UNESCO Chair in Philosophy and Human Rights

The 'UNESCO Chair in Philosophy and Human Rights' at Maltepe University was established through an agreement signed with the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) on May 13, 2009.

The signing ceremony took place at UNESCO's headquarters in Paris, where UNESCO Secretary-General Koïchiro Matsuura and Maltepe University Rector Kemal Köymen met. Following the signing, both delivered brief speeches. Secretary-General Matsuura expressed his happiness over the establishment of the chair through the agreement with Maltepe University. He noted that Turkey had hosted one of the world's most significant philosophy conferences in 2007, emphasizing that Turkey contributes significantly to the fields of philosophy and human rights.

After Matsuura's speech, Rector Köymen shared his feelings, stating that Maltepe University had been authorized by UNESCO to conduct research in the critical area of human rights and to expand these studies on an international scale. He said, "This chair has been established at our university thanks to our internationally renowned professor in philosophy and human rights, İoanna Kuçuradi, who serves as its chair. She is the honorary president of the International Federation of Philosophical Societies. We hope that, with her contributions and experiences, this chair will lay the foundation for new research and studies in Turkey." Köymen also mentioned their aim to address philosophical concepts that create crises in Turkey and to fill in the gaps concerning these concepts through specialized studies. He continued, "There are only two chairs like this in Turkey, and now we have one of them, which will elevate us to a privileged position in human rights and philosophy studies. Our primary goal is to establish an integrated documentation, research, and education system regarding philosophy and human rights. I believe such a system will bring together researchers from Turkey and other countries and lead to more effective studies. There are many crisis-inducing concepts in Turkey, especially 'secularism.' We want to engage with these concepts. Today, freedom of expression is crucial. They are considering amending the constitution. Perhaps we can contribute to the formation of a constitution compatible with human rights."

İoanna Kuçuradi also took the floor during the meeting, stating that their aim in establishing the chair was to focus on conceptual and content studies and to showcase Turkey's contributions in the field of human rights. She emphasized the need for new research and highlighted two important needs regarding the establishment of the human rights center and ongoing work: "The first need is related to concepts. This is where philosophy connects with the topic. Concepts are all mixed up; everyone pulls them in their desired direction. For instance, what is freedom of expression? The most improbable things are done in the name of freedom of expression. People misuse the concept of secularism and fail to see its connection with human rights. We must implement an established human rights education in Turkey. This is the second need."

International Commission Against the Death Penalty Meeting

King Receives Participants at the International Commission Against the Death Penalty Assembly

MADRID, May 28. (EUROPA PRESS) -

King Felipe VI received the commissioners participating in the third Annual Assembly of the International Commission Against the Death Penalty (ICDP) on Monday. This commission was created as a result of a Spanish initiative to strengthen the global trend toward the abolition of the death penalty.

According to the Royal House, among those attending the ceremony at the Zarzuela Palace were the chair of the commission, Navanethem Pillay (South Africa); vice presidents Ruth Antoinette Dreifuss (Switzerland) and Ibrahim Najjar (Lebanon); and commissioners Hanne Sophie Greve (Norway), Ioanna Kuçuradi (Turkey), Ivan Simonovic (Croatia), Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo (Philippines), Marc Joseph M. Bossuyt (Belgium), and Tsakhia Elbegdorj (Mongolia).

From the ICDP secretariat, executive director Asunta Vivó Cavaller (Spain) and political director Rajiv Chittazhi Narayan (United Kingdom) attended, accompanied by the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, Ildefonso Castro, and the special ambassador for Human Rights, Democracy, and the Rule of Law, Pablo Ruiz-Jarabo Quemada.

The International Commission Against the Death Penalty (ICDP) was established on October 7, 2010, in Madrid to promote and support any actions aimed at achieving the universal abolition of the death penalty.

The ICDP is composed of internationally renowned personalities in the field of human rights who work towards the abolition of the death penalty or the establishment of moratoriums as a step toward total prohibition. They also intervene in specific cases, particularly where the imposition of the death penalty is prohibited under international law, such as in cases involving minors, pregnant women, and individuals with mental illness, or where international guarantees regarding the death penalty are violated.

About the UNESCO Chair in Philosophy and Human Rights at Maltepe University

The UNESCO Chairs program began in 1992, aimed at developing worldwide inter-university cooperation, promoting information sharing, and encouraging academic solidarity among universities. Starting with 17 chairs in 1992, the program now includes 664 chairs in 126 countries. Worldwide, there are 14 UNESCO Chairs in Philosophy, of which 8 are active.

Turkey hosts three UNESCO chairs: one at Boğaziçi University focused on Mechatronics, another at Galatasaray University on Computer-Aided Manufacturing Engineering, and the third at Maltepe University on Philosophy and Human Rights.

The goals of our UNESCO Chair, established in 2009, include conducting human rights research based on philosophical knowledge at a global level, particularly determining the content of concepts related to human rights, creating and implementing law based on these foundations, and providing human rights education on this basis.

Our understanding is contrary to the prevalent notion of human rights—as protections against the state. Instead, we view the state, as a human-legal institution, as existing primarily to protect the human rights of its citizens. When understood this way, the public duty becomes one of protecting human rights.

International Conferences Organized by the Center and the Chair:

Human Rights 60 Years After the Universal Declaration (2008)
Rethinking the Philosophy of Law (2009)
The Problem of Identities in South-Eastern Europe and Human Rights (2009)
Human Rights in Israel after the Goldstone Report and Gaza: A Forgotten Prison (2010)
Laïcité and Human Rights (2010)
Ethical and Human Rights Problems in Making and Applying the Law (2011)