Human Rights Scholarship in Australia & Training on Multimedia Tools for Journalists

The Human Rights Scholarship is awarded to local or international applicants wishing to undertake graduate research studies at the University in the human rights field and who are able to demonstrate their commitment to the peaceful advancement of respect for human rights.

• Number
• Benefits & conditions
• Eligibility criteria
• Selection criteria
• Application procedure (including required documents)
• Application outcome
• Closing dates & timelines
• For further information

Number

Each year the University of Melbourne offers 2 HRSs to applicants wishing to undertake a graduate research degree at the University of Melbourne.

Benefits & conditions

Human Rights Scholarship benefits include:

• a living allowance of $28,000 per annum (2013 rate)
• a Relocation Grant of $2,000 awarded to students who are moving from interstate in order to study at the University of Melbourne or $3,000 awarded to those who are moving from overseas
• Thesis Allowance of up to $420 (2013 rate) for masters by research and up to $840 (2013 rate) for PhD and other doctorate by research candidates, and
• paid sick, maternity and parenting leave.

Fees

Please note that the HRS does not cover international graduate research degree course fees.

Local graduate research degree HRS recipients are not charged course fees as they are allocated a Research Training Scheme (RTS) place. RTS places exempt students from the Higher Education Contribution (HECS) Scheme. Time limits and other conditions apply to RTS places. For further information please contact the Melbourne School of Graduate Research (PhD, MSc, MPhil, MIS and MOptom students) or your faculty office (all other students).

Conditions

Please click on the following link for further information about scholarship conditions including duration of awards and commencement requirements etc.

Eligibility criteria

1. Applicants for the HRS must be able to demonstrate that their commitment to the peaceful advancement of respect for human rights extends beyond their academic studies (such as voluntary work and/or work experience).
2. A high H2A (ie. 78-79% and above) is the minimum grade average usually required to be competitive for an HRS.
3. Applicants must have applied for, or be currently enrolled in a graduate research degree* in the human rights field at the University of Melbourne.

Applicants who have commenced their graduate research degree must have at least 12 months full-time or equivalent candidature remaining

*Graduate research degrees have a research component of at least 66%.

4. International students must have an unconditional course offer at the University of Melbourne for the course for which they seek the support of a HRS. See below for local and international HRS application procedures.
5. Applicants seeking a HRS to undertake a graduate research degree must normally meet the academic requirements that apply to the Australian Postgraduate Award (APA) or Melbourne Research Scholarship (MRS). Click here for further details about APA/MRS Eligibility.
6. HRSs are not awarded to applicants who:
• cannot provide evidence that their demonstrated commitment to human rights extends beyond their academic studies
• have already completed a course deemed to be at the same, or higher, level for which they are seeking scholarship support
• as a result of previous candidature and/or prior scholarship, have a maximum tenure of less than 12 months
• have previously received an MRS, Fay Marles Scholarship (FMS) or Postgraduate Equity Scholarship (PES), or
• have already been awarded or later receive another equivalent award, scholarship or salary for the studies for which they seek a HRS. An "equivalent" award is regarded as one greater than 75% of the base HRS rate (75% of the base 2011 HRS rate = $19,500).

Selection criteria

Selection of the HRS is based on four main criteria: area of study, evidence of commitment to human rights over a period of time, academic merit and strength of supporting documentation.

Application procedure

Step 1: Submit candidature/admission and scholarship application.

Local applicants

Local applicants should visit 'How to Apply (local)' for application information. Applications should submitted by 31 October 2013.

International applicants

If you are an international applicant visit 'How to apply (international)' for application information. International students wishing to apply for the HRS must:

• apply for admission (if not already currently enrolled in the course for which you seek an HRS) and have an unconditional offer of admission for which the scholarship is sought by 31 December 2013. Information about how to apply for admission to the University of Melbourne is available here.

Step 2: Complete a HRS coversheet with supporting documentation

In addition all applicants (local and international) must complete and submit a HRS document coversheet, with the documents listed below, to Melbourne Scholarships by 31 October 2013.

Required documents

These documents are required for both local and international applications.

1. A clear statement (maximum of one page) outlining how your intended studies relate to the human rights field and will further your understanding of human rights.
2. A statement (maximum of one page) that demonstrates (by noting activities you have been engaged in) your commitment, over a period of time, to the peaceful advancement of respect for human rights.
3. A reference that comments on your involvement in human rights. Your referee may, for example, work for a human rights organisation. Your referee is asked to provide their contact details.
4. Any other letters of recommendation or support you wish to provide that are relevant to your application (optional).
5. A 25-word summary outlining how your area of study will contribute to the field of human rights.

Application outcome

The HRS selection meeting will take place in February 2013. Applicants will be advised via email by the end of February of the outcome of their HRS application.

Closing date & timelines 31 October 2013

 

We are unable to consider late or incomplete applications.

Scholarship assessment timelines for local and international students can also be viewed.

For further information

Please contact Melbourne Scholarships

Somaliland women discuss their view of leadership

As presented at a recent LSE Africa seminar series, SOAS’s Siham Rayale discusses what leadership means to the women of Somaliland.

Women in Somaliland have taken on leadership positions in novel ways since the end of the civil war. They have translated their participation during the early peace process into leaders of civil society organisations, political institutions, and grassroots campaigners for women’s rights such as the buying, selling and exporting of meat more specifically.

The sole female member of the 82-strong Guurti, the upper chamber of the Somaliland parliament, resigned her post in March 2013

This is important, not to say that Somali women have never occupied leadership positions before, because many are seen as traditional male roles and functions. Cultural influences on women and men’s roles in society are still very powerful. Leadership in Somali society is often through clan membership and elders. Women were excluded from both, but that is changing. One example was Fadumo Jama Eleye, the only female member of the Guurti (upper house) in the Somaliland parliament, who resigned her post three weeks ago.

“Opening any door is a lot of work and I dealt with the challenges associated with my position,” Fadumo Jame Eleye told me.

“But my presence was necessary for women to become trailblazers. Men now see that women are just as capable. Whereas before they said ‘this is not our culture’ now with hard work, I’m beginning to find acceptance.”

Even if a woman secured a political position in Somaliland, a woman engaging in politics is still a relatively new phenomenon. It is also very demanding as one female MP remarked, “Women should work to gain positions in local councils because they could stay in their home towns and not move to the capital (Hargeisa) and still look after their children. It is difficult to maintain political positions without making sacrifices and women will not sacrifice their family.” Leadership is not a quality that can be isolated from the demands of motherhood. Leadership embodied every aspect of women’s decision-making about their daily lives in Somaliland.

Women are merely trying to find their own solutions to everyday problems, some through influencing political decision-making, others through civil society, and others through establishing women-owned cooperatives. Many of the women I have spoken to often regard their lack of gains in political positions as a problem; at the very least women’s views and voices need to be taken into account.

When I asked for solutions to issues women face in securing leadership positions or simply gaining greater independence over their daily decision-making capabilities, many women said to me, “Women need to become more educated, especially about what rights Islam has already given women, inalienable rights. Culture is our biggest enemy and right now the Somali culture does not recognise women as leaders.”

Nearly every single woman I spoke to reiterated this to me, “Islam gave them more power and culture is what men use to take it away from them.”

One activist remarked that women have taken up new roles in order to survive. I saw this on many occasions. The definition of leadership for women means a lot of different things. It means taking ownership over the economic security of the family; gaining an education to improve their livelihoods; it means helping other women gain access to justice.

Among the biggest challenges facing women hoping to pursue leadership positions at the community or national level is the overall lack of security for women in public spaces. Many women said to me: “When women speak in public forums discussing their development challenges, many men will intimidate women into silence. This is true for women who want to become MPs as well. We don’t feel safe enough to express our ideas without experiencing some type of harassment.” In many of my interviews, women stated again and again that they want to continue to be politically active in order to take ownership over their lack of safety and security as opposed to what we might term as a women’s rights agenda. Security, development and political participation are inextricably intertwined.

As Somaliland continues to build upon its democratic ambitions, there is much more that needs to be done to ensure that every member of society has equal opportunity and the capacity to reach their potential. Somaliland men and women kept saying to me that “the left arm cannot survive without the right arm, likewise men cannot survive without women.” I believe it is time to put that into practice, to secure women’s development goals and to strengthen Somaliland’s development future.

 

Africans Move Against REDD Initiatives in Continent

By Ben Ezeamalu

African participants at the World Social Forum in Tunisia have taken a historic decision to launch a No REDD in Africa Network and join the global movement against REDD.

Participants from Nigeria, South Africa, Mali, Niger, Senegal, Mozambique, Tunisia, Democratic Republic of Congo, Kenya, and Tanzania participated in the launch of the network recently.

REDD, an acronym for Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation; as well as REDD+ are carbon offset mechanisms whereby industrialized Northern countries use forests, agriculture, soils and even water as sponges for their pollution instead of reducing greenhouse gas emissions at source.

The initiatives have continued to elicit severe criticisms for its 'rampant' land grabs and neocolonialism in Africa.

"REDD is no longer just a false solution but a new form of colonialism," said Nnimmo Bassey, Alternative Nobel Prize Laureate and former Executive Director of ERA/Friends of the Earth Nigeria.

"In Africa, REDD+ is emerging as a new form of colonialism, economic subjugation and a driver of land grabs so massive that they may constitute a continent grab," Mr. Bassey said.

"We launch the No REDD in Africa Network to defend the continent from carbon colonialism," he added.

In the UN-REDD Framework Document, the United Nations itself admits that REDD could result in the "lock-up of forests," "loss of land" and "new risks for the poor."

Initially, REDD targeted forest conservation but its scope had expanded to include soils and agriculture.

In a teach-in session, Sunday, at the World Social Forum in Tunis, members of the La Via Campesina, the world's largest peasant movement, said that they were concerned that REDD projects in Africa would threaten food security and could eventually cause hunger.

A recent study by the movement on the N'hambita REDD project in Mozambique found that thousands of farmers were not only paid meagre amounts to tend trees for seven years but that because the contract is for 99 years, if the farmer dies his or her children and their children must continue to tend the trees for free.

"This constitutes carbon slavery," said the emerging No REDD in Africa Network.

The N'hambita project was celebrated by the UN on the website for the Rio+20, the Earth Summit held in Rio de Janeiro last year.

A New York Times report stated that over 22,000 farmers with land deeds were violently evicted for a REDD-type project in Uganda in 2011, including eight year old Friday Mukamperezida who was killed when his home was burned to the ground.

Mercia Andrews, Rural Women's Assembly of Southern Africa, called for a solution that would neutralize the impacts of REDD in Africa.

"We as Africans need to go beyond the REDD problem to forging a solution. The last thing Africa needs is a new form of colonialism," Ms. Andrews said.

REDD and carbon forest projects are resulting in massive evictions, servitude, slavery, persecutions, killings, and imprisonment, according to the nascent No REDD in Africa Network.

"The Global Alliance of Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities on Climate Change against REDD and for Life hails the birth of the NO REDD in Africa Network," said Tom Goldtooth, Director of the Indigenous Environmental Network.

"This signals a growing resistance against REDD throughout the world," he said.

"We know REDD could cause genocide and we are delighted that the Africans are taking a stand to stop what could be the biggest land grab of all time," Mr. Goldtooth added.

Africa: Reporters Without Borders Disquiet About Death Penalty for Man Convicted of Journalist's Murder

Reporters sans Frontières (Paris)

press release

Reporters Without Borders deplores the death sentence that a military court passed yesterday on a man found guilty of radio journalist Hassan Yusuf Absuge's murder last September in Mogadishu.

"It is not up to us to decide the nature or severity of the sentences imposed on those convicted of murdering journalists, but we cannot regard the application of the death penalty as a victory," Reporters Without Borders said.

"We hail the measures taken by the authorities to identify and punish journalists' killers, and thereby end the vicious circle of impunity that has gone on for too long. But taking people's lives by applying penalties that violate the most fundamental human rights is unacceptable."

The death penalty was passed on Adan Sheikh Abdi Sheikh Hussein, a member of the Islamist militia Al-Shabaab, who confessed to Absuge's murder in the hope of receiving a less severe punishment.

Employed by Radio Mantaa, Absuge was gunned down as he left the station on 21 September after covering a suicide bombing the day before that had killed around 10 people including three fellow journalists.

The National Union of Somali Journalists (NUSOJ), the Reporters Without Borders partner organization in Somalia, released a report last November condemning the impunity enjoyed by the enemies of news and information and reporting that 44 journalists had been killed in Somalia since 2007.

A total of 18 journalists were killed in Somali in 2012 alone, which was the deadliest year for media personnel in the country's history.

Last month, the government offered a reward of 50,000 dollars (37,500 euros) for information leading to the arrest of anyone who had murdered a journalist. Yesterday's conviction of Hussein and the arrests of three people suspected of the murders of the journalists Mohamed Mohamud Turyare and Abdihared Osman Adan suggest that the authorities really are determined to end the impunity.

WikiLeaks names former Lib staffer to run campaign

Look out, Senate: Julian Assange is still holed up in Ecuador's embassy in the UK. Photo: AFP

Barrister and former Liberal Party staffer Greg Barns will be national campaign director for Julian Assange and the new WikiLeaks Party to be launched this week.

The new party has also secured support from a prominent Melbourne philanthropist and is actively seeking members to achieve federal registration.

Mr Barns said on Monday he had agreed to be the WikiLeaks Party campaign director following conversations with Mr Assange, who has announced he will run for a Senate seat in Victoria in the September 14 federal election.

Greg Barns. Photo: Eve Fisher

''Assange is a serious Senate candidate; this is no stunt,'' Mr Barns said.

Mr Barns, who ran the Australian Republican Movement referendum campaign in 1999, said the WikiLeaks Party would focus on freedom of speech, human rights, government transparency and privacy issues, including the Labor government's online data retention proposals.

''The party will offer a refreshing change from the Australian government culture of secrecy, whether Labor or Liberal,'' he said.

''We'll be running a highly collaborative campaign that'll be very innovative, using informational technology to engage voters.

''There's a good measure of support for Julian, especially amongst the many Australians who engage with politics and issues online. He'll definitely be in the mix for a Senate seat in Victoria.''

WikiLeaks Party secretary John Shipton said the party would be launched at a meeting of its national council next Saturday. The party's new website proclaims its commitment to ''practise in politics what WikiLeaks has done in the field of information by standing up to the powerful and shining a light on injustice and corruption''.

The party's constitution sets out objectives that include promoting transparency to hold politicians, corporate executives and union leaders accountable for their policies and actions.

Accommodation for the party's headquarters has been provided by Melbourne philanthropist Philip Wollen at Kindness House in Brunswick Street, Fitzroy. A former Citibank executive, Mr Wollen is an animal rights and humanitarian activist and supports a wide range of non-government organisations and charities.

The WikiLeaks Party is recruiting members to achieve the membership of at least 500 enrolled electors required for Australian Electoral Commission registration. Mr Shipton said there had been a ''very encouraging'' response since the party opened its online membership application web page last week. He confirmed the party was receiving donations, including one commitment of about $100,000.

Mr Assange resides in the Ecuadorian embassy in London, where he has been granted political asylum on the grounds he is at risk of extradition to the US from Sweden, where he is wanted for questioning on alleged sexual offences.