Skip to ContentSkip to Navigation
About us University College Groningen
Header image UCG Blog

UCG Blog

The Shelter City Project

Date:07 February 2019
Shelter City Guest Louisa from Nigeria
Shelter City Guest Louisa from Nigeria

When you enter Human Right into google, you get the definition: “A right which is believed to belong to every person.” The universal declaration of Human rights states that all humans are “born free and equal in dignity and rights”, meaning that we are all entitled to human rights merely because we are human. As residents in a country like the Netherlands, we do not have to fear abuse of these rights but we have the institutions in place to claim them when somebody abuses them. Unfortunately, this is not a reality for everyone. In other parts of the world, people are stripped of this protection for different reasons: Gender, sexual orientation, political opinion or nationality. For some individuals, their courage and the desire for justice defeat the fear of their own life and drives them to fight for what they are entitled to. Whenever a person stands up and fights for her rights, she does it not solely for herself, but for an entire group of people suffering oppression. To exercise their roles as figures of change, these people need all the support they can get and for that reason, projects like the “Shelter City project” exist. In collaboration with the NGO Justice and Peace and the municipality of Groningen, UCG provides temporary shelter for 2 human rights defenders every year since they are endangered in their own countries for the work they do there. Not only Groningen is a Shelter city but also several other cities in the Netherlands. I decided to write about it since I feel that not a lot of people in my year really know about it and it is such a great initiative that also gives students at UCG a chance to participate in it and get involved.

My first encounter with Shelter City was, when I attended a lecture of the Ethiopian human rights defender Anania, who is a journalist who was involved in researching and uncovering people’s struggles for civic and democratic rights, human rights violation and controversial projects by the government. Having been very outspoken about the oppressive practices of his regime, he was soon viewed as a threat to the government, which is why he seeked protection with Shelter city.

Another Human Rights defender I met was Luisa from Nigeria, who was an advocate for women’s rights. Being a survivor of domestic violence herself, she founded her own organisation that works at grassroots level to fight for peace and security through education on social justice and human rights, policy advocacy, and she has also started support programs for survivors and victims of domestic violence. Louisa was driven by the fact that many women are not even aware of their rights, nor do they know how to claim their rights. Therefore she provides counselling, aid and referrals to medical care for women. She has even run for political office and did not get encouraged by the fact that she only got a single vote. When she gave a presentation about the book that she is about to launch, I was fascinated about her energy, passion, charisma and humor - attributes that have probably contributed to her success as a figure of resistance and change. If you take a look at the picture attached, than you see what she looks like. 

During their time here, the Shelter city guest have a chance to continue their work without having to constantly fear being persecuted. Next to receiving training, they also get to attend conferences and other events focused around Human Rights, and also travel to different places to give lectures and inform other people on the situation in their country and the work they do. This is a great opportunity for them to form ties with other organizations.

One of the most amazing parts of the project however is the personal relationships that evolve during the time the human rights defenders spend here. Not only do they leave with new skills and fresh energy but with a handful of established friendships that will last beyond their stay.

With this blog, I just want to appreciate the work of all those who are involved in the project and encourage everyone who is reading this to attend the next lecture or exhibition of a Shelter city guest. It is really inspiring and I think we can all learn from them. We have the privilege that our right of freedom of expression is protected here and next to that all other human rights we are entitled to, which is why we must help empower those who do not enjoy that privilege.

All the best,

Eva