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

 

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

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

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

 

 

 

 

+++

 

Land/Region: Indien

Konflikt:

Organisation: Human Rights Alert

Arbeitsfeld: Menschenrechte

URL

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

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

T. Thayaparan

Land/Region: Sri Lanka

Konflikt:

Organisation: Peace & Community Action

Arbeitsfeld: Trainings in Gewaltfreiheit; Versöhnung zw. den einstigen Konfliktparteien

T. Thayaparan, National Coordinator  is a Founder member of „Peace and Community in Action“ (PCA) in Sri Lanka and has been National coordinator for the last seven years.

He has 15 years local and international experience of facilitating and training on conflict matters and non violent processes. He hold an MA in Peacebuilding and Conflict Transformation from the American University and an honorary doctorate from Ruhunu University. In 2009 Thaya received the Maja Khone International Peace Award for his international peace work.

Peace & Community Action (PCA) was formed in 1999. It grew out of Quaker Peace and Service (QPS) and was started by a group committed to helping people explore alternatives to the use of violence as a response to conflict. The organisation has been deeply influenced by Gandhian philosophy and Rosenburg’s ‘non-violent communication’ approaches.

PCA began as a grass root level peace organization and now has excellent networks and relationships in the communities it works with. At first we worked primarily in the predominantly Tamil and Muslim Eastern Province ;Ampara, Trincomalee and Puttalam Districts. Setting up offices in Matara in the last three years has given more balance by introducing our work to the predominantly Sinhala Southern Province.

We manage and deliver a mixture of community-based programmes showing participants the impact of using non-violence in their relationships and supporting them to learn and use these techniques in their own lives and work. We also run training courses for government officers and other NGOs on non violent approaches. We work with communities from all ethnic and religious backgrounds, frequently bringing together people whose groups are in conflict.

Most recently PCA has developed an ongoing partnership with the British Council which resulted in the Global Exchange Project.

WEBLINKS: