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The Human Rights Center was established in January 2003 as a Technical Cooperation Project between the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (UNOHCHR) and the Government of the Republic of Croatia. After functioning as a part of the UN system for two and a half years, the HRC was transformed into a national human rights institution. HRC is registred as a public institution on August 1, 2005 with the goal of independantly promoting human rights in the Republic of Croatia.
The HRC offers the first experience of close cooperation between government officials, the academia, national human rights institutions, NGOs and others in activities related to the protection and promotion of human rights in Croatia.
The main HRC activities are implemented within two departments: Information and Research Department and Programs and Activities Department, as well as through the first specialized human rights library in Croatia.
The Information and Research Department follows the current trends in human rights protection in Croatia, identifies and organises research efforts in the most acute segments.
The Programs and Activities Department through its main activities - the Speakers Series, Human Rights NGO Forum, Human Rights Training Seminars and Expert Round Table Discussions - encourages dialogue on current human rights issues.
The specialised human rights library has been set up, but we also intend to develop a digital library, which will contain relevant human rights documents, accessible through the Centers' web page.
The Human Rights Center offers free-of-charge usage of its premises and its equipment to human rights-related organisations and groups. The premises are also available for organising conferences and press conferences, seminars and round-table discussions hosted by representatives of the government, international organisations, NGOs and the academic community.
An accurate and extensive directory of human rights-related organisations and institutions, as well as an extensive directory of human rights research and training organisations, will be maintained in HRC and thus accessible to the wider public.
The Human Rights Center cooperates with similar human rights centers (Human Rights Center in Sarajevo and other similar centers throughout Europe) and specialised libraries worldwide.
The HRC actively participates in digital human rights organisations' networks. This includes exchange of information, documentation and data, as well as study visits and cooperation on different research projects and the organisation of seminars.
According to its mandate, the HRC cannot provide direct, concrete and legal protection to individuals who raise allegations about human rights violations. The HRC is not in a position to address governmental institutions in order to deal with the mentioned violations. The HRC staff will direct individual cases to relevant organisations and institutions.
In all of its activities, the Human Rights Center broadens the cooperation among relevant human rights factors; governmental institutions, NGOs, international organisations, academic institutions, media - thus emphasising the importance of human rights and contributing to the overall development of the Croatian society.
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