Istanbul Bilgi University Human Rights Law Research Center organised the Networking Seminar within the framework of the project “Combating Discrimination in Turkey through Documenting and Reporting”, which started in February 2009. The Seminar was held in Istanbul on 6-7 November.

Its aim was to help NGOs and trade unions working to combat discrimination strengthen their established links, create new contacts with each other, and encourage participants to cooperate in future monitoring and documentation activities. Representatives of NGOs, human rights organisations, and trade unions committed to eradicating discrimination based on race or ethnic origin, disability, sexual orientation, and religion or belief attended the seminar. 

In the two-day Networking Seminar, the participants were familiarised with the concepts of discrimination, national and international non-discrimination legislation and discrimination monitoring and documentation. Burcu Yeşiladalı, İdil Işıl Gül, Ulaş Karan, Sevinç Eryılmaz Dilek, and Kenan Çayır from Istanbul Bilgi University contributed to the seminar as speakers and trainers. Şehnaz Kıymaz Bahçeci, representing Women’s Platform on the Turkish Penal Code and CEDAW Civil Society Exercise Committee, Seda Akço, from Child Abuse Prevention Platform, and Ahmet Atalık, representing No to GMOs Platform Turkey, presented good examples of running and maintaining NGO platforms and networks. Levent Korkut and Nurcan Kaya presented the draft law on prevention and elimination of discrimination—a work in progress coordinated by the Human Rights Joint Platform and Minority Rights Group. 

The overall objective of the project is to reveal ongoing discrimination practices and to strengthen the mechanisms that work towards combating discrimination in Turkey. 

The design of the project took into consideration the significant role of civil society organisations in safeguarding human rights and fundamental freedoms and in combating discrimination. The project aims, therefore, to enhance the role of civil society in addressing discrimination based on race or ethnic origin, religion or belief, disability, and sexual orientation. In order to reach this objective: 

1. Already established networks developed by NGOs and trade unions in combating discrimination will be enhanced and the establishment of new ones will be encouraged, 
2. The capacity of NGOs, trade unions, and lawyers who particularly focus on combating discrimination will be raised in monitoring and documenting cases of discrimination, 
3. The level of awareness on the existence as well as the significance of discrimination in Turkey will be raised. This will be possible particularly through the production of monitoring reports prepared on four grounds of discrimination. 

This project is implemented by Istanbul Bilgi University Human Rights Law Research Center and is funded by the European Instrument for Democracy and Human Rights (EIDHR)-Turkey Programme. Global Dialogue supports the project with co-financing.