The experience of the Baha’is in Iran is a stark reminder that the human right to education is out of reach for far too many people around the world, according to the president of the Australian Human Rights Commission, Professor Gillian Triggs.
Professor Triggs made her observation in a keynote address to an event in Adelaide entitled “Education under Fire”, which focussed on the universal right to education.
The event at the Intercontinental Hotel was organised by the Centre for Equality, a non-profit organisation inspired by the principles of the Baha’i Faith.
The Centre aims for positive social change through advocacy, innovation, social entrepreneurship and development initiatives designed to promote human rights.
Among those attending the event at the Intercontinental Hotel were the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of South Australia, Chris Kourakis, and other senior members of the legal profession.
Also attending were the Deputy Vice-Chancellor of Flinders University, Professor Andrew Parkin, the law school deans of Flinders University and the University of South Australia, Professor Kim Economides and Professor Roman Tomastic, and members of the National Board of Amnesty International (Australia).
Professor Triggs complimented the Centre for Equality on organising the function and for bringing the “egregious disregard” of the rights of the Baha’is in Iran to the attention of the Australian Human Rights Commission.
She also reflected on some of the barriers to access to education for disadvantaged or marginalised communities.
She invited the audience to consider how education about human rights may help to bring all universal entitlements within closer, more equitable reach.
The event, held on 28 November 2012, included the screening of the documentary Education Under Fire, which exposes the maltreatment of Baha’is seeking tertiary education in Iran. More screenings are planned in other cities in Australia in 2013.