Doha, Qatar: The Qatar National Commission for Education, Culture and Science (QNCECS) organised the fourth Student Forum on Human Rights in the Digital Society, challenges and solutions at the Qatar University (QU) campus, with the participation of the National Human Rights Committee (NHRC) and Qatar Assistive Technology Center (Mada).
Held in collaboration with the Department of Social Sciences and Humanities at the QU’s College of Arts and Sciences, the event was intended to spread human rights among the new generation, particularly college students to raise their awareness of human rights implications arising from extensive prevalence of digital media and technologies.
The forum aimed to underscore the importance of partnership between educational institutions, national committees of human rights and non-governmental organizations to protect students rights online, in addition to enhancing the awareness of these rights and laying out solutions that protect them from digital violations.
Consultant at QNCECS Amna Al Buainain expressed her gratitude to QU’s Department of Social Sciences and Humanities at the College of Arts and Sciences for its unwavering support to organize this event on annual basis, along with its role in engaging students in rights-awareness-raising activities via debates and working papers.
She commended the steadfast cooperation with active partners to confer on issues that face the community in a scientific manner to enhance knowledge.
Head of the QU’s Department of Social Sciences Dr. Mohamed Faraj S. Raheel highlighted that the forum is a superb opportunity to strengthen cooperation with the department and community’s institutions for active engagement in the Qatar National Vision 2030.
Since its inception, the forum has been striving to bridge the gap between theoretical and practical aspects, underlined Raheel, affirming that student participation aims to prepare a host of professionals with practical expertise who will contribute to the advancement of a knowledge-based community.
Director of the NHRC’s Legal Affairs Nasser Marzouq Sultan Al Marri hailed the outcomes of the third national forum on protecting children’s rights in the secure digital environment, which has been quintessential for the fourth student forum to further explore avenues for protection from the risks posed by digital space.
Al Marri highlighted the role of internet in advancing young people’s knowledge, albeit the challenges posed by internet, such as compromising national values and prevalence of hate speech, thereby triggering effective remediation tools. He underlined the importance of making young people aware of their role as instrumental partners in spreading human rights culture in the society.
