President Fukumiya (left), Mr. Costa (center)
Meiji University Human Rights Committee
Jean-Paul Costa, President of the International Institute of Human Rights and former President of the European Court of Human Rights, visited the Surugadai Campus on November 27, where he met informally with President Kenichi Fukumiya, Vice President for International Exchange Etsuko Katsu, and others in a room reserved for special guests on the 23rd floor of Liberty Tower.
This visit by Mr. Costa to Japan had several objectives, including visits to universities and the Supreme Court and a lecture to the International Human Rights Law Association.
The International Institute of Human Rights (founded by Noble Peace Prize winner René Cassin), of which Mr. Costa is President, held its 44th human-rights seminar this year. Mr. Costa noted, “In recent years we have held human-rights seminars in partnership with local universities and other institutions in Mali, Lebanon, and Haiti. Now we hope to be able to open a branch office in Japan to help promote human rights in Asia.”
Following the informal discussions, Mr. Costa delivered a special lecture on “Human Rights Across National Borders,” attended by about 100 people including students and members of the general public.
In his lecture, Mr. Costa spoke of the history and the future of regional and international guarantees of human rights, noting, “It is only relatively recently that humanity has come to recognize the importance of human rights.”
