Symposium 2013 Speakers

(In order of apperance)

Keynote speakers

Morten-Kjaerum
Morten Kjaerum is the Director of the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights, a position he has held since June 2008. Before joining the FRA, Mr Kjaerum served as the founding Director of the Danish Institute for Human Rights. Over 17 years in top executive roles at Denmark’s national human rights institution, Mr Kjaerum built the institute into an internationally recognised institution. An expert in human rights implementation, Mr Kjaerum has been a member of the United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination and the President of the International Coordination Committee for National Human Rights Institutions, a network coordinating relations between the United Nations and national institutions. Mr Kjaerum has written extensively on issues relating to human rights, in particular on refugee law, the prohibition against racial discrimination and the role of national human rights institutions.
Kathleen Lynch
Kathleen Lynch is the appointed Minister for Disability, Equality, Mental Health and Older People in the Department of Health and Department of Justice, Equality and Defence on 10th March 2011. Minister Lynch was elected to Cork Corporation in 1985 and first elected to Dáil Eireann in 1994. She was subsequently elected again in 2002 and has retained her seat since.

The Minister of State is accountable for developing and articulating Government policy on Disability, Equality, Mental Health and Older People. Minister Lynch is leading a fundamental Mental Health Reform Programme in Ireland (Vision for Change).

Rui Tavares
Rui Tavares is a historian, columnist and a Member of the European Parliament (Independent/European Greens). He works in the areas of Civil Freedoms, Justice and Home Affairs, Human Rights, Culture, and economic affairs. He also acts as vice-president of the special committee CRIM - Organised crime, corruption and money laundering. He's a doctoral student at the School of Advanced Studies in Social Sciences in Paris, where he is completing a research on censorship in the 18th century. He published, among many titles, "The Small Book of the Great Earthquake" (tinta-da-china), and translated 18th century and 19th authors. Tavares writes weekly at the Portuguese newspaper "Público". 
Emmanuel Crabit
Emmanuel Crabit is the head of the unit "General justice policies and judicial systems" in the Directorate General for Justice. He was previously the head of the fundamental right and rights of the child unit in the same Directorate General. Before working for the Directorate General for Justice, he worked in the Internal Market and Services Directorate General and, inter alia, dealt with Commission initiatives in the field of data protection, Information Society services, media pluralism, and services. Emmanuel Crabit holds a PhD in public law and was senior lecturer in public law before joining the European Commission.
 

Moderator

Friso Roscam Abbing
Friso Roscam Abbing is Head of the Communication Department at the FRA, a position he has held since 2009. Prior to this, Mr Roscam Abbing was a Member of the Cabinet of the European Commission Vice-President Jacques Barrot, the Commissioner for Freedom, Security and Justice, after having served from 2004 to 2008 as the spokesman of European Commission Vice President Franco Frattini, the prior Commissioner for Freedom, Security and Justice issues. Between 2000 and 2004, he headed the EU Asylum Policies sector at the European Commission’s DG Justice, Freedom and Security. Before this, he led the EU Office of the European Council on Refugees and Exiles (ECRE, 1994–2000) after starting his career as Head of the Legal Department at the Dutch Refugee Council (1986–1994).