On 18 April, a new HELP training course ‘Discrimination and Combating Racism, Xenophobia, Homophobia and Transphobia’ was launched at the High School.

The new course was co-organised by the Council of Europe Projects ‘HELP (Human Rights Education for Lawyers) for Ukraine, including in Time of War’ and ‘Support to Reform the Legal Framework on National Minorities and Strengthening the Resilience of National Minorities and Roma in Ukraine’, the National Agency of Ukraine on Civil Service and the High School of Advocacy of the Ukrainian National Bar Association.

The purpose of the training is to provide an individual trajectory for the professional development of public servants, to provide a detailed and accessible learning resource for understanding discrimination and combating racism, xenophobia, homophobia and transphobia.

According to Yuliia Lykhach, Head of the High School, the course’s topic is relevant and unique in today’s context, and the value of the training lies in the opportunity to engage public officials, national and international experts in discussing discrimination in Ukrainian society, analysing international standards in this area, learning from the experience of other countries, and developing practical skills in combating discrimination. ‘The High School has been cooperating with the HELP project for many years. Last year, we implemented a project on internal displacement, which trained 42 civil servants. In today’s course, 80 people have expressed a desire to improve their professional competencies. So we are confident in the successful implementation of our new joint course,’ summed up Yuliia Lykhach.

The participants were also welcomed by Natalia Alushyna, Head of the National Agency of Ukraine on Civil Service, Kateryna Levchenko, Government Commissioner for Gender Policy, Olga Kostenko, International Manager of the Council of Europe Project HELP (Human Rights Education for Lawyers) for Ukraine, Ivan Verveiko, Head of the Secretariat of the Ukrainian Parliament Commissioner for Human Rights, Hanna Kolesnyk, Head of the Committee on Human Rights Protection of the Ukrainian National Bar Association, Erlend Falk, Deputy Head of the Council Office.

The 7-module programme includes a study of the problems of discrimination faced by different communities, as well as key terms and definitions related to the respective groups. Special attention is paid to the analysis of the provisions of Ukrainian legislation prohibiting discrimination and European anti-discrimination law.

The tutors of the course are Oksana Guz, attorney at law, partner at PROVE Attorneys at Law; Valentyna Lisovska, Head of the Centre for Professional Development on European and Euro-Atlantic Integration of the High School; and Victoria Polishchuk, attorney at law, mediator, Head of the UNBA Labour Law Committee, Head of the Centre for Labour Law and Social Security of the Ukrainian National Bar Association.

On the first day of the training, the participants were introduced to the HELP platform and the Council of Europe’s HELP (Human Rights Education for Lawyers) for Ukraine, including in Time of War project.

The participants also discussed with the tutors the structure of the course and its adaptation to the national context. They focused in detail on discrimination on the basis of nationality, as well as the exercise of the right to free legal aid by representatives of national minorities in Ukraine. The students talked to Natalia Marchuk, Deputy Director of the Coordination Centre for Legal Aid Provision, about the experience of the FLA system in strengthening its capacity to effectively support cases related to discrimination.

The project will last for 2.5 months. Based on the results of the training, participants will receive certificates of advanced training.