Monika Hauser

Country/region: Afghanistan

Conflict: Civil war

Organisation: Afghan Independent Human Rights Commission

Field of work: Human rights

Between 1992 and 1994 Hauser, a specialist in gynaecology, brought into being the Medica Zenica women’s therapy centre in Central Bosnia with the support of female Bosnian professionals. The team supported women in the processing of their traumatic experiences. The medica mondiale e.V. association was founded and its sphere of involvement expanded first of all to Kosovo, then to Afghanistan, and subsequently to numerous other countries. Today, medica mondiale acts as a global advocate for women and girls who have experienced sexualised wartime violence in conflict zones. “There are things that women in Bosnia told me that I buried deep within myself, that I can’t talk about with anyone and wouldn’t want even a therapist to have to hear.”

In 2000, Hauser took over the management of medica mondiale. In her work she campaigns for the removal of the societal taboo that surrounds rape in wartime and makes use of various seminars to pass this message on to professional women in the affected areas.

The organisation describes its mission thus: “We are committed to working for and with women and girls all over the world who are affected by gender-specific, in particular sexualised, violence in wars and conflicts.” The standards developed for the trauma work are now applied all over the world. Afghanistan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Burundi, Rwanda, DR Congo and Liberia are the conflict regions in which Medica Mondiale works.

For her initiative she has received numerous awards, including the Right Livelihood Award, also known as the alternative Nobel Prize, in 2008.

Links:

Medica Mondiale

http://www.medicamondiale.org/wer-wir-sind/struktur/der-vorstand-von-medica-mondiale.html

Wikipedia
https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monika_Hauser

Alternative Nobel Prize:

http://www.rightlivelihood.org/hauser.html

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Dr. Samar Sima

Country/region: Afghanistan

Conflict: Civil war

Organisation: Afghan Independent Human Rights Commission

Field of work: Human rights

 

Dr. Sima Samar is a well known woman’s and human rights advocate and activist within national and international forums. She served as the first Deputy Chair and Minister of Women’s Affairs in the Interim Administration of Afghanistan. Before chairing the Commission, she was elected as the Vice Chair of the Emergency Loya Jirga.

The Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission (AIHRC) is working in the area of protection and promotion of human rights. Established based on the Bone Agreement and Presidential Decree and afterwards, pursuant to Article 58 of the Afghan Constitution, it found a legal base to protect and promote human rights in the country, “Every individual shall complain to this Commission about the violation of personal human rights. The Commission shall refer human rights violations of individuals to legal authorities and assist them in defense of their rights.“

Among the many awards she got are the Right Livelihood Award 2012, Mother Teresa Awards for Social Justice, Honorary Doctorate from Salem State University.

The jury statement for the Right Livelihood Award says: „Sima Samar is a doctor for the poor, an educator of the marginalised and defender of the human rights of all in Afghanistan. She has established and nurtured the Shuhada Organization that, in 2012, operated more than one hundred schools and 15 clinics and hospitals dedicated to providing education and healthcare, particularly focusing on women and girls. She served in the Interim Administration of Afghanistan and established the first-ever Ministry of Women’s Affairs. Since 2004, she has chaired the Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission that holds human rights violators accountable, a commitment that has put her own life at great risk.“

Links:

Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission:

http://www.aihrc.org.af/home/members

Right Livelihood Award

http://www.rightlivelihood.org/samar.html

https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sima_Samar

 

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Moses John

Country/region: South Sudan

Conflict: Civil war between North and South Sudan

Organisation: Organization for Nonviolence and Development (ONAD)

Field of work: Training in non-violence; workshops on trauma work; inter-religious dialogue between Muslims & Christians

“I used to spread violence. I was a rebel fighter. But I know that people can change – because I have changed.” Mama Bougie, a former fighter in the Sudanese civil war, is now one of the coordinators of the “Alternatives to Violence” (AVP) project in Sudan. She and other trainers on the project have made a documentary film to explain how they deal with “transforming power” in their workshops, how they create space for a culture of non-violence and practise methods of non-violent conflict resolution on both personal and social levels.

The AVP, supported by such organisation as the German Civil Peace Service, is one of the central activities of ONAD, an organisation that was founded 20 years ago by Moses John. He says: “Humanitarian aid is important for our country. But it isn’t enough; we need to do everything we can to consolidate peace.” His contribution to this is the “training of trainers”, in which non-violent conflict management is taught, together with interfaith dialogues and courses on human rights.

ONAD is part of the “Citizens for Peace and Justice” network. The network has issued a statement in which it announced its neutrality and calls for a truce, free access for humanitarian aid and involvement in the peace process.

 

LINK:

ONAD

http://www.onadev.org/

Interview on Welt-Sichten 2014

http://www.welt-sichten.org/artikel/24447/suedsudan-kiir-und-machar-sollten-einer-neuen-regierung-nicht-angehoeren

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Yehia Ag Moh. Ali

Land/Region: ??

Konflikt:

Organisation: Mali

Arbeitsfeld: Entwicklung und Frieden

Yehia Ag Mohammed Ali ist weiterhin in Sachen Frieden und Entwicklung unterwegs.

Bis Ende 2014 war er der nationale Koordinator des Programms Mali-Nord (GIZ/KfW) – insgesamt zwanzig Jahre lang -, dann schied er auf eigenen Wunsch aus den Diensten der GIZ aus und ist jetzt freiberuflich tätig, vor allem aber innerhalb der SADI politisch aktiv. In der Übergangsregierung, vor der Wahl von IBK zum Präsidenten, war er ein Jahr lang Minister.

Wir denken, man kann Yehia zu Recht als einen Friedensmacher aus der Zivilgesellschaft bezeichnen. Er hat einen intuitiven Hang zu zivilen Konfliktlösungen und setzt damit eine familiäre marabutische Tradition fort. Sein Vater war ein hoch geschätzter Marabu im Westen von Timbuktu und war ein streitbarer Friedensmacher.

Von Yehia kamen die Anstöße zum direkten Dialog mit der Rebellion vor der Invasion des Nordens (2012) und jetzt nach dem drohenden Scheitern der sich hinziehenden Verhandlungen von Algier (April 2015), die durch die internationale Beteiligung ja nicht einfacher, sondern eher komplizierter geworden sind.

URL

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Babloo Loitongbam
Country/region India (federal state of Manipur in the northeast region)
Conflict Human rights violations by the Army; armed rebel groups
Organisation Human Rights Alert
Field of work Human rights; civil rights

Babloo is a lawyer, anthropologist and human rights activist. He has been fighting to protect human rights in the northeast of India for more than 20 years. In this area, a Special Powers Act gives the Army powers that are almost impossible to control, including the right to “shoot to kill” if they merely suspect terrorist activity. With his organisation, Babloo Loitongbam has meticulously documented no fewer than 1528 cases in which innocent people were killed in so-called “fake encounters” (alleged combat against terrorists). The motives of the soldiers: robbery with murder, or the prospect of promotion and a medal for bravery, as one has allegedly killed a terrorist.

Babloo bases his methods on Gandhi’s form of non-violent resistance, employs all legal means offered by the Indian State and uses the international stage. His non-violent resistance is creative. He works to defeat hardness (the violence) with softness. The exceptional victim Irom Sharmilas is in the centre of the HRA campaigns. She has been on hunger strike against the Army law for 15 years; she is in police custody and force-fed.

Babloo has been caring for Sharmila since the start of her hunger strike. He has coordinated by agreement with her the political and legal campaigns, including appeals to national and international human rights commissioners, as well as fasts in solidarity in public places and intensive media work. He also supports and coordinates the association of widows whose husbands have died through extra-judicial killings. The Indian State refuses compensation, even when it is proved that the victims were innocent.

He was a Fulbright Scholar and is an Ashoka Life Fellow.

 

 

LINKS:

Reportage from Peace Counts

http://www.peace-counts.org/toten-fur-medaillen/

Lecture on the Army Special Powers Act

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T0SIAdnr4NI

Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/HUMAN-RIGHTS-ALERT-122566984429340/timeline/

Ashoka:

https://www.ashoka.org/fellow/babloo-loitongbam

 

 

 

 

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Land/Region: Indien

Konflikt:

Organisation: Human Rights Alert

Arbeitsfeld: Menschenrechte

URL

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Nobokishore Urikhimbam

Land/Region: Indien

Konflikt:

Organisation: United NGOs Mission

Arbeitsfeld: Versöhnung zw. versch. Volksgruppen

Nobokishore Urikhimbam, Secretary of United NGOs Mission, Manipur, Northeast India: UNM-M is a network of 235 indigenous peoples’ organisations from Northeast India, a multi-ethnic civil society platform working for Peace for more than two decades.

They are also supported by the German Church. They have already initiated lobbying and advocacy work by organizing a NE solidarity group in Germany.

Artikel auf der Website Welt-Sichten (hg. von Brot für die Welt, Misereor u.a.)

URL

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Leban Serto

Land/Region: Indien

Konflikt:

Organisation: Peace Counts NEI

Arbeitsfeld: Friedenspädagogik

Dr. Leban Serto, Local Coordinator Peace Counts, Northeast India. Er ist Anthropologe, Sozialaktivist, Friedenspädagoge und ausgebildeter Trainer von Peace Counts. Er trainiert FriedenspädagogInnen im ganzen Nordosten Indiens und koordiniert deren Netzwerke.

LINK:
welt-sichten.org/artikel/2814/zusammenhalt-ist-unser-einziger-schutz

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