Mike Deeb

To mark the long history of Dominican involvement in defence of human rights, in the year celebrating the 800th anniversary of the confirmation of the Order of Preachers, two hundred Dominican brothers, sisters and laity met in Salamanca, Spain, to discuss the contribution of the Dominican Order, in the past, present and future, in the promotion and defence of human rights. It was in that city in the sixteenth century that, prompted by his Dominican brothers, such as Bartolome de las Casas, who were defending the indigenous people of Latin America against the Spanish conquistadores, Francisco de Vitoria planted the seed of today's international human rights movement. This volume presents in original languages the eleven papers given in Salamanca as well as the statement adopted by the delegates at the end of the meeting. They combine historical views, theoretical insights and testimonies from life experience. This offers a rich contribution, not only towards strengthening the role of the Dominican Family, and even the universal church, in defending human rights, but also towards a deeper understanding of 'evangelisation' and 'mission'.