The Baltic Human Rights Society together with its Human Rights Guide partners, the Estonian Human Rights Centre and Human Rights Voice Lithuania, are developing new themes with the titles "Civic Participation", "Health", and "Human Rights Restrictions". The new themes are being developed under the auspices of the "Human Rights Education – an Effective Tool in Coping with COVID-19 Consequences" project, which has been implemented with the financial support of the Nordplus Adult grant scheme.

This project aims to equip people with objective knowledge about the scope of their rights pertinent to the challenges posed by the pandemic, and how to defend them in cases of potential violations. 

The circumstances of the pandemic have affected a number of areas of life in particular. The new themes will explain the basis on which, and how different human rights can be limited, how human rights ensure and facilitate different forms of respectful civic participation, and how they guarantee the right to medical treatment.

The new Human Rights Restrictions theme will describe rights which can be limited for the purposes of public health or in the circumstances of a state of emergency, and how. There will be further explanation about the institutions which are entitled to make such decisions and under what conditions. The theme will also address  the process for complaining about or appealing limitations to rights. The theme is being developed by the Human Rights Guide partner in Estonia – the Estonian Human Rights Centre.

The Civic Participation theme will explain how to participate in or influence democratic decision-making processes peacefully, respectfully, and lawfully. It will also cover different forms and processes of civic participation, and how to lawfully gain access to them. Additionally, the theme will explain the complaints process where lawful civic participation has been limited or denied. This theme is being developed by the Baltic Human Rights Society.

Lastly, the Health theme will explain a state’s obligations  in the provision of health care services, and the extent to which they can be lawfully limited during such circumstances as the global pandemic. The theme will also contain information on the complaints process in cases where health care services have not been provided to the lawfully required extent or quality. This theme is being developed by the Human Rights Guide partners in Lithuania – the Human Rights Voice.

The three new themes will be available in the Human Rights Guide in Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia in early 2023.