One
AHRC concentrates on the link between justice systems and human rights. It emphasizes that impediments to justice systems must be removed if societies are to achieve human rights. This applies to economic, social and cultural rights as well as civil and political rights
What this implies
- To go beyond mere condemnation of human rights violations and demonstrate the link between such violations and defects in the justice systems of particular countries
- To examine how particular justice systems fail to implement human rights and reveal this to local partners and internationally, paving the way for strategies to overcome these problems
- As an integral part of finding solutions to human rights violations, to ALWAYS combine campaigning on individual cases or issues with lobbying for substantive reforms
- To introduce to the human rights community the concept of MONITORING INSTITUTIONAL PRACTICES (not only individual violations). In addition, we have to demonstrate HOW THIS IS DONE IN OUR OWN WORK
- To persistently use the lessons learned in OUR OWN WORK
Two
The link between local elements and outside supporters must be made by AHRC
What this implies
- To promote and sustain local human rights groups there must be a link between them and outside supporters. In such difficult situations, many people who want to fight for human rights feel isolated; they are confused by the silence of others. Outside supporters can do things which a local group is afraid to do for fear of repercussions. Through their efforts, outsiders can assist the insiders to come to know like-minded people and thus foster the development of a solidarity movement. By undertaking campaigns against human rights violations vigorously from outside, external helpers can create the climate for local people and groups to slowly organise for change. When the outside movement does a great deal of work for a particular country, repression begins to lose its secrecy, which is very essential to repression. When secrecy is difficult, extreme forms of repression become rather difficult. When extreme forms of repression are difficult, local people and organisations begin to feel it and slowly begin to be active again. Outside helpers, by constantly remaining active, can provide a protective cover for the local movement to build and gather momentum.
- The local movement can often be limited by the local capabilities for communication. Outside helpers can supplement local work by providing the use of more advanced communication facilities. As a result of this assistance, messages coming from local groups can reach the world without incurring extraordinary difficulties and costs to local groups.
- Many local groups find it difficult to take their country situations to the United Nations and other international forums because of a lack of extra funds, a lack of expertise, fear of being exposed, and time constraints. In these areas, outside helpers can play an important role without facing the same obstacles and dangers. The repressive elements in the country will learn that acts of violence will receive a great deal of international publicity and will have repercussions from U.N. agencies, other governments and people. Consequently, they will begin to learn that such violence is counterproductive. Initially, local groups have doubts about the usefulness of work at the international level. Some types of problems are insularity, a lack of tangible knowledge about international lobbying and their previous experience of being let down by outside groups. A reliable outside helper can assist the local group to gradually abandon such attitudes.
- The lasting success of human rights work depends on winning a national consensus on human rights concerns. This development can only occur after particular issues and views receive national attention. When it comes to public attention, many debates take place from different points of view. When a substantial section of society begin to support a human rights approach, then there is consensus.
Three
AHRC must exploit modern communication facilities as a speedy and cost-effective mode of work
What this implies
- Improve staff capacity in the use of modern communication
- Help local organisations understand and use these forms of communication
- Create ways for the speedy transfer of information from the grassroots level to AHRC communication networks
- Train grassroots workers in methods of collecting and recording information that are useful to promoting and protecting human rights
- Create, improve and expand AHRC’s networks
- Constantly monitor our communications so that the quality of the communication is kept at a high level
- Try to devise ways for easy understanding of the materials that are being communicated
- Create and improve web sites and data bases, both regionally and locally
Four
As a regional human rights NGO, AHRC is in a unique position to bring local issues to international attention and bring international discourse on human rights and democracy to the local level
What this implies
- Take local issues to the international community, U.N. forums and other international gatherings on a regular basis
- For this purpose, maintain and improve local case studies and research
- Help to generate local discussions, debates and policies which will culminate in discussions to improve the human rights situation in the country
- Help international groups ENGAGE IN INFORMED DISCUSSIONS of problems in different countries in Asia
- Encourage valuable discussions in the international arena, in which new policies and perspectives develop relating to countries with difficult human rights records and where democratic systems and structures are weak
Five
The poorer sections of society are a key concern in all of AHRC’s work
What this implies
- Make conscious attempts to reflect human rights issues from the perspective of the poor and how they are affected by violations of their rights
- Organisationally, bring the ordinary folk into the movement and for this purpose seek to make their participation smooth
- Make issues such as torture a central concern, as it is the poor that are subjected to these violent practices most of the time
- Make concerns relating to the betterment of the poor, including the promotion and protection of economic, social and cultural rights, a priority; issues such as the right to food must be taken as a matter of major importance
