Vytauto Didžiojo universitetas

Development of Human rights and social work course for undergraduates in post – soviet context

Faculty of Social SciencesDepartment of Social Work

dr. DALIJA SNIEŠKIENĖ, 2012, Stokholm

Situation of Law• “God do not exist” – no Decalogue;• The main value – Communist Party• Obligatory ateization from kindergarten to Higer school;• Law from Moscow had superiority to local legal acts –

was not ours;• Phony elections and Elected bodies were not controled

by electors.• General people didn’t participated in any processes of

the formation of the policies.• Survival of the fitness to the soviet regime

Post soviet context

• Freedom of speech, religion expression and education, free movement, organizations...Nobody listen to speeking

• Property rights – no real rights for just wages and salaries. “New riches” – deep poverty, homelessness – discrimination according property;

• According Constitution of Lithuania International law has equal possition with Lithunian law;

• Social rights – are no longer rights to everybody: more and more paid health services, very low pensions and benefits, social services more open but frequently too expensive.

• .

Post Soviet context• People more and more have to be responsible for themselves –

state is less and less responsible for people

• Majority of International HR documments are ratified;

• Open sneer down and sometimes persecutions of those who think differently than those in the power, (on TV, at the job places);

• Destroyed trade unions as organizations poisoning economical growth and welfare, or corrupted for welfare of rulers.

• Catholic religion has an exceptional agreement with the state;

• Survival of the fitness to the rulers, or neoliberal ideology.

Differences and commonalities between communist and post communist neoliberal ideologies?

• NO God – only substance• Work ethics;• All means are good for good result

– communist society;• Career;• Collective interests (implemented)• Individual interest (secret)• Collective responsibility of rulers;• Individual responsibility of ruled;• Fear to correspond ruling power;• All people have to be even (soviet)• Theft and coruption is a norm for

survival;• Solidarity as conformance;• Survival of the fitness to the system

• Do not respect to international law

• Substance is God;• Ethics of wealth and consumption• All means are good for good result –

wealth and individual welfare;• Career;• Collective interest (declared)• Individual interest (implemented, or

secret)• Collective responsibility of rulers• Individual responsibility of poor and

ruled;• Fear about the future and everyday

life;• All to be even consumers• Theft and coruption is a norm for

wealth• Solidarity as conformance;• Do not respect to international law;

General situation of HR in Lithuania 2004 -2009 (HRMI)

• In 2005, Lithuania made significant progress in improving the legal basis to deal with cases of discrimination and intolerance, which was particularly strengthened by the new Law on Equal Opportunities. However, Lithuania remains one of the most intolerant countries in Europe, with intolerance against ethnic and religious minorities rapidly increasing ;

• In 2005, children and women remained among the most vulnerable social groups. A matter of particular concern is the scale of violence against members of these groups. The fact that Lithuania has remained a country of source, transit and destination for human trafficking, with women and girls as the most frequent victims, is very troubling.  

The analysis (2008) showed that Lithuanian political parties understand the protection of human rights in an extremely narrow sense: this protection is usually associated with the operation of the legal system, law enforcement institutions, and the courts in reinstating infringed rights.

Less frequently the safeguarding of human rights is associated with the functioning of the public service.

Traditional social and economic rights and solidarity rights are not perceived as human rights whatever.

Almost no attention to human rights which are related to the changing political, social, economic and technological environment . globalisation, integration into the Western political and cultural area,

Constitution and international law is not applicable in the practice of Courts, with exception to Constitutional Court of Lithuania;

HRMI findings show, that corruption in the court system and state institutions is very high and people do not trust to these institutions;

Organizations threw out these people who start raise issues of human rights;

History of Course on HR at VMU

• Studies of social work began in 1992 in Lithuania• Lithuanian Association of Social workers’ in 1993• LASW active participation in the IFSW Europe from 2004 –

learning about importance of HR for social work; • Preparation of course of 4,5 ECTS “Human rights and social

work” at Vytautas Magnus University;• Translation of the IFSW books: Human rights and Social Work

(2007) and Social Work and Child rights (2008);• E. Reichert books, as a source books on Human rights• Preparation for international accreditation of the Social work

program was very helpful to integrate this course into the curriculum.

• The course began his life into Fall semester of 2007.

First experience

• 3 year students, when I start my first classes with them:“what about are you talking?” “It does not exist at all in reality”

• Basic values that integrated in Human rights do not exist as well.

• Main value in their life – competition.

Our values came from

• Personal experience – childhood, family, school – humiliation, competition and lack of support.

• Religion as a tradition without believe;• Socialization – media (shows of competitions,

violence, aggression);

– Experience of support from others;– Experience when you tried to stand by somebody;– Majority of the negative experiences;

Main discussions with students

• What it is a human dignity?– Students understanding – Religion understanding – Human rights understanding.– Social workers’ understanding

• What is solidarity?• Where are the roots of genocide and racism?• Liberty and responsibility

Means of education

• Case analysis – according dichotomy (it was very difficult to understand);

• Documentary films and discussions;• Group projects on cases• Student seminars in the day care centers for

mentally disabled together with staff and service users.– “I did not believe that they can talk”

Partnership

• With professionals of Constitutional Law from the Department of Law at VMU – shows different understanding between lawyer and social worker

• With Human rights Monitoring institute;• With museums of Exile and Resistance and IX fort

museum in Kaunas;• Social service organizations

What I have learned• Both systems – communist and neoliberal capitalist – do not

support main values of Human rights;

• Institutional response and support when the right are violated is crucial for the peace and security in the country.

• There are difference of understanding of human rights in the different professional groups;

• Human rights are not an only legal issues, but much more everyday practice;

• All society need education about HR from the primary to higher school;

• HR could be presented as permanent dialogue, based on human experience;

• Culture and religion are important for supporting personal responsibility, solidarity and freedom

Questions:• How much I can encourage students to be in conflict with

dominating culture and systems?• How to learn solidarity for the student, if student organizations

are working for the administration and teachers are not organized among themselves?

• Is it enough to have one course on human rights and social work, if other courses do not support this perspective?

• How the training courses on HR could be implemented for social work practitioners?

• How to prepare good teaching material and manuals for students and teachers?

• How the courses on HR and Social work and Ethics could be integrated in one module?

THANK YOU FOR YOUR ATTENTION