Menneskerettighetsbyen – Bergen as a Human Rights City

In June 2018, the City Council in Bergen anonymously voted to become Norway’s first Human Rights City. Although most people would agree on this being a positive action, the label comes without any obligations. The City Government platform, launched October 2019, highlights the importance of being a human rights city, but does not explicitly spell out when and how.

This seminar series therefore scrutinizes different aspects of life in Bergen and asks the question “what does it mean that Bergen is a human rights city”? The series will look at topics such as urban planning, groups of people who face different physical and/or mental challenges, tourism and labor market. Some seminars will focus on aspects where the local government has an important role, while other topics might be areas where the average citizen has an equal responsibility to ensure Bergen becomes a Human Rights city in its’ full understanding.

The aim of this seminar series is not to further polarize the society, but to bring people with different opinions to the table to openly discuss the challenges in Bergen. The participants are therefore told beforehand to look for solutions instead of blaming the “other side” for lack of will or means to address the topic discussed.

This project is a collaboration between LawTransform, the Rafto Foundation, the Church City Mission (Kirkens Bymisjon), CMI, the University of Bergen and Bergen Global and is funded by Fritt Ord.

Seminars in the series

Young people as Experts by Experience: Participatory Research, Policy-,and Service Development
Recent decades have propelled children onto the societal agenda in new ways. We observe that children are increasingly regarded as individuals with separate interests and rights. Still, reports demonstrate that children are not involved and do not participate to the extent that the laws prescribe. 

Byutvikling og arkitektur: Har menneskerettigheter noe å si?
Vi inviterer til samtale med byplanleggere og politikere om menneskerettighetene har noe å si for byutvikling, bygningsbransje og arkitektur i menneskerettighetsbyen Bergen.

When a crisis hits: Vulnerable people in locked-down Bergen
What happens to extremely poor people when their small income disappears overnight? How do they feed themselves, let alone their family? Do they pay their bills? And where do they live? As covid-19 spread to Norway, it hit the most vulnerable first.

Menneskerettighetsby og smittevern. Hvor går grensen?
Bergen er en menneskerettighetsby, og dette forplikter. Samtidig pågår det en pandemi hvor svært inngripende tiltak i private hjem og offentlige virksomheter er nødvendig. Hvordan bør en menneskerettighetsby håndtere smittevern og koronarestriksjoner? Og bør Bergen håndtere pandemien på andre måter sammenlignet med andre norske byer?

Netthets mot kvinner – en trussel for demokratiet
Hvor går grensen for den enes rett til ytringsfrihet og den andres rett til vern mot hets, hatefulle ytringer og trusler? Trues kvinnelige debattanter til stillhet av hets? Disse spørsmålene skal vi i diskutere sammen med et panel bestående av politikere, samfunnsdebattanter og en jurist.

Human Rights Cities explained – why do we need them?
In June 2018 Bergen became a human rights city (HCR) joining more than forty other cities across the world. As HCRs become an ever more popular concept this seminar aims to look at what human rights cities are and what they do. And why do we need them?

EU-borgere; likhet for loven?
EØS-borgeres rettigheter er kompleks. Ønsker du å sette deg inn i hele regelverket krever det gjerne en mastergrad for å forstå både ordlyd og innhold. Nordmenn flest regner med at ting løser seg, vi stoler på at systemet gir like rettigheter for alle. Men stemmer dette? Hvilke rettigheter har egentlig EU-borgere når de kommer til Norge?

Barn i lock-down: Utfordrer korona-tiltakene barns rettigheter?
Korona-utbruddet har store konsekvenser, og ikke minst for barn. Med stengte skoler og avlyste fritidsaktiviteter er hverdagen brått blitt en annen. Det har ført til store omstillinger, med hjemmeskole, mindre omgangskrets, store deler av hverdagen tilbrakt hjemme. Det er også mye informasjon å forholde seg som kan være skremmende både for barn og voksne .

Fri rettshjelp – en illusjon?
Norges borgere har stor tillit til rettsvesenet. Få vet derimot at hjelpen med fri rettshjelp er behovsprøvd etter inntekt. Denne grensen har ikke vært rørt siden 2009, noe som bety at dagens enslige uføretrygdede tjener 136 kroner «for mye» per måned. Grupper som er helt avhengig av velferdsstaten blir dermed nektet grunnleggende advokathjelp.

Fiendtlig Arkitektur
Bergens allmenninger, parker og gater skal være åpne og tilgjengelige for alle byens innbyggere. Når ulike hensyn og interesser veies opp mot hverandre, er det likevel ofte noen som ekskluderes. Er fiendtlig arkitektur et problem i Bergen? I hvor stor grad kan man designe byrom for å inkludere og ekskludere ulike mennesker? Hvor går grensen?

Bergen som menneskerettighetsby, også for funksjonshemmede?
Bergen har erklært seg som Norges første menneskerettighetsby, FN kritiserte norske myndigheter for alvorlige menneskerettighetsbrudd overfor funksjonshemmede i mars og 3. desember er den internasjonale FN-dagen for funksjonshemmede.

Menneskerettighetsbyen Bergen: Den “gode” og “stygge” rusen
Storsamfunnet legger til rette for rus. Vi koser oss med et glass vin, oppfordres til å kjøpe øl fra lokale mikrobryggeri og Bergen sentrum bugner av steder med skjenkebevilgninger. Den «fine» rusen om natten står i sterk kontrast til den «stygge» rusen på dagtid.

Bergen as a Human Rights City

Date: 19 August 2019 Time: 09:45-10:45 Venue: Bergen Global, Jekteviksbakken 31 This event is part of the Bergen Exchanges 2019. For a full schedule of the week’s events, see here. Bergen City Council in 2018 voted to be a Human Rights City.  What does this imply in terms of commitments? How can this be a […]

Guest researchers in Bergen

We are very lucky to have three great guest researchers at LawTransform this semester! Juliana Jaramillo is a PhD candidate at Universidad de los Andes (Colombia). She works in the field of socio-legal studies and she works on topics related to gender and sexual diversity, human rights, courts, advocacy networks, and social movements. During her […]

When a crisis hits: Vulnerable people in locked-down Bergen

What happens to extremely poor people when their small income disappears overnight? How do they feed their themselves, let alone their family? Do they pay their bills? And where do they live? As covid-19 spread to Norway, it hit the most vulnerable first.

This webinar will discuss the pandemic and its’ impact for EEA citizens working in the informal sector in Bergen, highlighting a group exceedingly vulnerability to economic stress. Most informal EEA workers returned to their home country in the first phase of the pandemic, however, with no or little opportunities at home, many has returned. In Bergen, opportunities are few and migrants must take high risks to survive. Some sleep at the emergency shelter for homeless, basing their income on collecting bottles in town.

Annual Lecture on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples

Date: 5 February 2021 Time: 15.00:16.30 Norwegian time (8.00-9.30 a.m. Guatemala time) Venue: Zoom/Youtube To celebrate the Sami National Day, LawTransform, in collaboration with the Bergen Sami Society, invites you the 4th Annual Lecture on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. Francisco Calí Tzay, the UN Special Rapporteur on the rights of indigenous peoples will speak […]

Human Rights Cities explained – why do we need them?

As HCRs become an ever more popular concept this seminar aims to look at what human rights cities are and what they do. Why are cities choosing to become human rights cities and what are they accomplishing by doing so? While it is clear that HCRs are especially concerned with human rights, what differentiates them from other cities? Why do we need cities that specifically work on human rights? Do not all cities, certainly in western democracies, strive towards upholding human rights? What processes have the individual cities been part of, and what actions have been taken after the new title? And what are the consequences for the city and its people once they declare themselves an HCR?

Bergen Exchanges 2019

The Bergen Exchanges 2019 brought together academics, students, practitioners and activists from all over the world to share their research an interest in how law shapes societies, and the use of rights and courts as tools for social change. The multi-disciplinary and international nature of the Bergen Exchanges makes it a unique space for improving […]

Live streaming at the Bergen Exchanges

This year we are live-streaming at the Bergen Exchanges! Events will be added to this page during the week. You can watch the events below: Monday 19 August Rights to the City KEYNOTE by Professor Louise Shelley: Natural Resource Corruption – How to research and address it? Political corruption and corruption as a political strategy […]