Ghislain Patrick Lessène has been a lecturer/researcher at CERAH since October 2007 and in the Master 2 "Contentieux et Pratique des droits fondamentaux" at the Faculty of Law of the University of Caen Basse-Normandie (France) since 2009.

After obtaining a Master in Law at the University of Bangui, Central African Republic (1995) and a Master in Human Rights and Democracy from the Chaire Unesco of Human Rights and of the University of Abomey-Calavi, Benin (2001), he obtained a Diploma in Advanced Studies in International Humanitarian Law (2003) at the University Centre for International Humanitarian Law (UCIHL), currently the Geneva Academy for International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights. He holds a PhD in Law from the Faculty of Law, University of Geneva, awarded in May 2011.

Between 2009 and 2011, he held a seminar on « Action for NGOs in Africa » in the optional course « Medicine and international humanitarian law » at the Faculty of Medicine of the University of Geneva.

Between 2004 and 2010 Ghislain Patrick Lessène also worked as consultant and legal adviser to the Africa Program of the Association for Prevention of Torture (APT) in Geneva. He managed the working group on the prevention of torture in Africa during the Forum of the NGOs participating in the sessions of the African Commission for human and peoples’ rights and is the author of several resolutions and recommendations adopted by the African Commission. He was responsible for the “Visit of Prisons” Section of the Prisons Commission of the Human Rights League of Switzerland (2004-2005).

Dr Ghislain Patrick Lessène also provides expert advice to several international and African NGOs working in the field of human rights. He has collaborated with a number of research projects on the prevention of torture, prisons in Africa and rights of the child. He is the General Secretary of the NGO “Vision Internationale d’Entraide” (VIE) and has been a member of the Advisory Board for Integration in the Montreux municipality since 2008.

Fields of interest :

• International human rights and international humanitarian law
• International Justice
• Prevention of torture
• Protection of detainees
• Children’s Rights

Recent publications :

Books

La prévention de la torture, Travaux de la Conférence régionale sur le Protocole facultatif à la Convention des nations Unies contre la torture en Afrique, Dakar, 27-28 avril 2010, APT, 2011.

NIYIZURUGERO J.B et LESSENE G.P., Lignes directrices de Robben Island pour la prohibition et la prévention de la torture en Afrique, Guide pratique pour la mise en œuvre, Commission africaine des droits de l’homme ET DES PEUPLES, Haut- Commissariat aux droits de l’homme, Association pour la prévention de la torture, 2008.

NIYIZURUGERO J.B. et LESSENE G.P., Robben Island Guidelines for the prohibition and prevention of Torture in Africa, African Commission of Human and Peoples Rights, High Commissionner for Human Rights, Association for prevention of torture, 2008.

Articles

LESSENE Ghislain Patrick, « Enfants en situation de rue : des infracteurs à la loi » » in Comment restaurer la dignité des enfants en situation de rue, BICE, association Jean XXIII, Genève, 10 février 2011.

NIYIZURUGERO J - B et LESSENE G.P., « The Robben Island Guidelines : An essential Tool for the Prevention of Torture in Africa », in Preventing torture in the 21st century : monitoring in Europe two decades on monitoring globally two years on : part II, Essex Human Rights Review, Volume 6, Number 2, Special Issue 2010, January 2010.