Human rights education lies at the heart of eforts to develop a culture of human rights— toward building societies that embrace dignity, equality, inclusion and respect for diversity, societies where the human rights of all are respected, protected and fulfilled. Human rights education not only equips learners with the knowledge of human rights, it fosters the development of values, attitudes, skills and behaviors that prompt action to defend and promote human rights, democracy and the rule of law.

I was fifteen years old when my father took me to see my first ever human rights film in cinema. It was December and the film was The Mothers of Plaza de Mayo. I remember the experience vividly despite being unable to recall any aesthetic merits of the documentary. I can’t picture specific takes, the pace of the montage, nor what style it was shot in, or much of the plot for that matter. Funnily enough, some of those features are the ones that best imprint themselves on my memory nowadays. Back then though, for a teenage boy, it was much more about the emotional side of things and, in that respect, the screening left a lasting impression on me. Although I could not fully empathise with the Argentine mothers who wept for justice, I could understand the unique bond between a parent and their child.