Entitled “Conversations in Time of Pandemic”, the initiative is organized by the National Human Rights Committee (CNDH) and consists of a cycle of virtual conferences dedicated to the topic “Human Rights and COVID-19”, with its start scheduled for this month of July and extending until the end of the year.

The first session, which debates the theme “Freedom and Lockdown” in digital format, will take place on 15 July at 10 am, and will be presented by the President of the CNDH, Dr Teresa Ribeiro, also Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs and Cooperation, and moderated by journalist Eunice Lourenço.

The guest speakers include the Minister of State and Foreign Affairs, Professor Augusto Santos Silva, Professor  Patrícia Galvão Teles, from Universidade Autónoma de Lisboa, and Dr Pedro Neto, Executive Director of Amnesty International.

Registration is open to all interested parties through the email cndh.formacao@mne.pt.

The CNDH has already announced the topics of the five sessions included in the conference cycle which, after “Freedom and Lockdown”, will focus on the discussion on “The right to privacy in the digital age and disinformation in times of pandemic” (September); “The Importance of Mental Health” (October); “The Rights of Children” (November) and “Safeguarding the Rights of Immigrants and Refugees” (December).

This initiative by the National Human Rights Committee, an organization within the Ministry of Foreign Affairs that is responsible for intergovernmental coordination in the area of Human Rights, involves, in the joint debate on these topics, representatives of public institutions, academia and civil society.

For additional information, check the official page of the CNDH here.