Press Release of the Global Campus of Human Rights about ArMa Global Campus Arab World Graduation Ceremony

 

The students of the Arab Master in Democracy and Human Rights, based in Beirut, Lebanon, who were finishing their studies under extremely difficult circumstances owing to the war in Gaza and escalating conflict between Hezbollah and Israel were ready for their Graduation Ceremony, which was scheduled to take place today in Beirut with the online participation of many students, professors and colleagues from the Global Campus and high level dignitaries, including the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk.

 

Unfortunately, this Graduation Ceremony had to be cancelled in the last moment in light of the heavy shelling of that city. We are shocked by these developments and express our deeply felt solidarity with all students, faculty, staff and all civilians who are suffering from this terrible conflict.

 

We shere below a message we received today from the Academic Coordinator of the Arab Master, Jihad Nammour, which expresses the sadness and determination of our colleagues in Beirut.

 

Beirut, 28 September 2024

 

Dear Council members, colleagues, and friends,

 

It is with a sad heart that I am informing you of the cancellation of the graduation ceremony planned for this afternoon. 

We witnessed yesterday a significant change in the so-called rules of engagement, and last night was the most horrific of all, for those of us in Beirut.

 

The continuous raids levelled to the ground whole neighborhoods.

We are safe. But it was for most of us a sleepless and traumatic night.

And one that displaced a third of Beirut’s metropolitan population, with many families sleeping on sidewalks, in parks or on the corniche.
Yesterday/this morning’s military operations were the culmination of two weeks of escalation and intensification of the war, with monstrous actions that changed its very nature. 

For almost a year, we entertained the illusion that the Israeli army will follow certain rules of engagement. 

And it did, at first, but with regular escalations.

It seemed to have adopted for Lebanon a doctrine other than that of “Dahieh” (named after the southern suburb of Beirut, adopted in the 2006 war) that we have been witnessing in Gaza for nearly a year. 

But now we know that this was only tactical. 

These past two weeks showed that their violence is only geared towards total elimination, the annihilation of their enemy at whatever cost.
As you know, this year’s graduation ceremony was labelled "Human Rights Education in Times of Crisis and War".

We didn’t expect that on that very day, we would represent Human Rights Education from the Front Lines.
We cannot predict how things will evolve, but we know that we will pick ourselves up and continue our work as activists, researchers and lecturers in the field of human rights, to ensure that such things never happen again, and that all human beings are treated as equal in dignity and rights; and that the safety of any people is the concern of all, and that it doesn’t come at the expense of another.

Today, our small community in Beirut will be caring for the displaced, the wounded, and the bereaved families.

And we hope that you will join us in calling not only for a ceasefire but for the war on Gaza and Lebanon to stop. 
This is not resilience. It is stubbornness. It is commitment to the values that we share.

It is faith that change is possible, and that education plays an important role in it.

 Thank you for your support and all your efforts to help us set up and transform the ceremony that we had to cancel today.  

But rest assured, your efforts were not in vain. 

We will pursue this journey together in one way or another.  

 

To better times,

Best, 

 

Jihad Nammour

Academic Coordinator 

Arab Master’s Programme in Democracy and Human Rights - ArMA 

 

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