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Send to friendNew Tactics 2006 Grant Projects
The New Tactics in Human Rights Project has been working to raise resources that will assist human rights organizations around the world to share New Tactics ideas, tools and materials in their own countries and regions in order to apply strategic and tactical thinking to their own issues. In 2006, the New Tactics project has been able to provide grant amounts ranging from USD1000 to USD5000 to 15 organizations. The New Tactics project received two grants that have made this effort possible. A grant from the National Endowment for Democracy (NED): "Promoting Tactical Innovation and Strategic Thinking in the Global Human Rights Movement" provided the opportunity for New Tactics to work with four partner organizations though September 2006. Each partner organization is using the funds to carry out activities that enable them to introduce and distribute tactical approaches to human rights advocates across their country and in their region. The four grant partners are:
- Ev Aran, Mongolia
- LINLEA, Liberia
- LEADS, Nigeria
- Youth Human Rights Movement (YHRM), Russia
A second grant from the Jacob and Hilda Blaustein Foundation has made it possible for the New Tactics project to provide small grants to twelve organizations around the world specifically for the translation of New Tactics materials into local languages and local dissemination efforts. The twelve grant partners are:
- Amnesty International-Mongolia
- Bachpan Bachao Andolan (BBA)/Save the Childhood Foundation, India
- Centre for Human Rights and Development (CHRD), Sri Lanka
- Coastal Development Partnership, Bangladesh
- JagiellonianUniversity Human Rights Centre (JUHRC), Poland
- Helsinki Citizens’ Assembly (hCa), Turkey
- HumanRightsCenter "Citizens against corruption", KyrgyzRepublic
- Humanus Foundation (formerly AfricaGovernanceAlert), Cameroon
- Mesoamerican Centre for Sustainable Human Rights Action (CEMAS), Guatemala
- Nagorno Karabakh Committee of "Helsinki-Initiative-92"
- Rural Initiatives in Sustainability and Empowerment (RISE), Pakistan
- Forum Solidaridade Buka Hatene (FORSANE), East Timor
Ev Aran is a national human rights non-governmental organization based inMongolia. The Board of Representatives consists of the five founders of the organization who are committed to the human rights movement and devote their professional lives to the betterment of Mongolian society. The mission of the organization is to promote human rights and cultivate a culture of tolerance in the society. The main area of work is a focus on the promotion of alternative dispute resolution (ADR) mechanisms. With low public perception on fairness of the judiciary, ineffective social welfare institutions and widespread corruption of public servants, Ev Aran is working to empower target groups with ADR tools. Ev Aran has also cooperated with other NGOs, the police and public authorities to strengthen the capacities of vulnerable communities to protect and restore human rights at the grass roots level and has been prominent in the national campaign against torture and the death penalty.
Ev Aran’s New Tactics endeavor introduced the New Tactics tactical mapping tool to the broader human rights community inMongolia with specific reference to torture. Key actors involved in the campaign against torture were engaged in the mapping exercise, and New Tactics tactical materials with special reference to Mongolia’s situation were introduced. The mapping exercise, together with the cases and tactics, were complied into a working draft manual for practitioners. Ev Aran also launched a media campaign involving press releases, an article in a professional journal, a press conference, and introduced tactical mapping into other issue areas facing Mongolian society.
The Liberia National Law Enforcement Association (LINLEA) was established in March 1994 as a professional, non-partisan, and non-profit organization to bring together law enforcement personnel and support staff to constitute a consolidated association or consortium that would promote professionalism within law enforcement and other criminal justice institutions. LINLEA’s primary goals are to improve the quality of law enforcement services and personnel and promote more democratic and humane services on the part of justice-related institutions inLiberia. LINLEA also advocates for improved working conditions, better salaries and adequate training and education for law enforcement personnel and encourages community participation in meeting the challenges of crime and disorder in Liberal society.
LINLEA used the New Tactics grant to train a core group of trainers from a coalition of over 75 civil society organizations to bring New Tactics ideas, tools and materials to their organizations and communities. Along with LINLEA, these trainers have conducted several workshops and forums for civil society organizations and staff of government ministries and agencies. LINLEA hosted a number of monthly radio programs to discuss New Tactics materials and concepts. In addition, LINLEA printed and disseminated a number of New Tactics resources, including publishing a number of articles and tactics in special editions of their printed newsletter.
The League of Democratic Women (LEADS), Nigeria, is a non-governmental human rights and pro-democracy organization founded in Kadunain 1996. Its aims and objectives include, amongst others, to create legal awareness among Northern Nigerian women, aid in the strengthening of laws and institutions that protect women and children’s rights, encourage female education in Northern Nigeria, provide legal aid and assistance to victims of human rights violation, lobby for the repeal or abrogation of customary law and practices that discriminate against women, organize seminars, workshops and conferences on women and children’s rights issues as well as conduct research and publish reports on women’s rights issues.
LEADS put the New Tactics grant to use by translating New Tactics materials into Hausa, the most widely spoken language in northwest Nigeria, and to increase access to New Tactics materials for activists in the seven states of the northwest by putting together a radio project for information dissemination reaching out to illiterate and semi-literate populations in the region, and working to build a network of human rights practitioners.
The Youth Human Rights Movement (YHRM), an international network of young human rights activists in Belarus, Kazakhstan, and Ukraine, provides the younger generation of Russian and former Soviet Union human rights activists with skills and knowledge necessary to continue developing the movement towards Russian democracy. The YHRM carries out three "blocks" of activities which combine elements of human rights training, public information, and support for regional human rights NGOs. The first block consists of civic activities, such as training sessions for participants, an information campaign, and local public activities in defense of human rights. The second block of activities consists of internships for qualified young activists at well-equipped human rights organizations throughout the newly independent states (NIS). These participants learn how to coordinate various campaigns; edit, print and distribute newsletters; and conduct interviews. The third block of activities instructs participants on how to develop training materials and personnel in the area of human rights education.
YHRM used the New Tactics grant to develop four, 32-page, brochures in Russian based on tactics from the "New Tactics in Human Rights: A Resource for Practitioner" book and the on-line tactical database. YHRM also launched a Russian-language website with information on New Tactics activities and resources. In addition, YHRM hosted three seminars on "The Basics of Human Rights and New Tactics" for young civic and human rights activists.
The following organizations have received microgrants for translation and dissemination of New Tactics materials through a grant funded by the Jacob and Hilda Blaustein Foundation.
Amnesty International-Mongolia has been working for more than 10 years on human rights issues inMongolia. It has advocated for ratification of Convention Against Torture (CAT), the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (ICC) and the optional protocol of the Convention on Cultural Rights (CCR), as well as engaging in lobbying activities and human rights education at all levels of society. AI-Mongolia will be translating and publishing portions of the "New Tactics in Human Rights: A Resource for Practitioners."
Bachpan Bachao Andolan (BBA)/Save the Childhood Foundation, India. BBA’s mission is to identify, liberate, rehabilitate and educate children in servitude through direct intervention, child and community participation, coalition building, consumer action, promoting ethical trade practices and mass mobilization. Founded as a group of a few individuals, BBA/SACCS (South Asian Coalition on Child Servitude) has emerged as an organization of thousands of individual supporters under the banner of "Bachpan Bachao Andolan" as well as network of over 764 NGOs, Trade Unions, human rights organizations, etc., dedicated towards the total elimination of child labor. BBA will be translating New Tactics materials into Hindi and conducting training workshops for civil society representatives inBihar, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh inIndia.
Centre for Human Rights and Development (CHRD), Colombo, Sri Lanka, coordinates work to support victims of human rights abuses, particularly among the Tamil community, as well as providing legal assistance and human rights training. CHRD will be translating portions of the ""New Tactics in Human Rights: A Resource for Practitioners" and other tactical materials into Tamil and Sinhalese, as well as promoting New Tactics materials through workshops held in the East, South and plantation sectors of Sri Lanka.
The Coastal Development Partnership, Bangladesh, was formed in January 1997 as a coordinating secretariat of NGOs working to relieve the sufferings of the people of the southwest coastal region of Bangladesh. Its mission is to assist other NGOs and Citizens’ Forums in capacity-building, and has established a Central Information Center (CIC) and SatelliteInformationCentersinSouthwest Bangladesh to cater to the information needs of different sectors involved in development and human rights. The Costal Development Partnership will be translating selections of New Tactics materials into Bengali, and will conduct a "sharing workshop" to facilitate the understanding and adoption of tactics.
Helsinki Citizens’ Assembly (hCa), Turkey, a non-governmental, non-profit, voluntary organization, is committed to: introducing into daily life the basic rights and freedoms accepted ininternational agreements and outlined by universal standards; promoting the idea of citizenship and active involvement in civic life; building a wider Europe from below; supporting peaceful processes for the resolution of problems through mutual understanding, dialogue and peace; improving pluralist democratic bodies and civil society initiatives; ensuring the supremacy of law; defending an economic system that promotes the well-being of human life and the environment. hCa works on the basis of projects, which are drafted and implemented by working commissions that act as think-tanks. Since its establishment, hCa has organized local and international platforms of debate, coordinated monitoring committees and workshops, has produced publications, brochures, books, and modest public ad spots. hCa was the New Tactics partner for the New Tactics International Symposium in Ankara, Turkeyin 2004. hCa will be disseminating information on the tactical mapping process, translating New Tactics training materials into Turkish and developing "participant kits" for distribution at working meetings inIstanbul, Izmir and Ankara.
Human Rights Center "Citizens Against Corruption" (CAC), Kyrgyz Republic, works to influence and decrease levels of corruption, poverty, injustice and improve the human rights situation in Kyrgyzstan by empowering local NGOs and activists to become sustainable self-sufficient civil society actors and activists, and involving them in decision-making process at all levels. They are currently working on involving youth in monitoring parliamentary and presidential elections, as well as participating in the law-making process through lobbying and advocacy work. Citizens Against Corruption will be translating selected New Tactics materials into Russian and Kyrgyz, as well as translating and promoting portions of the New Tactics website.
Humanus Foundation (formerly AfricaGovernanceAlert), Cameroon, was founded in 1997 to promote human rights and applications of international standards in Cameroon through an integrated approach to economic, civil and cultural rights. Humanus also works to disseminate information on human rights and development to the general population. Humanus will be translating the tactical notebook "Powerful Persuasion: Combat Traditional Practices that Violate Human Rights" into French, and will be distributing and sharing the tactical notebook and New Tactics tools and ideas with NGOs and traditional leaders.
Jagiellonian University Human Rights Centre (JUHRC) is an independent research institution affiliated with the Jagiellonian Univeristy in Krakow, Poland, conducting educational, training, translation and promotional activities in the area of human rights. JUHRC will be translating portions of the "New Tactics in Human Rights: A Resource for Practitioners" into Polish, Ukrainian and Russian and promoting our resources through an information campaign and web forum.
Mesoamerican Centre for Sustainable Human Rights Action (CEMAS), Guatemala, CEMAS is a group of men and women of diverse cultures and nationalities. CEMAS mission is to promote a culture of respect for human rights in their totality, through human rights institution building processes inMesoamerica and to strengthen and articulate grassroots human rights organizations inMesoamerica, in particular the members of the Mesoamerican Network for the Defense of Human Rights. CEMAS formed a Mesoamerican Human Rights Network ("The Network", 45 member organizations from Guatemala, Honduras and Chiapas) and facilitated its annual General Assemblies. CEMAS will be translating New Tactics materials into Spanish and Mam, a major Mayan language of Guatemala. CEMAS will also be conducting a series of six two-day workshops to be carried out by its grassroots counterpart organizations (a total of 36 workshops), each involving 25 young persons from approximately 75 Guatemalan communities (predominantly rural). Each participant will carry out two multiplication activities with other young members of his or her community.
The Nagorno Karabakh Committee of "Helsinki-Initiative-92" was founded to defend human rights and promote conflict resolution, but its mission has diversified to include language courses, youth workshops and environmental advocacy. The Committee will be translating selected New Tactics materials into Russian and Armenian as well as conducting workshops and discussion sessions promoting tactical innovation and strategic thinking.
Rural Initiatives in Sustainability and Empowerment (RISE), Pakistan. RISE works to empower the disadvantaged sections of rural Pakistani society, particularly advocating for gender equity and the rights of persons with disabilities, through promoting awareness and capacity building among local activists. RISE is translating community selected New Tactics materials into Urdu, and RISE will be working to extend and integrate communication through online discussion groups and outreach campaigns.
Forum Solidaridade Buka Hatene (FORSANE), East Timor, is particularly interested to translate New tactics materials and resources on tactical mapping and other training tools into Tetum (East Timor’s official language) so these can be used by communities and human rights activists in East Timor . FORSANE feels that the translated materials can be a powerful tool for expanding the values of human rights in East Timor.
