Education in an International Context...............................................13
HRE Implementation in Formal Schools ..................................................................19
HRE Learning Materials............................................................................................22
HRE Practice in Asian Formal Schools......................................................................28
PART III.........................................................................................................................39
Human Right Education and the Myanmar Context................................................39
Education System in Myanmar........................................................................................ 39
School Practice and Learning Environment..................................................................... 41
Curriculum ....................................................................................................................... 42
Discussion.....................................................................................................................47
Conclusion....................................................................................................................48
Recommendation.........................................................................................................49
References ...................................................................................................................51
List of Tables
Table 1: Summarized Lesson Plans for
Southeast Asian Schools
Table 2: Cambodia human rights
curricular framework
Table 3: HRE in Basic Education of
Cambodia
Table 4: Basic Education System
Table 5: Moral & Civic curriculum of
Grade 3
Table 6: Moral & Civic curriculum of
Grade 4
List of Figures
Figure 1: Illustration of HRE-related issues
Figure 2 Word Cloud for Grade 4
Curriculum
Figure 3 Word Cloud for Grade 4
Curriculum

Acknowledgements
In Equality Myanmar we believe that human rights
education means more than educating about human
rights. As J. Todres has put it, it is about “creating rights-
respecting learning environments and educating
individuals in ways that empower them as human rights
actors”.
It is critical that human rights education receive greater
attention and be incorporated in formal education
curricula in Myanmar and elsewhere. However, little
research has been done so far to document what would
be the benefit of doing so as well as showcasing lessons
learned and best practices of human rights education in
other countries.
We feel heartfelt gratitude for Ms. Lwin Lwin Wai, the
lead researcher, for putting all the bits and pieces of this
Report together and for helping us casting some lights on
the topic.
Likewise, we would like to acknowledge the work done
by Mr. Rinehart Gray in editing and proofreading the text
and the colleagues from Equality Myanmar for their
support throughout this exercise.
Juan Miguel Sanchez Marin
Deputy Director
Equality Myanmar
Equality Myanmar was founded in 2000 with the
goal of empowering the people of Myanmar
through human rights education to engage in
social transformation and promote a culture of
human rights.
We envision a peaceful, tolerant and democratic
society built on respect for dignity and human
rights for all.

4 | P a g e
Abbreviations
ADB Asian Development Bank
CEDAW Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women
CESR Comprehensive Education Sector Review
CRC Convention on the Rights of the Child
EDC Education for Democratic Citizenship
HRC United Nations Human Rights
HRE Human rights Education
ICCPR International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights
ICESCR International Covenants on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights
ICERD International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination
JICA Japan International Cooperation Agency
MOE Ministry of Education
NESP National Education Strategic Plan
NTHRE National Team on Human Rights Education
OHCHR Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights
UNCHR United Nation Commission on Human Rights
UDHR Universal Declaration of Human Rights
UN United Nations
UNCRC United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child
UNESCO United Nations Education, Scientific and Cultural Organization
UNICEF United Nations Children’s Emergency Fund
UNWPHRE United Nations World Programme for Human Rights Education 
VDPA Vienna Declaration and Programme Action
WPHRE World Programme for Human Rights Education

5 | P a g e
PART I
Introduction
The values of human rights, such as dignity, equality, inclusiveness and
non-discrimination, have long been discussed by the nations of the world.
Current international principles require societies to respect, defend and
advocate for human rights. There are agreements and declarations
amongst members of the international community regarding the
fulfillment of a human rights program. Powerful and prominent
international instruments exist to secure universal human rights and
these instruments highlight the critical role that human rights education
plays for developing a human rights culture.
Human rights education (HRE) is a lifelong learning process that builds
knowledge and skills, as well as attitudes and behaviors, which uphold
human rights.
Knowledge and skills — learning about human rights standards and
mechanisms, as well as acquiring the skills to put them into practice
in daily life;  
Values and attitudes — developing values and reinforcing attitudes
which uphold human rights;  
Behavior and action — encouraging action to defend and promote
human rights1
.
The international community has agreed to a core set of principles on
1 Sneh Aurora, Human Rights and Values in Education, Educational International (June 2016)

6 | P a g e
HRE. The Declaration on Human Rights Education and Training2
, adopted
on December 19, 2011 by the UN General Assembly, calls for States to
promote respect for human rights, acknowledging “...the fundamental
importance of human rights education and training in contributing to
the promotion, protection and effective realization of all human rights.”
This UN instrument shows the prominence of human rights education at
the international level and national level.
Human rights education is essential in promoting human rights and
human personal development. At the individual and community level,
human rights education seeks to:
Develop knowledge, personality and social skills;
Improve mutual understanding on multi-culture and diversity;
Increase appreciation for human dignity and shared values;
Encourage dialogue and promote non-violence in bringing about
resolutions to problems and disputes,
Have respects for other’s rights; and
Prevent all forms of discrimination and violence.
The following research intends to understand and highlight the need of
human rights education in formal education curriculum. The research also
presents the main strands regarding the role of human rights education
as well as the key elements for its implementation. Additionally, the study
addresses current issues and challenges faced when incorporating human
rights education, illustrating the significance of human rights education as
2 BEMIS- Empowering Scotland’s Ethnic and Cultural Minorities Communities, A Review of Human
Rights Education in Schools in Scotland (March 2013)

7 | P a g e
a fundamental base for peace building, social justice and sustainable
development.
Why is Human Rights Education important?
Human rights education has arisen as one of the most important concepts
for building a culture of human rights. The role of human rights education
is crucial to the enjoyment of human rights and the peaceful and
equitable coexistence of all people. It gives a sense of responsibility for
respecting and defending human rights. An education in human rights not
only develops knowledge about human rights, it also promotes
democratic citizenship. Furthermore, human rights education includes
three different aspects that are inter-related3
:
(a) Learning about human rights, which includes providing knowledge
and understanding of human rights norms and principles, the values
that underpin them and the mechanisms for their protection;  
(b) Learning through human rights, which includes learning and
teaching in a way that respects the rights of both educators and
learners; ensuring that the context and the way learning is organized
and imparted is consistent with human rights values (e.g.
participation, inclusion, freedom of thought and expression, etc.),
recognizing that the process of learning is as important as the content
of the learning;
(c) Learning for human rights, which includes empowering persons to
enjoy and exercise their rights and to respect and uphold the rights of
3 Sneh Aurora, Human Rights and Values in Education, Educational International (June 2016)

8 | P a g e
others.  
Human rights learning is to foster daily practices for developing a culture
of human rights. This means transformation from understanding the
concept of human rights into practices of everyday life4
:  
To value self and others  
To recognize and respect human rights in everyday life  
To understand one’s own basic rights and be able to articulate
them  
To appreciate and respect differences  
To acquire attitudes to address conflicts in non-violent ways that
respect the rights of others  
To develop children’s confidence in their ability to take action
and their skills to defend and promote human rights  
The role of human rights education is believed to be essential to the
security and welfare of all people. The importance of human rights
education in promoting a global culture of human rights is broadly
acknowledged throughout the world. Such a culture equally respects
ethnicity, language, religious beliefs and other differences. To create such
a culture, human rights education needs to be included in formal
education.
Human rights education involves participatory learning that can empower
people with knowledge and skills to realize their individual and collective
rights and responsibilities. Therefore, human rights education is essential
4
Nancy Flowers, COMPASITO: What is Human Right Education?, Manual on human rights education for
children ( January, 3009)

9 | P a g e
both for long-term prevention of human rights abuses and for the
achievement a just society in which all persons value and respect human
rights.
Problem Statement of the Research
Myanmar has been under military rule from 1988 until 2010. In 1988 the
military junta took power in the country by force and not by election.
During this time all schools at all levels used outdated textbooks that had
been introduced in the 1960's to promote socialist military ideology. The
main consequence is that human right education has been marginalized
and inaccessible to students for the last few decades.
During the time of the military regime, Myanmar education was
prohibited from encouraging democracy and human rights education.
When the civilian government took power in 2010, they faced a need to
introduce human rights education into the government curriculum,
including the erasure of words, pictures, and photos of discrimination,
racism, and beliefs that went against human rights ideals. These
intentions have been expressed by both the Government (Ministry of
Education) and other national human rights institutions (Myanmar
National Human Rights Commission) at different times but little
progresses are being observed. Latest media updates report that
education on human rights will be included in the new school curriculum
for Grade 2 students next year, following an agreement between the
Ministry of Education (MoE) and the Myanmar National Human Rights
Commission (MNHRC)5
.
5 https://www.mmtimes.com/national-news/25465-primary-school-
curriculum-to-include-human-rights-subject.html

10 | P a g e
This research intends to explore these human rights issues in the
government curriculum and provide recommendations about essential
human rights education by according to other countries’ best practices for
human right education and approaches in education.
Research Objectives and Methodology
This research focuses on the development of human rights education in
the formal education system in Myanmar. The aims of the research are:
To raise awareness of human rights perceptions in the formal
education curriculum
To create a human rights approach and advocate stakeholders
about the need of human rights education
To bring human rights education into various levels of education in
line with other countries’ best practices and curriculum
The content of this research comes from data gathered through desktop
research. This desk research refers to secondary data collected from
existing resources: press, Internet, reports and publications. In this study,
the main sources are the Declaration of Human Rights, International
Conventions, the National Education Strategic Plan (2016 – 2021)
published by the Myanmar Ministry of Education, international reports,
and HRE-related research papers. The research uses a term-frequency
analysis to generate a data visualization word cloud. Word clouds give a
sense of tendencies in a large amount of data, at a glance.

11 | P a g e
PART II
Definition of Human Rights Education
The international community has stated  the importance of human
rights education in the prevention of human rights abuses and violent
conflicts. Human rights education plays a crucial role in building social
structures that support participatory democracies. The key to defining it
is the development of a culture of human rights. Definitions of human
rights education offer the concept that individuals understand and value
their rights as well as respect the rights of others. Human rights values are
meant to be integrated into people’s minds, cultures and actions, in
resolving conflict, fighting discrimination and acting upon injustice,
human rights values. The preamble to the Universal Declaration of Human
Rights (UDHR)6
states, in relation to human rights education, that “every
individual and every organ of society, keeping this Declaration in mind,
shall strive by teaching and education to promote respect for these
rights and freedoms.”
The United Nations Commission on Human Rights (UNCHR) brought about
the idea of human rights education at the beginning of the twenty-first
century. UNCHR emphasized that human rights education was
intrinsically linked to equality, sustainable development and prevention
of conflict. According to UNCHR, it is defined as7
:
“A long-term and lifelong process by which all people at all levels of
development and in all strata of society learn respect for the dignity of
6 Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) (1948)
7 BEMIS- Empowering Scotland’s Ethnic and Cultural Minorities Communities, Human Rights Education:
Theory And Practices

12 | P a g e
others and the means and methods of ensuring that respect in all
societies (...) it significantly contributes to promoting equality and
sustainable development, preventing conflict and human rights
violations and enhancing participation and democratic processes, with
a view to developing societies in which all human rights are valued and
respected.”
Based on international human rights instruments, human rights education
was to produce education, training and information aimed at building a
universal culture of human rights through the sharing of knowledge,
imparting of skills and molding of attitudes to prompt action directed at
strengthening respect for human rights, fundamental freedoms,
tolerance, equality and peace, among individuals, within societies and
among nations. 8
Amnesty International developed a definition9
of HRE
as “a deliberate, participatory practice aimed at empowering
individuals, groups and communities...its goal is to build a culture of
respect for and action in the defense and promotion of human rights for
all.” This description suggests that human rights education correlates
with element of active citizenship. In terms of intentions of human rights
education, the following aims were discussed10
:
To strengthen respect for human rights and fundamental
freedoms;
To value human dignity and develop individual self-respect and
respect for others;  
8 Plan of Action for the first phase (2005-2009) of the World Programme for Human Rights Education
9 Amnesty International: www.amnesty.org   
10
Nancy Flowers, COMPASITO: What is Human Right Education?, Manual on human rights education
for children ( January, 3009)

13 | P a g e
To develop attitudes and behaviors that will lead to respect for the
rights of others;
To promote respect, tolerance and gender equality among all
nations, indigenous peoples and racial, national, ethnic, religious
and linguistic groups;
To empower people towards more active citizenship in a free and
democratic society governed by the rule of law; and
To promote democracy, communal harmony, people-centered
sustainable development and social justice.
Human Right Education in an International Context
International organizations and professional associations have been
promoting the notion of human right education for over 70 years. At the
end of the Second World War, the United Nations firstly indicated the
concept of human rights education. The Charter of the United Nations
was drafted in 1945 and it made the following mandatory11
:
“Promoting and encouraging respect for human rights and for
fundamental freedoms for all without distinction as to race, sex,
language, or religion”
Three years after the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) had
been adopted, more initiatives were taken with a more clearly stated right
to human rights education. The 1948 UDHR was neither a treaty nor a
legal binding, but it did provide “a single set of fundamental principles and
norms intended to inform the laws and constitutions of all states”. Article
11
BEMIS- Empowering Scotland’s Ethnic and Cultural Minorities Communities, A Review of Human

14 | P a g e
26 of the UDHR12
explicitly addresses the concept of human rights in
education. Article 26(2) states the role of educators:
“Education shall be directed to the full development of the human
personality and to the strengthening of respect for human rights and
fundamental freedoms. It shall promote understanding, tolerance and
friendship among all nations, racial and social groups, and shall further
the activities of the United Nations for the maintenance of peace.”
On 16 December 1966, the United Nations General Assembly adopted a
multilateral treaty named the International Covenants on Economic,
Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR). ICESCR was a legally binding treaty as
well as a positive international law for nations. It followed the structure
of UDHR with a preamble and thirty-one articles, divided into five parts.
A number of international instruments legally recognize the right to
human rights education, for example, Article 10 of the Convention on the
Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) and
Article 7 of the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms
of Racial Discrimination (ICERD).
Article 10 of CEDAW13
: States Parties shall take all appropriate measures
to eliminate discrimination against women in order to ensure to them
equal rights with men in the field of education and in particular to
ensure, on a basis of equality of men and women.
12 Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) (1948)
13 Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) Adopted and
opened for signature, ratification and accession by General Assembly resolution 34/180 of 18 December
1979

15 | P a g e
Article 7 of ICERD14
: States Parties undertake to adopt immediate and
effective measures, particularly in the fields of teaching, education,
culture and information, with a view to combating prejudices which lead
to racial discrimination and to promoting understanding, tolerance and
friendship among nations and racial or ethnic groups, as well as to
propagating the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United
Nations, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the United Nations
Declaration on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, and
this Convention.
In 1989 the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC or UNCRC)
was drafted regarding the specific needs and rights of children. CRC has
been mentioned as a major contribution to the “democratization of
education and to the empowerment of all who engage with it”. Article
29(1) of the CRC15
aligns with human rights education:
States Parties agree that the education of the child shall be directed to:
(a) The development of the child's personality, talents and mental and
physical abilities to their fullest potential;
(b) The development of respect for human rights and fundamental
freedoms, and for the principles enshrined in the Charter of the United
Nations;
(c) The development of respect for the child's parents, his or her own
14 International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (ICERD), Adopted
and opened for signature and ratification by General Assembly resolution 2106 of 21 December 1965
15 Convention on the Rights of the Child Adopted and opened for signature, ratification and accession
by General Assembly resolution 44/25 of 20 November 1989

16 | P a g e
cultural identity, language and values, for the national values of the
country in which the child is living, the country from which he or she may
originate, and for civilizations different from his or her own;
(d) The preparation of the child for responsible life in a free society, in
the spirit of understanding, peace, tolerance, equality of sexes, and
friendship among all peoples, ethnic, national and religious groups and
persons of indigenous origin;
(e) The development of respect for the natural environment.
In 1974, UNESCO, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural
Organization, highlighted the greatest significance of human rights
education in formal and informal education. UNESCO sought to improve
the state of human rights education by mandating16
: “States should
formulate and apply national policies aimed at increasing the efficacy of
education in all its forms and strengthening its contribution to
international understanding and co-operation, to the maintenance and
development of a just peace, to the establishment of social justice, to
respect for and application of human rights and fundamental freedoms,
and to the eradication of the prejudices, misconceptions, inequalities and
all forms of injustice which hinder the achievement of these aims.”
Four years later, UNESCO drafted the Declaration on Race and Racial
Prejudice (1978), which gave put focus on features of human rights
education. Its Article 5 details17
:
16 BEMIS- Empowering Scotland’s Ethnic and Cultural Minorities Communities, A Review of Human
17 Declaration on Race and Racial Prejudice (1978) adopted and proclaimed by the General Conference
of the UNESCO on 27 November 1978

17 | P a g e
“Culture, as a product of all human beings and a common heritage
of mankind, and education in its broadest sense, offer men and
women increasingly effective means of adaptation, enabling
them not only to affirm that they are born equal in dignity and
rights, but also to recognize that they should respect the right of
all groups to their own cultural identity and the development of
their distinctive cultural life within the national and international
contexts, it being understood that it rests with each group to
decide in complete freedom on the maintenance, and, if
appropriate, the adaptation or enrichment of the values which it
regards as essential to its identity.”
UNESCO has played a vital role in the development and implementation
of human rights education. UNESCO has supported the following areas to
promote human rights education18
:
Development and monitoring of international legal frameworks;  
Support to the development of regional and national capacities;  
Advocacy and networking.  
The International Congress on Human Rights Teaching, Information and
Documentation, organized by UNESCO in Malta in 1987, provided
comprehensive guidelines to states for incorporating human rights
education into their educational systems.
HRE has had legitimate room in the scope of international instruments. In
1993 the World Conference on Human Rights, attended by
representatives from 171 states, was held in Vienna. The outcome of this
conference was the Vienna Declaration and Program Action (VDPA).
18 UNESCO, Contemporary Issues in Human Right Education

18 | P a g e
VDPA19
(Paragraph 78 in Part II) takes into consideration the importance
of HRE for the promotion and achievement of stable and harmonious
relations among communities and for fostering mutual understanding,
tolerance and peace.
In December 1994, the UN General Assembly proclaimed 1995-2004 the
United Nations Decade for Human Rights Education. It was followed in
2005 by the World Program for Human Rights Education (UNWPHRE)20
,
which aimed to promote “a common understanding of principles and
methodologies of HRE, provide a concrete framework for action, and
strengthen cooperation between organizations and governments”.
UNWPHRE was renewed after 2004, and UNESCO continues to play a key
role in the implementation of the current World Program for Human
Rights Education).
In terms of HRE and Education for Democratic Citizenship (EDC), the
Council of Europe has been cooperating with the United Nations Office of
the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), UNESCO, the
European Commission and other international organizations 21
. The
Council of Europe has maintained a key role for monitoring in the
implementation of the World Program for Human Rights Education (2005-
2007) at the European level.
19 Vienna Declaration and Programme Action (VDPA) Adopted by the World Conference on Human
Rights in Vienna on 25 June 1993
20
BEMIS- Empowering Scotland’s Ethnic and Cultural Minorities Communities, A Review of Human
21
Nancy Flowers, COMPASITO: What is Human Right Education?, Manual on human rights education

19 | P a g e
With regards to human rights education, current international
instruments arise from the Human Right Council (HRC), including 47
United Nations Member States, which are elected by the UN General
Assembly. The HRC is an inter-governmental body within the United
Nations system, and it is responsible for strengthening the promotion and
protection of human rights around the globe and for addressing situations
of human rights violations and responding to violations with
recommendations.
HRE Implementation in Formal Schools
Human Rights Education upholds a holistic rights-based approach and
addresses respect for human rights and the right of every person to
quality education. As an international instrument, the United Nations
World Programme for Human Rights Education delivered five pillars as a
plan of action for its first phase22
:
Policies and curricula: Educational policies, such as legislation, national
plans of action, policy statements, curricula and training policies, should
explicitly promote a rights-based approach to education.
The learning environment: Learning environment should be one in which
human rights are practiced and lived in the daily life of the whole school
community (e.g., whole school approaches, school governance).
Teaching and learning practices and tools: Teaching and learning
practices and tools should reflect human rights values. For example,
22 For more information on UNESCO’s Plan of Action for Human Rights Education, please consult the
website: http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0014/001478/147853e.pdf

20 | P a g e
materials and textbooks should be consistent with principles of human
rights education, and teaching methodologies should be democratic and
participatory (e.g., methodologies, resources).
Professional development of teachers and other educational personnel:
Professional development of teachers and other educational personnel
should be targeted to enable educators and school staff to demonstrate
and transmit human rights values (e.g., methodologies, training policies,
modules).
Evaluation and assessment approaches and tools: The policies as well as
educational activities aiming at integrating human rights education
should be subject to impact evaluation and analysis (e.g., indicators of
evaluation, methodologies).
Formal education is a structured education system that runs from primary
to tertiary higher education, such as university or technical and
professional school. The beginning years of formal education are a good
time to learn human rights education because young children have had
personal experiences in the community and in the family, and have
established everyday personal relationships with adults and other
children.
With regards to formal education, it is important to consider approaches
for implementing human rights education in line with the World
Program’s six key structural areas:
Human rights based approach to HRE  
Core competencies
Curricula

21 | P a g e
Teaching and learning processes
Evaluation and professional development and  
Support of educational personnel  
Human rights education is different from other types of education and
other curricula as it focuses on norms and values and the skills to develop
them. The first action for implementing human rights education is to
develop a framework concerning educational practices, curricular
development, teacher training, teaching methodologies, learning
resources and the school environment. All processes will reflect human
right principles taught. The methodology for human rights education
must be a participatory approach including a set of practices and
activities. Together learning must be shaped by a holistic approach that
embraces learning about human rights, learning for human rights and
learning in human rights. This approach can empower individuals to think
and interpret independently and encourage critical analysis of real life
situations that can lead to applicable action to protect human rights. It
needs to have common features in the learning environment such that
everyone has rights and respects individual differences23
:
Respect for other’s experience and recognition of a variety of
points of view;  
Promotion of personal enrichment, self-esteem, and respect for
the individual;  
Empowerment of learners to define what they want to know and
to seek information for themselves;  
23 Nancy Flowers, COMPASITO: What is Human Right Education?, Manual on human rights education

22 | P a g e
Active engagement of all learners in their own learning with a
minimum of passive listening;  
Encouragement of non-hierarchical, democratic, collaborative
learning environments;  
Encouragement of reflection, analysis, and critical thinking;  
Engagement of subjective and emotional responses, as well as
cognitive learning;  
Encouragement of behavioral and attitudinal change;  
Emphasis on skill building and practical application of learning;  
Recognition of the importance of humor, fun, and creative play for
learning.
According to the experiences of other countries, there is a wide approach
to promote the concept of human rights education at the school level. In
the study, HRE is structured around human rights-related themes, each of
which links directly to one sub-topic of human right. The diagram below
presents HRE interrelated with other educational fields such as
peace, gender, civics, personality and social skills,
cultural diversity, interfaith, and
democracy.
HRE Learning Materials
This section details the human
rights-related learning materials of
other countries. UNESCO organized an
exhibition of learning materials on 2-10 December 2008 in Paris, France.
Human
Right
Education
Gender
Civics
Democratic
Citizenship
Interfaith
Dialogue
Inter-
cultural &
Anti-Racit
Peace &
Non-
violence
Personal &
Social
Value

23 | P a g e
At this event, fifty-one member states presented teaching and learning
materials used in primary and secondary schools around the world24
. The
event provided a diverse collection of human rights-related textbooks,
teaching and learning manuals, toolkits and multimedia materials
addressing themes of democratic citizenship, tolerance, non-violence,
and a culture of peace. Some textbooks and learning manuals in the
human rights education curriculum of other countries are discussed
below.
Promotion of Interfaith Dialogue
UNESCO, UNICEF and the Arigatou Foundation published 2008 toolkit,
entitled Learning to Live Together: An Intercultural and Interfaith Program
for Ethics Education, for educators to teach children about respecting and
understanding diverse faiths, religions and ethical beliefs. This toolkit
promotes ethics education through intercultural and interfaith learning to
help communities and societies live peacefully together, with respect of
others and dignity for all human beings. Its aim is to ultimately shape
attitudes for building peace by teaching tolerance and mutual
understanding.
http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0016/001610/161059e.pdf

24 | P a g e
Human Rights Stories: tales of human rights defenders for primary
schools
This book was developed by Amnesty International Ireland and presents
the idea that human rights belong to everyone and that we all have a role
to play in ensuring that human rights are protected locally and globally.
This resource provides five tales of human rights defenders – Fela, Maria,
Bobo, Ishmael and Farai -- and each story is written in a version for older
learners and a version for younger learners. Engaging with the stories
through discussion, creative thinking and character exploration can
support the development of literacy. Through the familiar medium of
storytelling and at age appropriate levels, human rights situations can be
explored so that children can encounter the real life impact of human
rights in practice. This book aims to:
Demonstrate the positive role that individuals and groups of people
play in defending human rights in their own country.
Show the importance of solidarity and active citizenship at local and
global levels.
Inspire children and give them a sense of optimism and
empowerment.
https://www.amnesty.ie/wp-
content/uploads/2016/07/Human-Rights-Stories.pdf

25 | P a g e
Democratic Citizenship and Human Rights Education in Turkey
This textbook is a manual for teachers in Education for Democratic
Citizenship (EDC) and Human Rights Education (HRE). The manual includes
equality, diversity, conflict, participation and rule of law. The lesson plans
give step-by-step instructions and include student handouts and
background information for teachers. The complete manual provides a
full school year's curriculum for lower secondary classes. The objective of
the curriculum is to educate the active citizen who is willing and able to
participate in a democratic community. This EDC/HRE curriculum strongly
emphasizes action and task-based learning. In it, the school community is
conceived as a sphere of authentic experience where young people can
learn how to participate in democratic decision-making and may take
responsibility at an early age.
http://www.edchreturkey-
eu.coe.int/Source/Resources/Teachers_manuals/Growing_democracy_EN.pdf
Development of Intercultural Skill in Morocco
Morocco developed a textbook entitled Gateway to English25
as a guide
to train students in interpersonal communication, to discuss human and
child rights, and to provide information about the status of child rights

26 | P a g e
throughout the world. Through this training, youth are provided with new
intercultural skills to engage with their communities and societies abroad,
acquiring a sense of empowerment so as to affect change.
Moroccan National Ministry of Education/Nadia Edition.
2006. Gateway to English. Rabat, Nadia Edition
Teaching Human Rights for primary and secondary schools
This book describes about the process of teaching and learning about the
significance of the inherent “dignity and worth of the human person,”
which is the “foundation of freedom, justice and peace in the world”
(Universal Declaration of Human Rights, preamble). It talks about the
rights that belong to us all. These are not only lessons for the classroom
but also lessons for life – of immediate relevance to our daily life and
experience. In this sense, human rights education means not only
teaching and learning about human rights, but also for human rights: its
fundamental role is to empower individuals to defend their own rights
and those of others.
http://www.humanrightscommission.ky/upimages/commonfiles/Pub_UnitedNations_ABC_humanr
ights_1474573388.pdf

27 | P a g e
Stopping Violence in Schools
The UNESCO book entitled Stopping Violence in Schools: A Guide for
Teachers considers various cultural understandings of violence,
socioeconomic factors, a student’s home life, and the external
environment of the school. Teachers and students can use this guide to
address and prevent violence. School violence is an immensely complex
issue and thus requires addressing numerous factors. Such factors include
the need for student participation; a holistic approach involving parents,
educators and the community; linking of policy, legislation and practice;
the development of indicators on violence; and cultural sensitivity in
addressing concepts such as the universality of human rights as part of a
human rights-based approach.
http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0018/001841/184162e.pdf
Human Right Lesson Plans for Southeast Asian Schools
This book was published by the Asia-Pacific Human Rights Information
Center (HURIGHTS OSAKA) and provides a set of human rights lesson
plans aimed for Southeast Asian teachers. It includes human rights
curricular frameworks for Thailand, Vietnam, The Philippines, Malaysia,
Indonesia and Cambodia. The lesson plans emphasize two human rights
documents -- the United Nations’ Universal Declaration of Human Rights
and the Convention on the Rights of the Child. The lesson plans were

28 | P a g e
created for primary and secondary school levels and were made so that
they can be adapted to any of the countries in Southeast Asia.
http://hrlibrary.umn.edu/edumat/SoutheastAsianHRE.pdf
HRE Practice in Asian Formal Schools
The UNESCO Asia and Pacific Regional Bureau for Education and the Office
of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR)
supported a project entitled “Regional mapping, collection of best
practices and coordination of initiatives to promote human rights
education in South-East Asian school systems.” This Southeast Asian
project is the only multi-country project under the first phase plan of
action of the World Programme for Human Right Education (WPHRE),
covering the period 2005-2009. The plan of action of the WPHRE proposes
a national implementation strategy to address those areas, in four
stages26
:
Analysis of the current situation of human rights education in the
school system
Setting priorities and developing a national implementation
strategy  
26 Asia-Pacific Human Rights Information Center (HURIGHTS OSAKA), Human Rights Education in the
School Systems in South-East Asia: Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, and Thailand, 2009

29 | P a g e
Implementation and monitoring  
Evaluation of the outcome of implementation
This Southeast Asian project focuses on integrating human rights
education in the primary and secondary schools of a national education
system, which includes educational policy development, legislation,
strategies, teaching and learning processes and tools, professional
development of personnel, and the learning environment. The overall
goal of this project is to contribute to the implementation of the Plan of
Action for First Phase of the WPHRE in Asia. The project covers Cambodia,
Indonesia, Lao PDR and Thailand. The project was implemented through
the Ministries of Education in these four countries. Ministries of
education take responsibility for national implementation in
collaboration with all stakeholders.
In each of the four countries, a national team on human rights education
(NTHRE) was formed, mainly composed of officials of the MOE. In
Thailand, the NTHRE created a special working group, including
professional organizations, civil society organizations, national human
rights institution, and the Ministry of Education. In Cambodia, Indonesia
and Lao PDR, the NTHREs were composed of representatives of different
agencies within the respective Ministries of Education.
The project was supervised by the Asia-Pacific Human Rights Information
Center (HURIGHTS OSAKA) who took responsibility for the program on
human rights education in Asian schools. HURIGHTS OSAKA formed a
regional project team to work together with the NTHREs. This project
conducted pilot research in the four countries with national assessment
exercises and in-depth analysis of the educational status at that particular

30 | P a g e
time. The first meeting between the project team and the national
researchers was held in April 2008 in Bangkok, where initial research
reports that compiled the results of the national assessment exercise
were presented. According to the results, the best practices describe the
variety of initiatives in the four countries, though these best practices may
not be fully comprehensive. Cambodia has included child and women’s
rights into its formal education course, Lao PDR has incorporated some
human rights materials, and Indonesia has drafted a clear provision on
human rights in its Standard of Educational Content and a national human
rights action plan that supports human rights education. Thailand has
incorporated human rights in social, religious and cultural subject areas,
and in teaching methods.
The national research reports presented four key topics27
:
Historical, Constitutional/Legal and Educational Context
Education laws and policies, the curriculum, and programs 
Analysis of laws, policies, educational goals, curricula, and
programs
Recommendations on integration of human rights education in
formal school system
In terms of the implementation of human rights education in the school
systems in these four countries, there have been general problems such
as large classes, uneven distribution of teachers, lack of teaching/learning
materials, lack of teacher training and lack of appropriate understanding

31 | P a g e
of human rights among teachers and students in Cambodia and Thailand.
Likewise, educational policy has sometimes been inconsistent with the
implementation of human rights education and has been a low priority by
government, both of which are also serious challenges to human rights
education in the formal education system in the four countries.
In South Asia, HURIGHTS OSAKA developed teacher training resource
material on human rights education with South Asian educators. The
publication entitled “South Asian Teachers and Human Right Education
– A Training Resource Material (2009)” describes basic elements of
human rights education in the formal education system as below:
Human Rights: Concepts, Mechanisms and Issues
Human Rights in the South Asian Context
The School System and Human Rights Education 
Human Rights Education 
Human Rights Education Pedagogy 
Teachers and Human Rights Education 
School Ethos and Human Rights Education 
Community Participation
The resource material is a practical guideline to understanding human
rights education in the context of South Asia, and uses the diverse
materials existing in the South Asian sub-region to illustrate the practice
of human rights education in the formal school system.
The 2001 Southeast Asian Writing Workshop on Developing Teaching
Guides on Human Rights adapted lesson plans on human rights education
to utilize within Southeast Asian schools. Their report, entitled “Human

32 | P a g e
Rights Lesson Plans for Southeast Asian Schools,” is based on the
experiences of Asian human rights educators in the sub-region.
This publication contributes to the realization of the objectives of the
United Nations Decade for Human Rights Education (1995-2004) [UN
Decade]. The UN Decade supports the development of human rights
teaching materials. The summarized table extracted from “Human Rights
Lesson Plans for Southeast Asian Schools” is presented as below28
:
Table 1: Summarized Lesson Plans for Southeast Asian Schools
28 Asia-Pacific Human Rights Information Center (HURIGHTS OSAKA), Human Rights Lesson Plans for
Southeast Asian Schools, October 2003
Level Grade Topic Subject HR Concept Resource
Primary 1-3 Living in a Clean
Environment
Science Right to clean
environment
Article 25 of
UDHR
1-3 I’m Entitled to
Leisure
Social Studies,
 Physical
Education and
Health
Right to rest and
leisure
Article 3(1) of
CRC 
1-3 Care and
Protection
Moral
Education,
Social Studies
Right to care and
protection 
Article 27 (1) &
27 (2) of CRC 
1-3 I’m Involved Moral
Education
Right to freedom
of association
Article 15 of
CRC
4-6 Drug Abuse   Social Studies Right to
protection
against the use
of prohibited
drugs 
Article 24, 33 &
39 of CRC 
4-6 Right to Education Moral
Education
Right to
education
Articles 28 (1,
2) and 29 of
CRC
4-6 Child Labor Social Studies Right to be
protected
against child
labor and right
to education 
Article 28 & 32
(1) of CRC  
4-6 My Opinion Civic
Education,
Social Studies
Right to freedom
of opinion and
expression 
Article 19 of
UDHR
4-6 Our Willingness to
Share
Civic
Education,
Social Studies
Right to social
security 
Article 22 of
UDHR
4-6 Work During the
Dry Season
Social Studies,
Science, Home
Economics
Right to work
and right to
adequate
Article 6 of
ICESCR

33 | P a g e
(Source: Human Rights Lesson Plans for Southeast Asian Schools, 2003)
This section describes human rights education in school curriculum
through a case study in Cambodia29
. In Cambodia, human rights are
taught under the social studies and Khmer language subject areas of the
1996 curriculum from pre-school to higher education. Pre-school human
rights education curriculum includes lessons about “kindness without
discrimination.” In primary school curricula and textbooks, there exists
standard of
living
Lower
Secondary
Human Dignity Moral
Education,
Civic
Education
Right to equal
treatment
Article 23 of
CRC
Graft and
Corruption
Moral
Education
Right to
government
service
Article 2 (1) of
ICESCR 
Life Is Meaningful Moral
Education
Right to life  Article 3 of
UDHR
Street Children Civic
Education
Right of every
child to
protection
against
economic
exploitation
Article 32,
Section 1 of
CRC
Upper
Secondary
Freedom from
Discrimination
Social Studies Right to freedom
from
discrimination
Article 1 of
UDHR
Migrant Workers Social Studies Right to just and
favorable
conditions of
work 
Article 23 (3) of
UDHR
National Budget
and Taxation
Economics,
Social Studies
Right to
participation and
access to
information 
Article 21 (1) of
UDHR
Legal Procedures Social Studies Right to
protection
UDHR
Development and
Human Rights
Local Studies,
Economics
Right to
development
Article 22 of
UDHR
Human Rights are
Universal
Social Studies Universality and
indivisibility of
human rights 
Article 1 & 2 of
UDHR

34 | P a g e
the following relevant lessons for deeper understanding on personality
development related to human rights education:
How to respect school discipline
Avoiding any act leading to danger 
How to walk safely along the roadside  
Accepting one’s own mistakes 
Studying the danger of explosives  
Avoiding any gambling  
Learning about the summary contents of some articles stipulated
in the  Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the Convention
on the  Rights of the Child  
Learning about some simple principle teachings of Buddha namely
the  five Buddhist precepts for laypeople
The secondary school curriculum comprises lessons regarding knowledge
enhancement, emotion, and general skills. Some lesson titles related to
HRE are as below:
Knowing oneself  
Keeping good relationship with others 
Prevention, management and conflict resolution  
Respect for human rights  
Peaceful world for children  
Respect for the country's laws  
Good governance 
Prevention and condemnation of criminal acts  
Resolution of obstacles obstructing peace and community
development

35 | P a g e
The doctrine and principles of democracy  
Perception of basic teachings of other religions practiced in
Cambodia  
Learning the international policy of the Kingdom of Cambodia  
Learning about ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations)  
Cambodia has developed a human rights curricular framework30
based on
the 1996 school curriculum (Table 2). This framework comprises three
major components -- issues or problems, human rights concepts, and core
values -- that are included in “Human Rights Lesson Plans for Southeast
Asian Schools”, published by the Asia-Pacific Human Rights Information
Center (HURIGHTS OSAKA).
Table 2: Cambodia human rights curricular framework
Grade
Level
HR
curricular
framework
Issues HR concept Core value
7 Self The concept of
development
Rights and respect for
others
Human rights violation
Management of
problematic situations
Child rights 
Right to education
Right to develop
one’s potential
Right to privacy
Equality 
Love for school
Self-reliance 
Responsibility
Self-respect
8 Others Relationship between
people
Discrimination
Moral conduct
Sharing and caring
Non-
discrimination 
Equality 
Right to be free
from
discrimination 
Acting in a spirit of
brotherhood/
sisterhood 
Right to social
security
Gender equality
Humanity
Courtesy,
politeness
Sincerity
Charity
Sharing

36 | P a g e
Right to
participation Social
rights 
Economic rights 
Fair decision-
making
9 Community Rights and
responsibilities
Development 
Environment
Respect for rules
Right to
participation
Social rights 
Economic rights
 Fair decision-
making
Participation 
Creativity
 Responsibility 
Respect for rules
10 Country Poverty
 Insecurity
Rights and
responsibility of the
nation
Solidarity
Social rights
Civil rights 
Political rights
Patriotism 
Cooperation
Responsibility
Respect for rules
11 Culture and human
rights
Healing the trauma of
victims of human rights
violations
Right to freedom of
religion
Freedom of speech
Equality before the
law and protection
of the law
Conscientiousness
Honesty
Responsibility 
Orderliness
12 Region and
the World
Regionalization
Globalization
Right to proper
social and
international order
Duty to the
community and
limitation of rights
Action against any
of the rights under
the UDHR not a
right
Responsibility Ope
n-mindedness
Cooperation
 Respect and love
for labor
(Source: Human Rights Lesson Plans for Southeast Asian Schools, 2003)
In the 2008-2009 new school-curriculum, human rights concepts were
constitution-based rights or human rights defined in the Universal
Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), the Convention on the Rights of the
Child (CRC), and the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of
Discrimination against Women (CEDAW). The following human rights
concepts were integrated into the new curriculum (2008-2009) in the
basic education system of Cambodia31
:

37 | P a g e
Table 3: HRE in Basic Education of Cambodia
Grade
Level
HR Concepts
Number of learning
hour
(For HR Education)
Number of
learning hour per
school year
(For all subjects)
%
Primary School Level
Grade 1 CRC:
Right to protection
14 950 1.49
Grade 2 CRC:
Right to protection Right to
education
Right to development
24 950 2.52
Grade 3 CRC:
education Right to
development
8 950 0.82
Grade 4 CRC:
education Right to
development Right to
participation
12 950 0.82
Grade 5 CRC:
education Right to
participation
22 950 2.31
Grade 6 CRC:
education Right to
participation
23 950 2.42
Lower Secondary School Level
Grade 7 CRC:
Right to protection
Right to education
Right to participation
Right to belief 
Right to non- discrimination
41 1140 3.59
Grade 8 CRC:
Right to belief 
Right to non- discrimination
43 1140 3.77
Grade 9 CRC:
Right to freedom of belief 
Right to non- discrimination 
34 1140 2.98

38 | P a g e
Right to Freedom of
association
Upper Secondary School Level
Grade 10 UDHR:
Right to freedom of
expression 
Right to be protected by law
8 1140 0.7
Grade 11 ICCPR
ICESCR
8 1260 0.63
Grade 12 UDHR
ICCPR
ICESCR
28 1260 2.22
(Source: Human Rights Education in the School Systems in Southeast Asia)

39 | P a g e
PART III
Human Right Education and the Myanmar Context
Education System in Myanmar
The Myanmar education system began with traditional Buddhist monastic
education. In the past, male education was emphasized and boys
attended monastery schools where they would learn about Buddhism and
basic arithmetic skills. Under King Mindon (1853-1878), a modern school
was built for an Anglican missionary. During British Colonial rule, secular
schools were established and the country developed its educational
quality standards. Under this western education system, education access
for women improved enormously. In the early years following
independence, Myanmar schools were recognized as qualified schools
within Asia and boasted one of the highest literacy rates in Asia in the late
1940s and 1950s.
The current education system is administered by the Government
Ministry of Education (MOE). Primary, middle and high schools are under
the Department of Basic Education. Tertiary Higher Education, including
Universities and Professional Institutes, are operated by two separate
office: a lower and an upper office, which are based in Mandalay and
Yangon respectively. Depending on different professional studies, some
universities are under related ministries.
In the basic education system, there are four types of schools in
Myanmar: state schools, private schools, monastic schools and ethnic
schools such as Mon National Schools. Schooling is compulsory until the
end of primary school, which lasts five years. According to Ministry of

40 | P a g e
Education figures, in the 2015-2016 Academic year, there were 47,363
basic education schools, and around 9.26 million students. At present the
MOE is still implementing basic education reform. In its 5-years National
Education Strategic Plan (2016 – 2021), the MOE identified the main basic
education reform areas through a conceptual framework for basic
education reform:
a) Access, quality and inclusion;
b) Curriculum;
c) Student assessment and examinations; and,
d) Teacher Education and Management.32
However, “human rights” doesn’t appear one single time in the whole
document, neither other references to Human Rights Education.
The current basic education system consists of six years of primary
education or elementary (KG to Grade 5), four years of middle education
or lower secondary (Grade 6 to Grade 9) and three years of high school
level or upper secondary (Grade 10 to Grade 12). The following is
presented as the current basic education system (Table 4).
Table 4: Basic Education System
School Level Grade From Grade To Age From Age To Year
Primary Elementary KG 5 5 11 6
Middle Lower secondary 6 9 12 16 4
High Upper secondary 10 12 17 19 3
32 The Republic of the Union of Myanmar Ministry of Education, National Education Strategic Plan
2016—2021 (published by 2016)

41 | P a g e
School Practice and Learning Environment
The Ministry of Education undertook a Comprehensive Education Sector
Review (CESR) to assess the strengths and weaknesses of the national
education system over a period of three-and-a-half years and then
developed the National Education Strategic Plan (NESP) for the period
2016-2021. The basic education reform of the MOE seems appropriate.
Despite major changes at the basic education level, there are still many
challenges to foster a better educational atmosphere. In all schools there
is little to no practical work and textbook-based teaching continues to
discourage analytical thinking. Teachers continue to maintain an
authoritative role in classroom. Current classroom practices are not
consistent with human rights education and are a barrier to become a
human rights learning environment. Classrooms practices and teaching
style should therefore be changed to be in line with human right
principles. Teachers need to make class rules that link students’ rights and
responsibilities to the human rights principles.
During most school day mornings, the school head gives a speech that is
predominantly about school discipline and admonishment. Following
such assemblies, at the commencement of study time, students recite a
Buddhist prayer. School teachers allow non-Buddhist students to refrain
from Buddhist worship, but this is exclusion for those students. Basic
education schools require strong reform for changing daily school
practices to be linked to human rights education and to create human
rights friendly classroom environments.

42 | P a g e
Curriculum
oheir lives and to the socio-economic
Myanmar’s Ministry of Education is now adopting new basic education
curriculum. So far, curriculum reform and teacher training for
Kindergarten and Grade 1 has been completed. The new curriculum
development team includes international and local education experts and
is supported by the United Nations Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF),
the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and the Asian
Development Bank (ADB)33
. As with other school levels, most curricula
and learning materials are out of date and have little practical application
in the current context. The old curriculum is textbook-based, severely
lacking in educational resources, and stresses factual information through
the memorizing of facts in core subjects. The new basic education
curriculum focuses on 21st century skills, soft skills (including personal
development and employability skills), and higher order thinking skills.
Under the military junta, human rights education did not exist in the
Myanmar formal education system. According to The Irrawaddy34
, The
Myanmar National Human Rights Commission (MNHRC) and the MOE
agreed to include human rights education lessons within the provisions of
basic education, from Grade 2 until Grade 12. The Irrawaddy mentioned
that the lesson content would draw upon the Universal Declaration of
Human Rights and the United Nations’ Convention on the Rights of the
33 The Republic of the Union of Myanmar Ministry of Education, National Education Strategic Plan
2016—2021 (published by 2016)
34 Tin Htet Paing, The Irrawaddy dated 8 July 2016, National Human Rights Education Initiative
Forthcoming

43 | P a g e
Child. Human rights education is to be integrated within one of the main
subjects already being taught, and not as a separate course.
Curriculum change is significant because education is correlated with the
social, economic and political qualities of a society. As the curriculum
changes, the inclusion of a human rights curriculum needs to be a part of
the education system’s formal structure. Human rights education is
distinct from the curriculum of other subjects and has a continuous
relationship with real-life society and representing citizens’ behavior in
that society. In addition to teaching human rights principles, new areas
should also be included in the curriculum through a human right
approach:
Gender
Peace & Non-Violence
Civics
Cultural Diversity or Inter-cultural & Anti-Racist
Democracy
Interfaith Dialogue
Myanmar’s current curriculum still embraces a Buddhist doctrine, poems
and stories about strict discipline, and extremely nationalist approaches,
especially in its moral and civics subjects. The research below presents a
case study of the moral and civic curriculum of Grades 3 and 435
.
Table 5 Moral and Civic Curriculum of Grade 3
Title Sub-title Type Aim Description
Morality
Ashin Mahar
Thilawontha
Homily
Poem To be a polite and
respectful student
This poem describes about ethical daily
standards, for example, paying respect
for body manners and not to eat before
parents and teachers.
35 Moral & Civic Textbook of Grade 3 & Grade 4, prepared by Basic Education Curriculum, Syllabus and
Textbook Committee (2015-2016), The Republic of the Union of Myanmar Ministry of Education

44 | P a g e
Good
Altitude
Poem To use good
communication
skills
This poem lectures about using better
communication when dealing with
family, the community and schools.
Culture &
Well-
mannered
Practice
Worship Poem To keep Buddhist
traditional
practices
This poem details worship of Buddha,
monks, parents and teachers.
Politeness
during
playing
Principles To use good
behavior when
playing games or
sports
This describes teamwork, sportsmanship
and emotional control.
Responsibility
Needs and
Rights
Principles To know some
human rights
principles
This presents the right to life, right to full
developmentright to participate, and
right to security.
Endeavour Principles To know the
benefit of effort
This urges us to complete tasks without
laziness and that time is valuable.
National
Spirit and
Patriotic
Spirit
National Day Poem To encourage
national spirit
This poem reveals the root of Myanmar
National Day and nationalist movements
and revolution against colony and
fascism.
Help as Crow
and
Accumulate
as Garlic
Proverb To have a unitified
spirit
This is an ethnic proverb, illustrating
unity by examples of crows and garlic.
Novel & Story
Paddy Story To respect others
and to be without
arrogance
The story is a lecture explaining the
difference between overconfidence and
well-mannered treatment.
Greediness Story To know the
negative effects of
greed
This story presents the troubles that are
caused by greed for the property of
others
Table 6 Moral & Civic curriculum of Grade 4
Title Sub-title Type Aim Description
Morality
Five Buddhist
Precepts
Buddhist
doctrine
To daily keep five
Buddhist precepts
All Buddhist live by the Five Moral
Precepts which are refraining from:
Harming living things
Taking what is not given
Sexual misconduct
Lying or gossip
Taking intoxicating substances
Pretty Odious
Person
Poem To be an obedient
student
This poem states that you must
listen to the talk of parents and
teachers, not lie to others, not
speak rudely and not bully, or else
you will become a hateful person
Culture &
Well-
mannered
Practice
Ethnic Dance
Show
Poem To know ethnic
traditions and to
understand
different ethnic
traditional
cultures
This poem overviews different
ethnic dances and stresses unity.
Politeness Traditional
Lecture
To be a clever and
well-mannered
student
This lecture is about having or
showing behavior that is respectful
and considerate of other people
General
Politeness
Principles To be polite and
to improve
Thisstates to obey ethical standards
in everyday life, for example, to
respect parents, teachers and the

45 | P a g e
Figure 2 below shows a word cloud that represents the most common
words within the curriculum of the moral and civics subjects for Grade 3.
It presents the key words used in the lessons of the Grade 3 curriculum
and in the aims of each lesson. Amongst them, the most common words
are Behavior, Respect, Obedient, Nationalist, Buddhist, National and
Homily. Within the word cloud below, the bigger words are the more
prominent words in the lessons and aims of each lesson. The Grade 3
moral and civics curriculum focuses on homilies, Buddhist doctrine, and
nationalist ideas.
communication
skills
elderly, to avoid misconduct, to
accomplish duties, etc.
Responsibility
Red Cross Poem To know the
functions of the
Red Cross and to
be involved in a
school Red Cross
Team
This poem presents the tasks of the
Red Cross such as humanitarian and
relief for victims of war or natural
disaster.
My Duty Poem To be a dutiful and
polite person
This poem asks us to be polite, to
love others, to respect the elderly
and parents, to be educated, and to
love our homeland and nationality.
Rights and
Responsibility
Principles To know human
rights
This presents the right to life, right
to full development right to
participate, and right to security.
National
Spirit and
Patriotic
Spirit
Patriotic Spirit Poem To be a nationalist This poem describes the duty of son
and daughter to protect their
nationality and shows fears in
losing nationality and being mix-
blood with other foreigners.
If you live this
country, you will
care to your
country.
Proverb To have patriotic
sprit, love our
country, and
protect our
country
This is an ethnic proverb that
fosters the reader to be a
nationalist
Novel & Story
Unpunctual
Chicken
Story To learn from
teachers and to
obey parents’
lectures
This story states that if we don’t
listen to voices of parents and
teachers, we will not know about
things around us.
Saint Bear Story To have good
manners and help
others
This story states that we must treat
others well if we want to be treated
well

46 | P a g e
Figure 2 Word Cloud for Grade 3 Curriculum
Likewise, Figure 3 below is a word cloud for moral and civics lessons in
Grade 4. The word cloud show clearly the most common key terms:
Respect, Obedient, Nationalist, Nation, Homily and Patriotic. The lessons
cultivate obedient students and foster patriotic sprit.
Figure 3 Word Cloud for Grade 4 Curriculum

47 | P a g e
Discussion
Human rights education has existed in informal education in Myanmar.
There have been trainings, publications and videos that promote and
protect human rights. Over the past five years, human rights concepts
have been increasing in the formal education structure in Myanmar and
most human right documents endorse human right education. However,
teaching human rights education continues to be a challenge even though
the MoE has agreed to its implementation and the MNHRC has called for
extra attention for human rights education. The potential barriers to HRE
are:
Lack of teachers’ own knowledge about HRE
Lack of resources and inadequate teaching materials
No HRE priority due to exam pressure, student assessment, and
curricular-focused class
Insufficient political will
In terms of Myanmar school practices and learning environment, many
creative pedagogical approaches for the delivery of human rights
education through the use of media and technology can be included.
Possibilities for the creative activities of human rights education
promotion are: story-telling or oral tradition written works or essay
writing , drama and role-playing, art work and drawing, reading cartoons,
 public speaking, and  sports. Different learning approaches should also
be considered to be used with human rights education: participatory
learning, active learning and experimental learning.
At the Myanmar basic education level, some lessons plans in the
curricula, especially in moral and civic subjects and history, have not been

48 | P a g e
prepared in line with a human rights approach. Most lessons include
admonishments, religious discourse, and an extremely patriotic-
approach. Learning human rights concepts can help schools to deliver a
balanced, relevant curriculum that helps students to make sense of the
wider world. Yet Myanmar curricula was written in the spirit of the
“unifying of the nation” program, stemming from the long-standing
conflict between the military and ethnic armed groups. Hence, in the
development of basic school curriculum, ethnicity shouldn’t be the main
focus but a human rights approach as it is integrated in the curriculum.
Human rights education fosters participation, diversity, equal
opportunities, and non-discrimination toward developing societies in
which all human rights are valued and respected. It builds a culture of
respect for diversity and equality and is a key role in the spread of core
values of social justice and human dignity.
Conclusion
Human rights education supports awareness of human right values and
these values are protected. It is an instrumental tool towards social
justice, peace building, and people-centered sustainable development. In
addition, it encourages people to apply human rights in their daily lives
and schools so as to eliminate discrimination, prejudice, and other human
rights abuses. Human rights education also improves the education
quality and learning achievements and ensures the full development of
the individual’s personality.
Human rights education should be implemented within a wide range of
educational settings such as curriculum, teacher training, professional
development plans for teachers, textbooks and teaching materials,

49 | P a g e
teaching methods, and the overall school environment. Without a holistic
approach to policy-making, conceptual framework, and program
development, human rights education is ineffective and inefficient in
fostering a culture of human rights. This study indicates that human rights
education curriculum should be prepared with a transformative and
global approach and the learning environment should be created through
human rights values.
Recommendations
This research is based on the descriptiveness of literature in the human
rights education field area, considerations of international legal policy on
human rights education, and analysis of school curriculum, especially
moral and civics subject areas of Grade 3 and Grade 4. The following
recommendations represent critical elements in effective human rights
education implementation in formal education systems:
Adopting strategies, development programs, and policy
frameworks for human rights education implementation in formal
basic education schools
Preparing quality materials for human rights education and
developing of cross-curricular materials and action-oriented
teaching methods
Identification and inclusion of human rights concepts in the formal
school curricula and textbooks that encourage peace building and
protecting human rights
Organizing workshops for curriculum specialists and text book
writers, and consulting with teachers and students for the
development of human rights education curriculum

50 | P a g e
Creating learning activities and daily school practices based on
human right principle and values  
Conducting research on the development of curriculum,
appropriate human rights education materials, teaching methods,
and teacher training

51 | P a g e
References
The Republic of the Union of Myanmar Ministry of Education, National Education Strategic Plan 2016—
2021 (published by 2016)
The Republic of the Union of Myanmar Ministry of Education, Education for All: Access to and Quality
of Education in Myanmar, Conference on Development Policy Options with Special Reference to
Education and Health, Nay Pyi Taw, Myanmar (February, 2012)
MNHRC, Strategic Plan 2014 -2016 (October 2013)
UN, Human Rights Education in Primary and Secondary School Systems:  A Self-assessment Guide for
Governments (2012)
UN, Teaching Human Right: Practical activities for primary and secondary schools (2003)
UNESCO, Contemporary Issues in Human Right Education
UNESCO-IBE, World Data on Education (April 2011) at http://www.ibe.unesco.org/
UNESCO, Stopping Violence in Schools: A Guide for Teachers
World Programme for Human Rights Education, Second Phase, Plan of Action (2012)
Council of Europe Publishing, Living in Democracy, EDC/HRE lesson plans for lower secondary level
Asia-Pacific Human Rights Information Center (HURIGHTS OSAKA), Human Rights Education in the
School Systems in Southeast Asia: Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, and Thailand (2009)
Asia-Pacific Human Rights Information Center (HURIGHTS OSAKA), Human Rights Lesson Plans for
Southeast Asian Schools (October 2003)
Asia-Pacific Human Rights Information Center (HURIGHTS OSAKA), Human Rights Education in Asian
Schools – Volume 12 (March 2009)
Asia-Pacific Human Rights Information Center (HURIGHTS OSAKA), Human Rights Education in Asian
Schools: Achievements, Problems and Prospects at
https://www.hurights.or.jp/archives/other_publications/human-rights-education-in-asian-schools-
achievements-problems-and-prospects.html
BEMIS- Empowering Scotland’s Ethnic and Cultural Minorities Communities, A Review of Human Rights
Education in Schools in Scotland (March 2013)
BEMIS- Empowering Scotland’s Ethnic and Cultural Minorities Communities, Human Rights Education:
Theory And Practices
Amnesty International Ireland, Human Right Stories: Tales of Human Right Defenders (2012)
Interfaith Council on Ethics Education for Children Global Network of Religions for Children Arigatou
Foundation incorporated and endorsed by UNESCO and UNICE, Learning to Live Together: An
Intercultural and Interfaith Programme for Ethics Education (2008)
Sneh Aurora, Human Rights and Values in Education, Educational International (June 2016)
Lothar Müller, Human Rights Education in German Schools and Post-Secondary Institutions: Results of
a Study, Human Rights Education Associates, Inc. (HREA) (September 2009)

52 | P a g e
Jayantibhai V. Patel , Human Right Education, National seminar on Human Rights and Values in
Education, H. S. Shah College of Commerce, Modasa, Gujarat, (Mar. 2007)
Nancy Flowers, COMPASITO: What is Human Right Education?, Manual on human rights education for
children ( January, 3009)
U Thein Lwin, Training Burmese Teacher
Tin Htet Paing, National Human Rights Education Initiative Forthcoming, The Irrawaddy (8 July 2016)
Facts and Details from website: http://factsanddetails.com/
Oxford Burma Alliance from website: http://www.oxfordburmaalliance.org/education-in-
burma.html

1
Universal Periodic Review
Second Cycle (2015 – 2020) Mid-Term Report
Burma/Myanmar UPR Forum
February - May 2018

2
Table of Contents
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS 3
ACRONYMS 4
I. INTRODUCTION: 5
II. MID-TERM ASSESSMENT FOR 2ND
CYCLE OF UPR 6
III. THEMATIC ISSUES 7
(A) FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION, FREEDOM OF ASSEMBLY AND PRESS FREEDOM 7
(B) STATUS OF RATIFICATIONS BY MYANMAR AND COOPERATION WITH UN HUMAN RIGHTS BODIES
10
(C) ETHNIC AND RELIGIOUS MINORITIES ISSUES, FOCUSING ON FREEDOM OF RELIGION OR BELIEF 12
FREEDOM OF RELIGION OR BELIEF (EFFECTS ON CITIZENSHIP AND IDENTITY) 12
FREEDOM OF RELIGION AND BELIEF (EFFECTS ON RELIGIOUS BUILDINGS, HOLY PLACES, SCHOOLS AND CEMETERIES)
13
(D) ACCESS TO JUSTICE 14
(E) ANTI-CORRUPTION AND RULE OF LAW 15
(F) CHILD PROTECTION MEASURES: CHILD LAW AMENDMENT PROCESS AND CSO’S ENGAGEMENT 16
(G) GENDER EQUALITY 20
(H) PEACE PROCESS AND ARMED CONFLICT IN BURMA/MYANMAR 21
(I) THE CONDITIONS OF HUMAN TRAFFICKING AND MIGRANT WORKERS 25
(J) SEXUAL VIOLENCE IN ARMED CONFLICT AREAS AND NON-CONFLICT AREAS 27
SEXUAL VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN AND GIRLS BY NON-OFFICIAL SECURITY PERSONNEL 29
IMPUNITY 30
WOMEN’S PARTICIPATION IN DECISION-MAKING BODIES: 20
(K) MINORITY GROUPS: SEXUAL ORIENTATION AND GENDER IDENTITY AND EXPRESSION (SOGIE)31
IV. CONCLUSIONS 32
V. RECOMMENDATIONS 33
(A) FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION, FREEDOM OF ASSEMBLY AND PRESS FREEDOM 33
(B) STATUS OF RATIFICATIONS AND COOPERATION WITH UN HUMAN RIGHTS MECHANISMS 34
(C) ETHNIC AND RELIGIOUS MINORITIES ISSUES FOCUSING ON FREEDOM OF RELIGION OR BELIEF 34
(D) ACCESS TO JUSTICE 35
(E) ANTI-CORRUPTION AND RULE OF LAW 35
(F) CHILD PROTECTION MEASURES: CHILD LAW AMENDMENT PROCESS AND CSO’S ENGAGEMENT 35
(G) GENDER EQUALITY 37
(H) PEACE PROCESS AND ARMED CONFLICTS IN BURMA/ MYANMAR 37
(I) THE CONDITIONS OF HUMAN TRAFFICKING AND MIGRANT WORKERS 38
(J) SEXUAL VIOLENCE IN ARMED CONFLICT AREAS AND NON-CONFLICT AREAS 39
(K) MINORITIES GROUPS: SEXUAL ORIENTATION AND GENDER IDENTITY AND EXPRESSION (SOGIE)
39
VI. APPENDIX I - UPR 2ND CYCLE RECOMMENDATION CHART 41
VII. APPENDIX II- 2ND CYCLE OF UPR RECOMMENDATIONS SCORING CHART 55

3
Acknowledgements
The Burma/Myanmar UPR Forum would like to express its
deepest appreciation to everyone involved in the development
of this UPR Mid-Term Review Report.
Special gratitude goes to the lead researcher, Ms. Cheery Zahau,
for guiding us through the research process and for her tireless
efforts in putting all research bits and pieces together.
Thanks to all the UPR Forum members and partners, especially
those that undertook Individual research pieces:
o Access to Justice Initiative
o Athan
o Colors Rainbow
o Equality Myanmar
o Gender Equality Network (GEN)
o Genuine People’s Servant (GPS)
o Human Rights Defender and Promoters (HRDP)
o Karen Human Rights Group (KHRG)
o ND-Burma
o NGO Child Right Working Group (NCRWG)
o Pen Myanmar
o Future Lights Centre
o The Seagull
o Women’s League of Burma (WLB)
Additionally, we would like to thank the colleagues from Equality
Myanmar for their support and oversight throughout this
project. In particular, to Sayar Aung Myo Min, facilitator
extraordinaire; to Mr. Nay Lin Htike, Mr. Tin Maung Htwe and
the Operations Department for the logistic support; and Mr.
Daren Moon and Mr. Juan Miguel Sanchez for their insights and
technical support in reviewing this Report’s content.
Lastly, this work would not have been possible without the
financial support of the British Embassy in Yangon.

4
Acronyms
ACC: Anti-Corruption Commission
A2JI: Access to Justice Initiative
Athan: Athan-Community Based Organization
BGF: Border Guard Forces
CSOs: Civil Society Organizations
CRDP: Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities
CPI: Corruption perception index
CTFMR: Country Task Force on Monitoring and Reporting
CRB: Colors Rainbow
DKBA: Democratic Karen Buddhist Army
EQMM: Equality Myanmar
HRDF: Human Rights Defender Forum
ICCPR: International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights
ICESCR: International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights
ICRC: International Committee of Red Cross
IDPs: Internally Displaced Persons
KII: Key Informant Interview
KHRG: Karen Human Rights Group
KNLA: Karen National Liberation Army
KWAT: Kachin Women Association-Thailand
LDU: Lahu Democratic Union
LIB: Light Infantry Battalion
ILO: International Labor Organization
IOM: International Organization of Migration
LGBT: Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender
MRTV: Myanmar Television
MNHRC: Myanmar National Human Rights Commission
MoU: Memorandum of Understanding
NMSP: New Mon State Party
NLD: National League for Democracy
NCRWG: NGO Child Rights Working Group
NSPAW: National Strategic Plan for Advancement of Women
NCA: Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement
ND-Burma: Network for Human Rights Documentation-Burma
PDT: Pre-departure Training
Pen-Myanmar: Pen-Myanmar
SOGIE: Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity and Expression
TCRC: Township Committee on the Rights of the Child
TNLA: Ta’ang National Liberation Army
TWO: Ta’ang Women Organization
UN: United Nations
UNHRC: United Nations Human Rights Council
UPR: Universal Periodic Review
UNICEF: United Nations Fund for Children
UNDP: United Nations Development Program
UNCAC: United Nation Convention against Corruption
UNICEF: United Nations Children Fund
UNDP: United Nations Development Program
WHO: World Health Organization
WLB: Women’s League of Burma

5
I. Introduction:
As of today, the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) is the only UN Human Rights mechanism,
which allows civil society organizations to raise their concerns to the Government, with
UN Member States acting as the main bridge. The Burma/Myanmar UPR Forum is a
coalition of independent Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) with the commitment to
engage constructively in the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) process to improve human
rights situations of all people and communities of Burma/Myanmar and border areas. The
Forum was formed in 2010 when Equality Myanmar, in collaboration with Forum Asia,
organized a National Consultation Workshop on the UPR with representatives from 13 civil
society organizations, and have grown supported by UPR Info, AJWS1 and other partners.
Since its inception in 2010, the Forum has collaboratively developed and submitted joint
stakeholders report to the UPR Working Group for Myanmar’s first and second UPR cycles
in 2011 and 20152 respectively. The reports by the Forum have emphasized critical human
rights issues and provided an assessment of the government’s human rights record, from
the perspective of local communities using firsthand accounts of human rights violations.
The Burma/Myanmar UPR Forum becomes a vital platform for civil society organizations
working on human rights issues to informally monitor the human rights performance of
the government and how far it has gone in the implementation of UPR accepted
recommendations. Two years have passed since then the last UPR round in 2015/2016
and general indications are that civil and political rights have been removed from the
political agenda, root causes of discrimination and unrest have not been addressed and
violence against women and girls - including sexual violence - remain pervasive while the
numbers of human rights violations cases have increased all over the county. The new
political environment for the protection and promotion of human rights is fragile, thus,
civil society organizations feel compelled to keep on close monitoring and reporting on
the human rights situation in Myanmar with the hope that it will result in increased
accountability of the Government of Myanmar.
This report, that is not exhaustive and is solely based on the knowledge and expertise of
the Burma/Myanmar UPR Forum’s members, covers cases of rights violations, a brief
analysis on the lack of improvement observed on economic, social and cultural rights and
the worsening of civil and political rights that has been observed since 2015. The report
also aims to provide concrete recommendations to the Government of Myanmar with
keeping a good faith in the democratic government and its promise and obligations to
fulfill the human rights of the people aligned with international human rights standards
and norms.
1 https://www.upr-info.org/en/news/myanmar-kicking-off-the-upr-follow-up-phase-with-the-
burmamyanmar-upr-forum
2 http://www.burmapartnership.org/2015/11/time-for-the-government-to-accept-the-reality-of-
human-rights-problems-take-effective-measures-and-move-forward-2/

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