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Send to friendLIBERIA TRAINING WORKSHOP - Rebuilding Communities After War & Conflict 
19-23 February 2007, Monrovia City Hall, Liberia
PROGRAM OVERVIEW
The New Tactics Liberia Training Workshop was held to highlight tactics that have helped rebuild civil society in the aftermath of war or widespread human rights abuses. Civil society institutions can play a key role in rebuilding societies damaged by war or widespread human rights abuses. Unfortunately, often these organizations are themselves rebuilding or even starting from scratch in a post-conflict society.
The workshop drew from the experiences and resources of the Center for Victims of Torture (CVT), including the New Tactics in Human Rights project. The New Tactics project documents and promotes strategic innovations throughout the human rights movement. This includes projects as large as the International Capacity Building (ICB) project that strengthens torture rehabilitation programs in seventeen countries to CVT's mental health work in small communities in West Africa. The New Tactics website provides a central place for all human rights workers worldwide to learn about tactics and share ideas.
The three additional sponsors were the CVT's Liberia program, CVT's ICB project, and the Liberian National Law Enforcement Association (LINLEA) which is a Liberian human rights organization. Participants included people from other torture treatment programs as well as activists from eight African countries. The workshop was held in Liberia during the week of 19-23 February 2007.
Goals of the workshop:
- Provide civil society activists from Liberia and Sierra Leone the opportunity to identify and adapt promising tactics that have been used by Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) that faced comparable challenges in other countries in Africa. In addition, to provide the broad range of Liberian civil society activists a one-day introduction (the public event, see below) to tactics, practical tools for strategic innovation, leadership, and managing collaborations.
- Showcase efforts of advocates that have arisen from African torture rehabilitation programs; provide training to strengthen them as leaders, trainers, facilitators and writers; and increase their knowledge of promising tactics used by colleague organizations.
- Increase the long-term impact and sustainability of CVT's community mental health projects in Liberia and Sierra Leone by connecting local staff with potential allies and supporters from torture treatment programs internationally, and a broader network of civil society activists in their countries.
- Contribute to the body of knowledge on rebuilding post-conflict societies by highlighting key tactics and practical considerations for adapting these tactics to new situations.
- Child and Youth Activities: A Doorway for Community Engagement, Gundrun Kober
- Human Rights Clubs in Schools, Dr. Charles Ntare, FACT, Rwanda
- Empowering Survivors to Become Healers Now and Forever, Seidu Swaray, CVT Liberia
- Multi-media Communication Efforts for Public Outreach: The Experience of ACTV, Sharon Lamwaka, ACTV, Uganda
- Dealing with Trauma through Collective Bridging Activities, Miriam Fredericks, Trauma Center, South Africa
- Advocacy Journalism and Human Rights Protection, Victor Bwire, Independent Medico-Legal Unit (IMLU), Kenya
- Beneficiaries Committee and Coffee Ceremonies, Tekeste Ayalew, RCVTE, Ethiopia
- Developing a Blue Print for Civil Society Organizations, Benjamin Tarnue, NACCSOL, Liberia
- Liberia Workshop Participants and Staff List
- One Day Public Presentation Participant List
- Public Day Presentation: Keynote address given by Liberian Minister of Labor Samuel Kofi Woods
MS WORD Document - All materials about this conference (251.5 KB)
