End of the pilot project

The Annual Report 2014 provides information on the SCHR’s activities for a last time before the termination of the pilot project. Reason enough for Director Walter Kälin to look back in his foreword on the expectations on the project and to draw conclusions as to what extent these expectations have been fulfilled over the past four years. The President of the Advisory Board, Eugen David, presents his evaluations on the SCHR in an interview. The annual report also includes a list of the numerous activities realized between 2011 and 2014 in words, figures and charts on a double-page spread. A further article looks across the borders and focuses on several National European Human Rights Institutions and explains as to why the SCHR does not fulfil the preconditions for an independent human rights institution.

Practice-oriented human rights work

Once again, the annual report includes a selected presentation of our practice-oriented work performed in the last year. The SCHR for example examined how topics such as sexual orientation and sexual identity are institutionally enshrined in Switzerland and to what extent gay, lesbian, bisexual, transsexual and intersexual persons can count on official advice and government support. A guideline developed by the SCHR in cooperation with the Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts underlines the importance of human rights for people living from social welfare and offers practical guidelines to persons working in the social work sector.

Finally, the 2014 annual report includes an overview of recent publications and activities as well as an explanation of how the SCHR is organised and financed.