About the Topic

ELSA Finland, its local group ELSA Turku, the University of Turku and Yaroslav the Wise State University of Novgorod welcome you to enjoy a Law School on Human Rights Law. The Law School consists of three weeks of academic programme in Novgorod, Russia. All participants are granted a diploma for taking part in the Law School.

Through lectures, reading materials and case tasks the participants will deepen their knowledge of the protection of human rights, as developed particularly within the United Nations and the Council of Europe. The aim is to make participants familiar with the different layers and forms of action to ensure the respect for human rights, such as expert monitoring, state reports, special reporters, complaints by individuals, NGOs or states recommendatory supervising bodies, and the role of national and international courts as well as the adoption of human rights as the key principles of statutory and case law systems. Equally important is to emphasize downsides and failures of attempts to promote human rights.
 

Academic Programme

The Law School consists of lectures, case discussions and a moot court competition.

Topics discussed include

• "The Human Rights Law: The Normative System and Key Institutions" (Valentina Grohotova, Pekka Riekkinen)

• "After Iraq: International Human Rights Law in Crisis" and "Human Rights as Negation of Politics" (Bill Bowring)
• "Theory and Philosophy of Human Rights” (Sergey Deviatkin)
• "International Protection of Minorities" (Merja Pentikäinen)
• "Human Rights Liability of Private Actors, Especially TNCs" and "TNCs and Human Rights" (Pekka Riekkinen)
• "Xenophobia and Extremism" (Dmitry Dubrovsky)
• "ECHR Practise, Russia in ECHR" (Olga Sheveleva)
• "Implementation of the Human Rights Law in the Domestic Legal System" (Karl A. Eckstein)

   

Cultural Programme

Excursions (to be organized as part of the course program)

• Visit to the Constitutional Court of the RF in St. Petersburg.

• Visit to the Stalin era labor-camp in Novgorod region - Meetings with the Commissioner on Human Rights of the Novgorod region.
• Meetings with the Commissioner on Human Rights of the Novgorod region and the Chairperson of the Regional Duma (legislative body).
• Visit to the court of general jurisdiction in Novgorod.

Optional cultural and social events

• Excursions: Novgorod Kremlin, Yaroslavthe-Wise Court, Wooden Village Museum, St. George Monastery, Dostoevsky’s house in Staraya Russa.

• Trips: St. Petersburg (might be 1 day by bus provided by the program or 2-3 days optional); Moscow(optional) – 1-2 days in Moscow by night train from Novgorod to Moscow and back.
• Russian-EU Law Students will organize parties, picnics, etc.