Whose support is needed among senior management, and how is it secured?
Securing support for the hosting programme among senior management at your institution is likely to be essential for its success. Existing relocation programmes have established relationships with key institutional allies at a senior level, for example the Provost, Rector, Vice-Chancellor, or President of the university, and then made sure to maintain this support and ownership by keeping stakeholders up-to-date and inviting them to key events. Getting middle management on board may also be important for specialist input and more day-to-day matters e.g. accommodation, security.
In time it is crucial to build support beyond key individuals so that the programme can survive ‘regime change’ or the departure of supportive staff or teams within senior management.
Why senior management support the international hosting of human rights defenders
“The Human Rights Defenders programme in the Centre for Applied Human Rights (CAHR), University of York, is remarkable in its own terms. It has supported over 100 defenders from over 50 countries both to take respite from their always challenging but often dangerous work, to stand back and reflect, to share their experiences with our staff and students, but also to study and learn in a supportive environment so they can take new insights and skills to their work. But it has also had a wider impact on the University, in clarifying what it means to be a University of Sanctuary, and how to make real a commitment to open the doors of the University to those displaced by conflict. Our founding Vice-Chancellor talked of caring about widening access to the University ‘more than almost anything else’. We have found new ways of responding to this commitment in the last years, especially in responses to successive crises in Afghanistan, Ukraine and Palestine. CAHR’s example has led the way for us.”
Support for the African Universities Hub for Human Rights at the University of the Western Cape
“The University of the Western Cape (UWC) faced significant challenges under the apartheid regime and was punished for its commitment to inclusivity. But it continued to be a beacon of resistance, attracting activists, academics and students committed to fighting the unjust system. Protecting democracy and defending human rights requires partnerships and collaborative relationships between intellectuals and activists. UWC’s commitment to hosting human rights defenders as fellows through the African Universities Hub for Human Rights demonstrates this and strongly resonates with our University’s history and values. In light of the ongoing attacks against democracy and human rights, universities are the right spaces to enliven academic inquiry that supports activism around these ideals.”
Securing support for the Human Rights Defenders Protective Fellowship Programme
University of the Western Cape, South Africa
The Human Rights Defenders Protective Fellowship Programme at the University of the Western Cape (UWC) is run by the Politics and Urban Governance Research Group (PUG) through the African Universities Hub for Human Rights (AUH) initiative. The idea of hosting human rights defenders was supported by PUG in the third quarter of 2023 after co-hosting a successful symposium, in collaboration with the UNESCO Chair, Centre for Applied Human Rights, University of York, on the role of universities in protecting human rights. For the symposium, PUG invited the Deputy Vice-Chancellor for Student Development and Support (quoted above) to give an opening address. This involvement of the University leadership would prove crucial once PUG embraced the idea of hosting a relocation programme. The Deputy Vice-Chancellor’s involvement would make it easier for them to become a member of an Advisory Group for the Programme, underscoring the importance of senior-level management support.
Relations and trust built over the years were also crucial in gaining support for the Programme. PUG’s director, for instance, had occupied different roles in the faculty and across the University, fostering a deep understanding of university procedures. This helped PUG navigate the university system and attain the support of university leadership.
Another essential aspect of gaining support for the programme was funding. Initial three-year funding made it relatively easy for the University to accept the Programme. However, externally funded activities will still need to align with the University’s values and clearly add value to its mission.
PUG’s framing of the Programme as fulfilling UWC’s research mission and its social contribution, steeped in its rich history of nurturing anti-apartheid activists, helped canvas support across the University. PUG also leveraged its position as a Research Group, the least formal entity at UWC, with limited obligations to report to the University or faculty leadership. This administrative and regulatory ‘grey zone’ allowed PUG to experiment with many ideas and thus adopt the Programme without too many bureaucratic challenges. The Programme’s inception also coincided with PUG’s rapid growth and support from the Political Studies Department, the Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences (EMS) and the University leadership towards becoming a Centre within the University. Demonstrable success and the group’s momentum were important in securing support.
It may help to make the case within your university if you can show you have other forms of support. This could be accommodation provided by the local authority or psychological support offered by national or international NGOs. Support can also come from donors, other universities, or networks such as the EU Temporary Relocation Platform. This example from the University of Deusto illustrates the value of such external support.
Support for relocation programmes
Institute for Human Rights, University of the Deusto, Spain
The Fellowship Programme for Indigenous Leaders from Latin America at the Institute of Human Rights, University of Deusto, has received external political, financial, academic and institutional support, as well as support from the University itself. The Programme is supported by the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) which first approached the University in 2000 to create a capacity building programme in Spanish. The Basque Government, recognising an opportunity to increase its international political profile, offered funding to deliver the programme, and continues to do so. In addition, the Afghan Programme, a temporary welcome programme, received political and financial support from the European Union (EU). The Institute is a member of both regional and international networks. Locally the Institute cooperates with a network that offers support to the Basque Programme for Temporary Protection for Human Rights Defenders (sponsored by the Basque Agency for Development Cooperation).
The Institute also participates in global academic networks that focus on human rights and democratisation (for example, Scholars at Risk, the Global Campus of Human Rights, and the Association of Human Rights Institutes). These networks have been crucial for the development of welcome programmes, and have provided valuable opportunities for learning and sharing good practice in developing temporary relocation schemes.
image: University of Deusto
More information
‘Gain endorsement at senior level’ in Supporting persecuted academics: A guide for higher education institutions (pages 21-23). This includes examples from universities in the Council for At-Risk Academics (CARA) network on how they have secured support within their institutions for the relocation of persecuted academics.