The youth summit welcomed hundreds of youngsters from as far as America, Africa and Switzerland to discuss their concerns over human rights issues. The Youth for Human Rights International Summit was held at the end of August 2005 at Camelot Castle in north Cornwall.
Organisers of the event believe educating the young is the key to ensure humanitarian crises of the past are not repeated. Among the activities held during the summit included discussions around King Arthur’s Table and various workshops delivered by experts in writing, poetry and fine arts. "The young people want to know about human rights and we adults have to give them the answers," says Mejindarpal Kaur, the director of United Sikhs. "Just to raise questions in their mind will not help them, we need to let them know how, at a school level, they can make a difference through letter writing to governments of people who are abusing other people's rights." The conference is held annually. Last year it was staged in New York. "The London bombings made such a European conference on human rights more urgent," explains Mary Shuttleworth, The Director of Youth for Human Rights International.
"It's a necessity to have youth taught about the human rights we are all born with, and how to ensure that all people's rights are protected," she says. Through fun exercises and more serious discussion the young people from all over the world discovered how important it is to make their voices heard. One of the delegates, 13-year-old Jagdeep Kaur, found inspiration from Tintagel and the legend of King Arthur. "King Arthur was young but he still managed to pull the sword out proving his strength," says Jagdeep. "Being a child doesn't make a difference, we can bring about change." Youth for Human Rights International was formed in 2001 as a project of the International Foundation for Human Rights and Tolerance.
The conference invited youngsters from all over the world on the basis of art work they submitted, and their work in the field of human rights. It was co-sponsored by the Church of Scientology United Sikhs, World Assembly of Muslim Youth and Association of British Muslims. BBC Radio Cornwall's Naomi Rowe visited the conference and spoke to many of those attending. Naomi met Nungari Mungi - from Kenya who is currently studying in Wales. She is keen to improve the human rights of young girls in her country. Naomi also spoke to 12-year-old Mansimram Singh and 13-year-old Jagdeep Kaur who both attended the conference. Hear the thoughts of all three by clicking on the audio links below:
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