Jiyan Rojin, Junior Fellow

As the daughter of a Kurdish father from Syria and a Kurdish mother from Turkey, I was raised in a highly multicultural environment and developed a high degree of political awareness at a young age. I went onto study Law in Berlin and in Brussels, with an international and multilingual focus, and naturally jumped at the chance to be considered for KHRP’s four-month International Fellowship Programme in London.

As a junior Fellow, I helped to research and contribute to KHRP’s manual on ‘Taking Human Rights Complaints to the OSCE, European Parliament and Council of Europe’. I also had the opportunity to assist with casework, write an article for KHRP’s ‘Legal Review’, to give a talk about the ‘Kurds in Syria’, and to visit the European Parliament in Brussels.

The fellowship gave me a rare insight into the actual workings of international human rights mechanisms and proved to be an invaluable opportunity to advance my legal knowledge and skill-set in a professional capacity. I was also able to develop on a more personal level and very much enjoyed having the chance to work with people who share similar beliefs and values.

I would like to thank KHRP for giving me this opportunity and would like to give special thanks to KHRP’s staff — especially Legal Director, Catriona Vine and Legal Associate, Saniye Karakaş — for their support, interest and sincerity. I am committed to continuing to work with KHRP on human rights issues in this part of the world and look forward to transferring what I have learnt during my Fellowship when I start my Legal Practice Course in London in September 2010 and as I embark on a career as an international human rights lawyer.