Genocide is still a reality today but does not have to be the legacy of the 21st century

Toronto, Canada - The Genocide and Human Rights University Program (GHRUP) is a comprehensive two-week course, providing 4 graduate semester credits from the University of Minnesota. It explores through a comparative examination of major case studies, using the Armenian Genocide as the point of reference, the causes, methods, and effects of genocide. Taught by leading experts in their fields, the GHRUP incorporates genocide theory, history, sociology, political science, and international law. This year the distinguished faculty includes Taner Akçam, Joyce Apsel, Major Brent Beardsley, Gerald Caplan, Vahakn N. Dadrian, Maureen Hiebert, Herbert Hirsch, Claudia Koonz, Eric Markusen, William Schabas, Roger W. Smith and Gregory Stanton.

“At the core of The International Institute of Genocide and Human Rights Studies (A Division of the Zoryan Institute) is the belief that by comparing case studies one can identify patterns, which can lead to predictions that open the possibility of prevention,” stated George Shirinian, the Executive Director of the IIGHRS. “Consequently,” he continued, “the GHRUP in 2006 will compare the cases of the Armenians, the Holocaust, Cambodia, Rwanda, and the Former Yugoslavia (Bosnia and Kosovo). The GHRUP also includes a wide variety of special themes, such as genocide denial; the possibility of reconciliation between perpetrators, victims and their respective descendants; the specific role of women and children; and the possibility of preventing genocide.”

This summer in Toronto, Canada from July 31-August 11, 2006, a diverse group of highly motivated students will gather for the intensive seminar. Over the past four years students have attended from 15 different countries. They have been of Armenian, Azeri, Bengali, Colombian, Chinese, Croatian, English, Estonian, German, Hungarian, Indian, Iranian, Irish, Japanese, Jewish, Kurdish, Moldovan, Polish, Rwandan, Scottish, Tanzanian and Turkish descent. Many of the students have expressed how profoundly the two weeks changed them, expanded their understanding and increased their motivation for genocide and human rights studies.

The program will appeal to a wide variety of students interested in various cases of genocide and the broader issues of human rights. Applicants must be current university students with three years or more of undergraduate experience. The GHRUP provides the option of earning up to 4 graduate semester credits from the University of Minnesota. Scholarships are available for qualified students.

Details and registration information, as well as the faculty biographies, are available on the program's web site, www.genocidestudies.org. For more information, contact the International Institute for Genocide and Human Rights Studies (A Division of the Zoryan Institute), 416-250-9807, admin@genocidestudies.org.