HRLN

HRLN: Human Rights and Law Network is a group of lawyers working with a lot of dedication for various social causes and fighting legal battles fot the economically backward sections of society. They have been committed in using the legal system for the cause of human rights. It works in depth for child rights, disabilities rights, rights of people living with HIV/AIDS, prisoners rights, refugee rights, rights of indigeneous people, workers rights, rights of the minorities and people who have faced or are sexual assault/violence.

Lawyers and social activists have been struggling to ensure and seek justice for all those who need it. HRLN was started in 1998 as a small group of lawyers but due to their dedication and committment it grew and evolved as an oranisation having a branch in virtually every state of India. It provides legal support and pro-bono legal advice to all those who do not have enough economic resources to access the judiciary. Human Rights and law network as a team believes that the legal system and the judiciary along with our laws, government and society can pave the path for the approach of a time when no-body goes through violation of their basic human rights.Human Rights Law Network (HRLN), the Indian People's Tribunal on Environment and Human Rights (IPT) are all activities of the Socio-Legal Information Centre. Its mission is to protect the fundamental rights of people,to equip through professional training a new generation of public interest lawyers and para-legals who are comfortable both in the world of law as well as in social movements, and who learn from the social movements to refine legal concepts and strategies, to work towards an increased awareness of rights as universal and indivisible, and their realisation as an immediate goal.

Objectives

Articulate an alternative constitutional law based not on property but on universal human values.

Introduce a broader ideological mooring for legal work as part of an overall process to bring about social change in which legal campaigns and social movements collaborate.

Incorporate international human rights principles in Indian law and, in turn, influence constitutional law in foreign jurisdictions through the development of innovative and path-breaking case law in India.

Build close links between legal networks in India and human rights law groups abroad, both in the development of law as well as programmatically.

Campaign for wide-ranging reforms of the legal system, particularly with respect to state funded legal aid for the poor, so that the state takes more responsibility for legal services and allocates more resources for legal aid.

Bring human rights law education in India into the mainstream.

Build alliances between the judiciary and rights based initiatives to sensitise the judicial system to a more inclusive understanding of human rights and to an increased awareness of human rights law and practices in different parts of the world.

trategies

Legal Aid and Public Interest Litigation-Human Rights and Law Network trains its lawyers and orients them. Lawyers of HRLN take up cases in the lower courts as well as the Supreme Courts and High Courts.

Legal Education- For law to be used for justice, self-reliance and liberation of self HRLN feels the need to spread human rights and legal education, and organises seminars, workshops, training courses on a large scale for the common mass.

Advocacy-it has been working to increase public awareness through research and dissemination of accurate information on violations and anti-poor policies.

In crucial areas where adequate legislation is lacking or requires amendment, HRLN has been at the forefront of efforts to formulate laws and policies - such as against child sexual abuse, against communal crimes, and for the right to food and work. HRLN's advocacy efforts encourage debates and discussions at the local, state, and national levels.

Investigations, Monitoring, and Crisis Response - HRLN Conducts fact-findings extensively, monitors and documents cases of violations and makes sure that these take the form of petitions in court.

Access to Justice and People's Tribunals- In 1993, HRLN organised the 'National Conference on Human Rights, Environment and the Law' where the Indian People's Tribunal on Environment and Human Rights ( IPT) was formed. The IPT investigations are led by retired judges of the High Courts and Supreme Court. It is a semi-autonomous association that works through People's Tribunals and Public Hearings to draw attention to human rights violations and issues concerning environmental justice. The IPT has conducted over 30 tribunals since 1993 on issues such as police violence, the right to food, and housing rights. It provides a forum and an opportunity for those who do not have access to the regular courts to voice their grievances. The goal is to stop existing violations, highlight harmful legislation and prevent further atrocities from taking place. The very act of holding a people's tribunal challenges the notion that only the formal courts can adjudicate over matters that concern the republic of citizens or that the notion of justice is confined to those who have the means to exercise their rights.

Campaigns - are conducted at the grassroot level and a fine mixture of campaigns and litigations and their interplay takes place.

Solidarity - HRLN believes in giving support to all those agencies fighting for human rights world-wide and it looks at human rights from an international perspective.

Communications and Publications- HRLN has to its credit a lot of valuable publications,films and a library of its own.

Issues

Child Rights Criminal Justice Dalit Rights Disability Rights Emergency/Disaster Environmental Justice HIV / AIDS Housing Rights Labour Rights Refugee Rights Right to Food Secularism and Peace Trafficking Women’s Justice

HRLN extensively works on these issues and for the establishment of a social order for the promotion of the welfare of the people where inequalities are minimized, adequate means of livelihood secured, control of resources distributed to subserve the common good, concentration of wealth eliminated, the right to work and education provided for and so too public assistance in case of old age, sickness, disablement and want; and where the State raises the level of nutrition and standard of living of the people and improves public health. It is completely against Acts like the Armed Forces Special Powers Act,1958 in India and all such acts inceasing the level of torture in the name of globalisation. The Organisation works for bringing in fundamental social change. Understanding the correlation between rights and the nature of violations, HRLN's response is not limited to any one issue. The organisation aims to maintain a balance between a sustained campaign for socio-legal reform on specific issues as well as crisis response.

Trustees

Board of Trustees Mr. Justice H. Suresh, Chairman Former Judge, Bombay High Court

Mr. J.B. D’Souza, Vice Chairman Former Chief Secretary, Government of Maharashtra

Mr. Colin Gonsalves, Executive Director Senior Advocate, Supreme Court of India

Ms. Farida Bhatr, Treasurer Businesswoman

Mr. R.D. Bhat, Trustee Advocate, Mumbai High Court

Mr. Darryl D’Monte, Trustee Journalist, Former Resident Editor, Times of India

Mr. Lalit Chari, Trustee Senior Advocate, Bombay High Court

Ms. Ira Roy, Trustee Social activist

Ms Nargis Irani, TrusteeEnvironmentalist

Ms Ketayun Rustom, Trustee Environmentalist

Mr. Shankar Sen, Trustee I.P.S. (Retd.) Former Director, National Police Academy Former Director-General, National Human Rights Commission

Dr. Mohini Giri, Trustee Former ChairpersonNational Commission for Women

Mr. Deepika D'souza, Trustee Environmentalist

Mr. Mihir Desai, Trustee Advocate, Bombay High Court

HRLN Units

Delhi Maharashtra India Centre for Human Rights and Law Chandigarh Shimla Dharamsala JaipurAllahabadVaranasi Srinagar Chennai Bangalore Cochin Almorah Tuticorin Trivandrum Hyderabad KolkataImphal,ManipurBhubaneshwar Bhopal Arunachal Pradesh Gangtok Gujarat Karnataka Port Blair Devghar

External links

* [http://www.hrln.org Human Rights Law Network]
* [http://www.iptindia.org/ Indian Peoples Tribunal on Environmental and Human Rights]
* [http://www.combatlaw.org/ Combat Law magazine]