Torture Campaign - Update II Underlag till styrelsemöte 1-2 januari 2000

AI members only
AI Index: ACT 40/03/99
Distr: SC/CC
-----------------------------
Amnesty International
International Secretariat
1 Easton Street
London WC1X 0DW
United Kingdom


To: All sections
From: Themes Campaign Team
Date: 22 December 1999








Update 2
10 months to go!

Summary

This circular develops the ideas in The Torture Campaign Circular (AI Index 40/01/99 - The Torture Campaign) and the Update Circular (AI Index 40/02/99). The next update circular will be sent to sections at the end of February 2000.

Keywords

TORTURE/ILL-TREATMENT1 / CAMPAIGNS / AI PUBLICITY / OUTREACH


Distribution

Please ensure that this circular is copied to all staff and members who would be expected to play a role in the development of national strategies for this campaign. These should include: Press Officers, Fundraisers, RAN Coordinators, Women=s network coordinators, Children=s Network Coordinators, LGBT coordinators, Medical network coordinators, IGO coordinators, MSP and HRE coordinators and the coordinators of other networks as appropriate.

Recommended Action

Ensure that all of the above staff, volunteers and members integrate the following information into their campaign plans.



AI members only
AI Index: ACT 40/03/99
Distr: SC/CC
No. Of Words: 8,461
---------------------------------
Amnesty International
International Secretariat
1 Easton Street
London WC1X 0DW
United Kingdom



22 December 1999


(October 2000) - 10 months to go!

Introduction

This circular begins the process of supplying more detailed information which will flesh out the overall campaign design. The next update on the campaign strategy will be issued at the end of February 2000.

Goal 1 - National Strategies

The following regional entries were prepared by the five Regional Campaign Coordinators. This is not the final list, other countries are still being considered for inclusion in this list. For reasons of workload, it maybe necessary to reduce the number of countries. The list will be finalized by the end of February. The criteria used for the selection of the majority of countries will be as follows:
  • AI concerns about torture and cruel inhuman and degrading treatment or punishments (CID). (Please note that unless stated otherwise all future use of the word torture should be deemed to include CID.)
  • Presence of either an AI membership structure and/or the presence of NGOs capable of working with AI in devising and implementing an action strategy against torture.
  • The general research and development priorities decided by the ICM.


I addition, some Aclosed@ countries have also been selected for action. Although they do not meet the above criteria, the section in this circular on closed countries explains the rationale for including them.

AI Sections with sufficient resources are asked to consider if they can play a particular strategic role in any one of the following country entries. It may be possible that large sections have sufficient resources to choose one of the following countries and play an active role in the design and implementation of an action strategy to combat torture. This would be particularly (but not exclusively) so if there are any known or suspected Military, Security or Police (MSP) transfers in connection with the use of torture between any Section and one of the following countries.

Any Section wishing to explore the possibility of becoming involved in the design and implementation of any of the following country action strategies should contact the appropriate Regional Campaign Coordinator and the Themes Team in the IS.



Africa

Four Goal 1 countries are being proposed (one per sub-region) in Africa: Kenya, South Africa, Democratic Republic of Congo and Senegal. The national strategies will differ from country to country depending on the different contexts, the role and capacity of NGOs and varied levels of AI presence.

Kenya is a high priority country where torture is widespread and is a key AI concern. Torture is systematic and has therefore been the focus of AI campaigning for a number of years. The national strategy will build on our work in the past which has been very effective in bringing together doctors and lawyers working on torture and facilitating NGOs to network and campaigning more closely and publicly on the issue.

There are no AI structures in Kenya, however the national strategy will be developed by the IS in conjunction with NGOs with which we have strong links. The campaign will focus on two torture-related issues: women and children (goals 2 and 3). In terms of women, the campaign will focus on impunity and rape in custody and the obligation of the state in protecting women from these violations. The focus of the campaigning on children will probably be street children. Another key issue in Kenya is the inaccessibility of police stations and prisons to human rights workers involved in monitoring torture and this will be an overarching aspect of the national campaign strategy. The report of the UN Special Rapporteur on Torture, due out in early 2000, will be examined and its concerns assessed in relation to planning the national strategy. Possible plans include: workshops with NGOs, joint campaigning on specific cases, publicity and lobbying.

South Africa is a high priority country for research/action and for membership development. Torture by police is still a persistent practice, particularly in the context of criminal investigations, and is one of AI=s key concerns because of the lack of political will - in the face of public concern about the high level of violent crime - to address the problem. The campaign will highlight individual incidents of torture and will also address the state=s obligation to end impunity for torturers through effective legislation, strengthened accountability mechanisms and adequately resourced justice procedures. Public education, lobbying and training will be key components of the national strategy.

The IS, the AI-SA structure and local NGOs will strategize around the focus of the campaign and its objectives and targets. The researcher held initial consultations with AI-SA in August 99.

Plans for 2000 include:
  • a report highlighting individual cases and the state's obligations;
  • seminar on policing and human rights in SADC (Southern African Development Community) countries, March 2000, led by Dutch Section (Special Program on Africa), in conjunction with the sub-regional AI membership and in collaboration with one SA and one Zimbabwe NGO partner;
  • a consultative meeting with local NGOs in March 2000.

In Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) , which is a super-high priority country, torture is at the heart of our concerns and is linked to our major concern of massacres. Victims of extra-judicial executions and deliberate and arbitrary killings are routinely tortured before they are killed. Torture has existed in the country since the colonial era, it is a practice that has been maintained and used systematically by law enforcement officials and the armed forces, mainly for punishment but more recently as a form of political repression using terror.
Because of the ongoing conflict in the country and the risky positions of NGOs, the national strategy will be modest and low-profile. The two areas of focus will be human rights education and gender (goal 2). The main aim of the strategy will be to facilitate the sharing of experiences of NGOs in monitoring torture and particularly gender-related torture such as rape. Four to six NGOs will be identified as partners (including NGOs operating in both the government-held and rebel-held territories). Possible plans include: a workshop and training on monitoring and reporting cases and identifying a plan of action and/or a set of recommendations for NGOs and other to use when campaigning for an end to torture. Possibly too the workshop will facilitate discussions about the treatment of torture survivors and the establishment of a treatment centre.

Senegal is a high priority country mainly because of the conflict in Casamance, the southern region of Senegal where since 1982 an armed separatist organization, The Movement of Casamance's Democratic Forces, is seeking independence of the region. Torture and ill-treatment of prisoners and detainees are widespread and a major AI concern. Torture occurs in both government and rebel areas. The related issue of impunity of torturers is another important concern for AI.

The national strategy is still being designed in consultation with the section and other NGOs in Senegal like the Rencontre Africaine des Droits de l'Homme (RADDHO) who organised an exhibition of photographs and material on torture in 1998 and the Organisation National Des Droits de l'Homme (ONDH) who have helped in the dissemination of AI publication in the past. The national strategy will include lobbying both sides involved in the conflict and, possibly, publicising these issues internationally in front of UN bodies (e.g. Committee against torture).

Apart from the national strategies, there are plans to translate material into Swahili for use by two of the Goal 1 countries (Kenya and DRC) and also by AI Tanzania. The Campaign Against Torture is also expected to be one of the topics of the Africa Campaign Coordinators meeting scheduled for March 2000.

For more information please contact [email protected]


Americas

Within the Americas Program at the IS, we are currently developing our strategies for Brazil, Peru and Mexico. These will be different for each of the countries.

For Brazil , we will build on the 1999 Brazil Action and will continue to focus our research on the torture/CID of detainees in police custody and in prisons, mainly of common criminals and juvenile detainees. There has already been considerable interest within the country following the publication of AI's report, No one here sleeps safely (AMR 19/09/99). We expect to be able to use the campaign to further discussions with national NGOs and Brazil's human rights commission(s) towards a national strategy.

In Peru , AI's concerns are torture/CID by the armed forces or police of political and common criminals. We would also hope to be able undertake lobbying of the Peruvian government on their implementation of the 1999 Committee Against Torture recommendations. Within the country, there is already underway a nationally coordinated campaign against the use of torture. AI Peru has joined with a number of other NGOs, who themselves have already started to develop the idea of Torture Free Zones, and it is hoped that it will be possible to build on the work already underway in the country.
For Mexico , we are unable to detail what the focus of our research will be until the new Mexico researcher visits the country in February 2000. Provisional ideas include research on impunity and the judicial system, and torture by the security forces, to include political and non-political cases. Within the country there is already a strong coordination of human rights (and other) NGOs with whom AI Mexico is working, and for which there is potential for developing a national strategy.

The Americas Program and the HRE team at the IS will be looking to support HRE initiatives and develop HRE materials in Spanish.

For more information please contact [email protected] (who will be standing in for Virginia Segal until her sabbatical replacement is recruited)


Asia-Pacific

The Asia Program has identified eight countries where we will develop national strategies to combat torture and ill-treatment. These eight countries are countries where we think developing a national strategy with AI members and NGOS and outreach to other groups will advance AI's work within the country. We will seek to highlight concerns in other countries through the remaining campaign goals and other activities, some of which are also mentioned here. The work envisaged will vary considerably from country to country - in some cases it will be a major part of the country strategy while in others it will be a much smaller project.

China: Torture is widespread in China and is one of AI's main concerns on the country. There are no AI members and NGO activities are severely restricted, but we see the campaign as an opportunity to tap into new debates on reform. China presents its report to CAT in March 2000 and we will use this opportunity to publicise our concerns in the run-up to the campaign, and to discuss strategy with NGOs operating outside the country. Following the CAT session, and if funding is available, we are planning to develop a set of educational materials for widespread dissemination to groups of lawyers, academics, universities and other groups within China using electronic and ordinary mail. We may also be able to organize a seminar or other training event. During the campaign we will produce material for appeals cases on China, including on Tibet and Xinjiang, and we will seek to feed our country concerns into the main campaign publications.

India: Torture is widespread in India, particularly of economically and socially vulnerable groups. There is no AI structure in India but we have good links with NGOs throughout the country, largely due to the impact of our South Asia human rights defenders project. The India team have developed a comprehensive strategy for the campaign, which includes an initial e-mail discussion with Indian NGOs to discuss joint activities. We hope to produce country-specific materials (leaflets and posters) for campaigning within India. We also plan to produce an external report on torture (in Hindi and English) to disseminate human rights education materials within the NGO community and to raise international awareness about our concerns by including them in the campaign publications. We are discussing the possibility of a project to review current police training programs and make a set of recommendations. We will make a decision on this in early 2000, taking account of the resources needed and follow-up work which would be required at the IS.

In the Philippines, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Nepal, Japan and South Korea the campaign will be an opportunity for AI sections to work with NGOS and the sub-regional team at the IS to develop some joint initiatives to combat torture and/or ill-treatment. Concerns highlighted in these countries may include impunity and reform of the criminal justice system (Pakistan) and police ill-treatment and conditions of detention (Japan). In some cases (South Korea and the Philippines) the campaign will be an opportunity to develop our research on torture and ill-treatment. Pierre Sané's visit to Nepal in February 2000 will be used to highlight concern about torture in that country. In some of our national strategies we hope to focus on women and children. Concrete plans for strategies on all of these countries will be developed in cooperation with AI membership during missions and discussions in early 2000.

Depending on resources, the Asia Program plans to hold training workshops for NGOs in Indonesia, East Timor and Cambodia. These workshops would link in with our proposed Southeast Asia human rights defenders project.

We have also started to discuss how we can bring the campaign to "closed countries", including Myanmar, Vietnam, Laos. We welcome any ideas from the membership! With regard to Myanmar and Laos we hope to incorporate concerns on these countries into the campaign publications and appeals cases.

In addition to developing national strategies and plans on individual countries, we would like to produce and translate campaign materials for the Asia membership and to initiate some joint campaigning activities across the region. In preparation for the campaign, we plan to hold a Campaign Coordinators training workshop in mid-2000.

For more information please contact [email protected]

Europe

The Europe Regional Program is proposing to develop individual Goal One Strategies for Turkey and the Russian Federation , as well as a broader regional strategy on ending impunity for ill-treatment within all Council of Europe member states. Plans are provisional at this stage, but the strategy on the Russian Federation will build on the strong partnership with Russian national NGOs working against torture and ill-treatment forged with the launch of AI's major 1997 report on torture in the country. A special focus on the torture and ill-treatment of children and women in Russia is anticipated. With regard to Turkey, the research and action focus is expected to be on impunity, and torture and ill-treatment of women and children (including possible work on rape in custody). It is hoped that AI Turkey will be able to organize joint seminars with national NGOs working against torture and ill-treatment in the country and to carry out a program of joint home government lobbying with these other organizations on the issue.

The Europe Program at the IS has proposed an initiative on ending impunity for torture and ill-treatment in Council of Europe members states to coincide with the wide range of activities and events planned by the Council of Europe to mark the fiftieth anniversary of the European Convention on Human Rights in 2000. The aim of this action is to demonstrate that while legislation designed to prevent torture and ill-treatment is in place in most European states, the absence of sustained political will to render that legislation effective and to end impunity for those responsible for ill-treatment remains a phenomenon documented by AI across the continent.

In the new year, the Europe Program will be in contact with European Sections and Structures to discuss this initiative further. For further information on this initiative please contact Brian Phillips in the Europe Program at the IS. ( [email protected]).


Middle East

Two Goal 1 countries are being proposed in the Middle East region: Egypt and Iraq. The national strategies will differ in each country, as Egypt is an >open' country while Iraq is >closed'.

Egypt

This is a High Priority country, with a large NGO community - including several HROs - but local AI membership is hardly visible. Torture continues to be systematic and widespread. Victims are political detainees as well as people from all walks of life who are detained or come into contact with the police even for trivial offences.
Main challenges for the campaign are:
  • the unwillingness of the authorities to introduce efficient safeguards and to bring torturers to justice;
  • the apathy on the part of the public;
  • the reluctance of international community to put pressure on Egypt.


The focus of the strategy for Egypt will include police torture, impunity, political prisoners and CID, with strong Human Rights Education component. Activities will be implemented in cooperation with local NGOs including events of public awareness raising; training for activists and professionals; and lobbying at the international level.

Iraq

This is a High Priority country, but a >closed' country with no independent NGO community, and no AI presence.

Torture is systematic, carried out by members of the various security agencies. There is widespread use of judicial punishments that constitute CID e.g amputations, branding on the forehead, etc.

The strategy will include regional actions geared towards putting pressure on the government to repeal all decrees relating to judicial punishment and to ratify the UN Convention Against Torture - raising awareness by targeting Iraqi expatriate communities, and sending material to government officials and to institutions within Iraq, and by targeting the Arabic media in the region. This will be supported by RAN actions, Action files, and media work both within the region and outside. Research will be carried in neighbouring countries to Iraq, as well as in Europe.

For comments and/or further information please contact [email protected]


Taking the campaign to "closed countries"

A cross-regional meeting in the IS met in December to consider ways in which the campaign can "be taken to" (ie influence the situation, or lead to some form of action by activists) countries which in AI we often describe as "closed". For the purpose of the discussion, we defined "closed countries" as those which are at least medium priority for research and action, where torture or ill-treatment are of concern, and in which at least one of the criteria below apply:
  • there is no (or only a very small) AI presence;
  • access to the country for AI research is difficult;
  • the authorities seriously limit NGO activism.

These criteria cover a very wide variety of situations, and may not be relevant to some countries that are effectively "closed" for the purposes of a campaign. In order not to get bogged down in issues of definitions, the project team suggested that the meeting compare different experiences and help AI define ways forward that are relevant to as many country situations as possible.

The meeting was fruitful. There was some potential for taking the campaign to some of the "closed countries", but some others will remain excluded, either because of their degree of isolation or (in some cases) because torture and ill-treatment are not seen as major concerns there anyway.

There was a wide variety in the level security risk which would be faced by people who would receive AI material. Some teams see little risk if the material is sent to institutions as opposed to individuals (eg, China), while others see a high level of risk even if material is not sent to a named individual (eg, Iraq).

Some countries may count as "closed" even though they may have some active NGOs. The degree of isolation of the countries varies widely, as does the amount of information AI has access to: from virtually complete isolation and little information (North Korea, Myanmar) to sustained international contacts and much information (Turkey, China).

What can be done?

Some ideas were mentioned, although each of these may need further consideration in view of the situation in each country. They are given here for are background only:
  • work with expatriate communities/diasporas of people from the "closed countries"
  • use international and regional radio
  • use Internet/email where possible
  • develop proposals for role of membership/twinning
  • use HRE to get a foot in the door. For example, hold seminars at regional level, invite officials and NGOs (if possible) from closed countries
  • imaginative use of torture free zones/ tape
  • work on ratifications: countries selected should include closed countries
  • use cases from closed countries
  • develop case histories of good practice in the fight against torture (ie, show those countries what has worked elsewhere)

For more information please contact [email protected]


Human Rights Education

The International Human Rights Education Forum bringing together HRE coordinators from more than 30 sections met for the first time in November 1999 in Cincinnati, USA. The Forum discussed and endorsed the approach set out for pilot HRE projects as part of the Torture Campaign. The countries and specific focus of each project is still in the process of being finalised and the IS will inform sections of the outcome in January. All suggestions and comments are welcome and should be directed to Claire Thomas in the HRE team.

For comments and/or further information please contact [email protected]

Goal 1a - MSP

There have been ongoing discussions in the context of finalising the Operational Plan for 2000-2002 about projects which could be developed within the framework of this goal. It is likely that the IS will develop some work on police and military training to complement initiatives by the US and Dutch sections. It may also be possible to develop a project on torture technology but this is currently dependent on a funding application. Further information will be available in early February when the Operational Plan is scheduled to be approved by the IEC. All comments and suggestions are welcome and should be addressed to Michael Crowley.

For comments and/or further information please contact [email protected]

Goal 2 - Gender

The first draft of the discussion paper on policy framework which will inform our strategy under this goal is scheduled to be available at the beginning of January 2000. An IS-wide meeting is being scheduled with the consultant, Dr. Donna Sullivan, a noted international legal expert on gender and women's human rights, who is writing this paper. The meeting will be aimed at informing the IS regional and international programs regarding her findings and recommendations. In turn, Dr. Sullivan would be able to get some feedback from the IS, particularly, the research teams on the viability of the proposed policy framework. The outcome of the meeting will be the basis for finalising the strategy for this specific goal which we are aiming to be available to sections by early March 2000.

Several sections have also started giving us their thoughts regarding this goal. These and our informal consultations with colleagues at the IS have raised some very interesting ideas which we will take into serious consideration in the new year:

1. Explore how cases of torture and ill-treatment of women and the girl-child can be filed with CEDAW to test the new complaint procedure under its new optional protocol.

2. Explore how the outcome of the UN review of governments' commitment to the Beijing Platform for Action, particularly, on violence against women can be followed up in the Torture Campaign.

3. Explore whether AI can convene a meeting between its women activists and women's NGOS to develop a common platform aimed at addressing governments and the international community to accept that rape and sexual violence against women is a form of torture.

4. While a separate goal on women is welcomed, gender issues should be reflected in all other goals (of particular relevance would be its links with impunity; the girl-child in the goal on children; racism; sexual orientation).

Please send us some more of your thoughts and ideas to assist us in developing the strategy and send them to : Edna Aquino ( [email protected] ).

Goal 3 - Children

In order to collect information on the torture of children and to address the possibility of new policy areas around this subject the IS commissioned new research into this area. The first preliminary report will be presented early January 2000. It will include the following: a summary of the definition of torture/CID treatment and the debate over how it relates to the experiences of children; methodologies for dealing with the issue of children and torture; the overall scope of the problem and contexts in which torture/CID treatment is likely to occur; a review of the materials collected thus far on specific cases or institutions, and recommendations on how to use them; suggestions on possible targets/focus for the campaign; proposals for future work; proposals for cooperation with other organisations; and a "feasibility study" on work outside the traditional parameters -- ie, orphanages, mental institutions, schools -- and the issues that need to be addressed in undertaking this kind of work. Questions raised in this report will require further discussion and resolution, and will determine the content of the final report and case studies, due in April.

For comment and/or further information please contact [email protected]

Goal 4 - Racism

Racism: work on the UN World Conference

The UN is planning to convene a World Conference against Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia and Related Intolerance. It is currently expected to take place in June 2001 in South Africa, although both the time and venue may still change. The Conference will follow in the series which began with the World Conference on Human Rights in Vienna and included the World Conference on Women in Beijing. The Secretary-General of the Conference will be UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Mary Robinson, locating the Conference squarely in the human rights domain.

At previous world conferences, particularly in Vienna, Copenhagen and Beijing, the international community promised to give attention to removing racism as an obstacle to human rights. The World Conference Against racism is an important step in fulfilling the promises of previous world conferences, and in allowing the global civil society to bring its concerns to the world's attention.

AI's Involvement

It is clear that Amnesty International must have a visible involvement with the World Conference on Racism. We need to build on the successes of the UDHR 50th anniversary campaign and to follow up on our commitment to make the UDHR a reality.

AI has produced a considerable amount of material on human rights violations in a context of racism and discrimination. We have also devoted our attention to the issue of hate speech, especially reflected in AI's mandate concern on adverse discrimination. Racism, discrimination and religious intolerance are of concern to all regional programmes: Europe with the torture and ill-treatment of asylum seekers and immigrants, and Kosovo; Africa with the genocide in Rwanda, or the massive violations in Sudan; the Americas with death penalty or police ill-treatment of minorities in the USA, massacres of indigenous people in Central and South America; Asia with the killing and torture of members of religious or ethnic minorities in Pakistan, China, Afghanistan, India, Indonesia; And the Middle East with the persecution of many religious minorities.

With regard to refugee concerns AI has documented racism and religious intolerance at the level of discriminatory treatment tantamount to persecution in a number of countries and they are two of the primary causes of mass movements of people both across borders and internally.

The period running up to the World Conference will fall within the Campaign against Torture. The campaign includes a goal on racism, while the growth areas identified by the ICM include identity-based discrimination and refugee work.

Possible objectives
  • to raise awareness of racism as a cause of massive human rights violations and a contributing factor to torture, as well as of the positive obligations of governments to combat racism;
  • to ensure that the Conference Plan of Action is firmly grounded in human rights standards and that there are specific elements addressing and torture/ill-treatment by law enforcement agents;
  • to promote specific measures addressing racism in the police/judicial system at the national/local level to prevent torture;
  • to strengthen multiculturalism within AI and our cooperation with those struggling against racism.


Possible Elements

1) Torture in the context of racism and/or patterns of racist ill-treatment should be highlighted in some of the country reports produced during the campaign. There should also be a paper on racism and torture, possibly with a focus on the police. This joint Torture/World Conference on Racism goal would be the main focus for membership action.

2) We will consider producing specific materials/recommendations on racism and HRE including a document on the positive obligations states have under the various human rights treaties with respect to racism and religious intolerance.

3) We should produce a paper analysing the IGO mechanisms relevant to racism and human rights and how these could be more effective. This could then link in with our lobbying regarding the Action Plan from the World Conference.

4) We would probably want to organise some kind of paper/action on racism, xenophobia and refugee/asylum issues. AI could play a vital role in showing the world that refugees have the same rights in many cases as do citizens.
5) We might have something to say on human rights violations and racism in the conference host country depending on what the host government is saying and what local NGOS are planning.

Possible activities

It is important that AI Sections work together with other NGOS and community groups in the preparations for the conference at the national level. AI can bring a concrete input on issues such as police brutality and racism, adverse discrimination and imprisonment, racism as a root cause of massive human rights violations, international standards on racism, etc. as well as on how racism touches the very core of the universality of human rights.

Working with others will give us an opportunity to develop cooperation with communities and organisations with whom we may not have worked very closely in the past. It will also allow us to further improve our relations with NGOS working on behalf of asylum seekers, many of who AI sections have established relationships with. Furthermore, from an organisational culture perspective, our participation to the World Conference and the preparation will constitute an important opportunity towards developing a more multicultural/diverse membership.

It is also important to make early contact with those responsible at Government level - there seems to be a great deal of uncertainty about preparations and what might be achieved so there could well be governments looking for ideas on substance.

We will need to have a visible presence at the actual conference along the lines of our participation in Beijing. Our activities are likely to include lobbying on the plan of action, media work, participation in a NGO fora, organising fringe meetings and campaigning events. The nature of our participation is likely to vary depending on the venue.

For comments and/or further information please contact [email protected]

Goal 5 - LGBT

Due to illness in the Themes Campaign Team at the IS we have not been able to update this goal at this time. An indication of when this will be possible will sent out to sections in the new year.

For further information, please contact [email protected]

Goal 6 - Impunity - a unifying theme?

The drafting of the campaign Amanifesto@ has given the IS the opportunity to clarify its position on the naming of the names of those alleged to be responsible for torture. The draft text nearing final approval currently reads:
      "AI will continue to demand that individual torturers answer to the courts for their actions. Torturers will be named and AI will campaign for them to be brought to justice - either in their own countries or elsewhere."

Please note that this has not yet been finally approved and is subject to change.

Unifying/overarching theme

The discussion of a unifying/overarching theme has been quite confused. Many sections have expressed the view that they were content that the unifying theme is the campaign against torture. Others have continued to voice concern although it has not always been very clear from the discussions we have had whether those who feel something is missing are concerned about the presentation of the campaign or about the substance of what we are trying to achieve. The discussion has overlapped with frustration about the lack of development of the IGO strategy for the campaign and unclarity about our position on impunity. Unfortunately it has not been possible for the IS Legal and International Organisations Program (LIOP) to further develop this discussion by this time.

The IS theme campaign team has recently had the experience of helping to apply the international strategy at the national level at a one and a half day national campaign strategy in the USA. At that meeting AIUSA decided that its own national version of this campaign would benefit from an overall unifying issue and that for the USA, the issue of impunity would best serve their campaign.

It seems clear that there is a need for further urgent discussion and consultation on this. This will include IS wide consultation and meetings with relevant outside experts during January and February. These discussions will be held in time to inform the content of the launch publication. Sections who wish to make suggestions about this should contact the Themes Team at the IS. We would be particularly interested to know if any other Sections has chosen to highlight one unifying theme for the campaign and if so, which one.

Goal 7 - The Convention Against Torture

There is no further update about this goal at this time.

For further information please contact [email protected]

Publications

The IS is currently preparing a schedule of campaign events and publications - the campaign calendar. There are still issues of timing of publications and events, particularly in November 2000 when Children's Day may conflict with the timing of the ILGA conference, which need to be resolved. At this time we have updates on the three following publications:

The resource pack

The resource pack for the campaign is intended to bring together in one place a wide variety of documents relating to the struggle against torture. It was originally intended to produce this as a printed compilation document. This would have been an enormous document. We have therefore revised our planning for this pack and will make it available to AI Sections and NGOS via the IS's main website by the end of January. In this way people working on the campaign will be able to access relevant parts of this information without having to receive it all. If any Section or NGO does not have access to the Internet, the IS can supply all or parts of the pack on standard format floppy disks.

For more information on this pack please contact Marwan Farah in the IS Themes Campaign team - [email protected]

The campaign "manifesto"

The first draft of this document has just gone for approval and is on schedule for an April release date.




The launch publication

The IS is presently preparing an outline of this report which will be shared with Sections by the end of January. At this time the report is envisaged to include:
  • Statistics on the use of torture worldwide
  • Past and recent trends in the use of torture worldwide
  • Challenges for the future
  • The findings of the Gallup poll - role of public opinion
  • Who are the victims/survivors of torture?
  • In what contexts does torture occur?
  • Illustrations wherever possible by individual cases in their own words

Working with the Media

This media advisory has been provided by the Media and Audio Visual Program at the IS and builds on the 'Media and Publicity Techniques' section in Update 1.

Who are we talking to?

Fortunately in many countries, Amnesty International's name and image is strongly associated with work against torture and the concept of 'torture' itself is widely acknowledged.

Globally, our target audience for the campaign is the general public. Sections however will be able to gauge public attitudes to torture and devise media strategies according to their local environment. We can expect a range of attitudes to torture from acceptance to ambivalence to active opposition. Our aim is to:
inform people that torture is a problem - describe it - make a call to action

Key Messages

The overarching message of the media campaign is make the world a Torture Free Zone (TFZ). The message is a simple and effective way to communicate the campaign to the public through the media. Declaring an area a TFZ is a means to inform the general public that torture is a worldwide problem. It is a publicity stunt to reach the media and get our message out to the public.

It also works with the outreach targets of the campaign. For example;

Make police stations a torture free zone
Make businesses a torture free zone
Make schools a torture free zone
Make prisons a torture free zone

Used frequently in media communications and visually at events (logo and tape), the Torture Free Zone will become publicly recognised as the worldwide campaign to stamp out torture.

Campaign materials will include testimonies from victims of torture and worldwide statistics to strengthen and illustrate our message to the media.

Working with the campaign goals, our messages will be highly targeted for specific audiences. For example an action on private MSP transfers which lead to torture will be supported by a press release aimed at business.

News Service

The News Service will include a dedicated space for the campaign for your comments, initiatives, press releases and questions about the campaign. Email the press office: [email protected]

Closed Countries

As a means of reaching audiences in countries which are considered >closed' (media is government owned and does not publish AI material), the IS will target radio services which broadcast internationally and in different languages.

Global Ambassadors

High profile personality endorsements are an effective way to attract public attention to the campaign. Several >ambassadors' will be approached to communicate the message of the campaign to the broader public. These people will be asked to endorse the campaign by providing us with a quote for use in publicity materials , and/or publicly speaking out against torture at various events.

Upon agreement with relevant sections, artists with global appeal will be approached from the IS. These celebrity ambassadors would be deemed to be international.

What publicity materials will sections have to work with?

The IS will explore possibility of print advertising with Bates.

Manifesto
Launch Publication

Website

Audio-visual:
Internal campaign video (10min)
Video News release (x2 launch and finale)
Documentary style features; the tortured, the torturer
TV and radio spots in core languages (Arabic, French, Spanish and English)

Photo Images of appeal cases and testimonies.

Press kits
  • Press release
  • Briefing: what is torture? (vital stats, CAT, world trends, AI's progress - success stories?)
  • Calendar of key dates (commemorative days, publication launch dates)
  • Manifesto
  • Launch publication
  • Q&As for AI internal use

Campaign Calendar for Media Initiatives

Pro-active media work will revolve around the campaign calendar - >pegs' for the media. This is by no means an exhaustive list and section press officers will find their own culturally relative angles, dates and opportunities. The IS will at a minimum issue a press release to accompany new publications or mark a significant date.

Campaign Launch - October 2000

The international launch needs to be visual, more than talking heads at a press conference. TFZ tape should be used from the start of the campaign for continuity and image building, so finale makes sense. The most newsworthy TFZ sites will be public and central places. The AI candle logo should be used in conjunction with the tape to trigger an early association between AI and the campaign.

To emphasise the global prevalence of torture it is envisaged the international launch will unfold over a 24-hour period and consist of five regional launch events. The events will be organized by the sections with support from the I.S. Press Office. The five launches will be promoted as the international launch.

The possibility of a 24 hour webcast of the five launches is being investigated. The visuals of each launch would be uploaded to the campaign website to tie the launches together.

Suggestions for section level launches

The site should be symbolic. For example; declaring a community centre a TFZ sends a message that the people want to stop torture, a police station is a message from police that they do not commit torture and actively oppose it. Other sites could be parliament houses, prisons, AI offices or schools.

Children's Day - 20 November 2000

Section: school children get media coverage. Primary and high school students could be organized to form human chains (hand in hand) around their school to declare it a TFZ. They could wear stickers advertising their school as a TFZ. Identify high school students who are AI members to be media spokespersons.

International: teenage popular ambassador(s) with global appeal to make a public statement.

International Human Rights Day - 10 December 2000

Section: many sections have established events on this day. Ideally these events would highlight the issue of torture.

International Women's Day - 8 March 2001

International: I.S. will explore the possibility of a feature article on women who have been tortured. Either written by us or pitch the story idea to Marie Claire and ask if they would be interested in our information, survivors and images.

International Labour Day - 1 May 2001

International: Ask international unions to circulate feature articles or ads to their unions for publication in journals.

Section: Sections could approach union publications to publish AI story on torture of workers.

Amnesty's 40th birthday - 28 May 2001

International: The I.S. will talk with documentary production companies about the possibility of a documentary on torture to mark AI's 40 th anniversary.

Will hopefully have material to include in a press release on AI's successes in curbing torture over the last 40 years.

UN Day in Support of Victims of Torture - 26 June 2001

International: Make approach to Kofi Annan for a statement of support for AI's campaign. Include his quotes in a press release.

Sections could ask a survivor of torture to write an article about his/her experience and place in newspapers on the day.

Other ideas for sections (without campaign pegs)

Fashion shows : approach designers or fashion show organisers asking them to dedicate a segment of their show to the campaign. Catwalk models to wear TFZ tape. Good opportunity for publicity in gossip/fashion/women's magazines.

Popular conception that torture belongs to a different era and in medieval castles . European section press officers might like to organise events around this theme and target castles in their own countries. Get permission to wrap a major castle or fly a TFZ flag from a turret.

Theatre company enactments - bringing out the torturers from behind closed doors so the public can see what goes on. Renowned theatre companies play out acts of torture in public places. Methods of torture from the section's region >this is what happens in X country - our neighbour'. Opportunity to sell TFZ strips at these events. Target arts programs on TV and radio, approach arts sections of newspapers. If actors are public personalities, ask them to talk about the issue to the media and arrange interviews.

Religious outreach , approach heads of religious bodies in your country to make a public statement against torture and put it in a press release.

For comments and/or more information on the media work around this campaign please contact [email protected]





Campaign mechanism/logo

Torture Free Zone Tape

The idea for the campaign mechanism - the torture free zone tape - appears to have been accepted by the vast majority of the AI movement. It has also been enthusiastically received by a variety of other NGOS working against torture. There have been some questions about how best to use the tape in countries where there is little or no torture. Consequently, the group who came up with the idea reconvened to discuss this issue. They came up with a list of ideas which is too long to include in this circular. Any Section which would like a copy of the notes arising from this discussion should contact the Themes Campaign Team at the IS.

The next stage is for AI Sections to let us know how much of the tape, in its different formats, they will need. Normal minimum print lengths for this type of tape are in the region of two thousand kilometres. We have found a company which is willing to produce shorter print lengths for AI. However, we must get our print length right the first time as it is very unlikely that we could convince the company to supply us with another Ashort@ (in their terms) reprint.

The tape can come in three formats:

The first is similar to the tape that has been used to demonstrate the idea.. It is 80mm wide, has black and yellow stripes, the AI candle and translations of ATorture Free Zone@ in English, French, Spanish and Arabic. Samples of this tape have been handed out at the Athens campaign international coordinators meeting in October, the Latin Americas press officers meeting in November , the November International HRE meeting in Cincinnati, USA, and the international Directors meeting in London in November. The main difference in this version of the tape will be that the wording will be agreed with EDAI, EFAI and ARABAI and that the weight of the tape is a little lighter as it will be printed on recycled plastic. Any Section which has not seen this tape should contact the IS and we will send you a sample.

The second format is the same as the first, except that it is single sided with an adhesive backing. It is intended to have lengths cut off it to supply people with campaign stickers of whatever length they want.

The third format is printed on one side only, 1 metre wide and is intended for high profile publicity events.

Please note that it is comparatively cheap to produce several hundred kilometres of the tape and that the IS intends to supply as much tape as non assessment paying sections want, free of charge. Depending on the final amount of tape ordered by Sections, assessment paying Sections may be asked to pay a nominal amount towards the production of the tape.

Appendix 1 of this circular contains a Torture Free Zone tape order form. Sections are asked to consider their requirements and return this form no later than Tuesday 29 February 2000.

Logo

Appendix 2 contains a black and white example of the English language campaign logo. (The colour version has yellow stripes on the tape.) As explained in Athens, the IS has the capacity (with the kind help of our advertising Agency, Bates UK) to supply either electronic or bromide versions of the logo with whatever text Sections may want. Consequently, the order form for the TFZ tape also includes a section on what text Sections would like on their logo.

The text you supply us with should not be a literal translation of ATake a step to@ and AStamp out torture@. The idea is that the text you supply us with for the tape should broadly mean AYou can do something to@ and the text under the candle should broadly mean Astop torture@. The exact translation we leave to you. Please note that the IS will deal directly with EDAI, EFAI and ARABAI on the core language versions of the logo. If your section uses a core language and you want to have input into this discussion - please contact your Language unit directly.

Gallup International Opinion Poll

The IS was able to negotiate the inclusion of a number of questions about human rights in general and torture in particular into an international opinion poll commissioned by Gallup International. The poll was conducted last September in 55 countries. The IS has the results and will be analysing them with the help of Gallup International in the new year. This analysis will be used in the launch publication. We hope to send Sections the results from their own country by the end of January.

Appendix 1
Order form for TFZ tape and text for logo
To be returned to Marwan Farah Theme Campaign Team, IS no later than 29 February 2000
([email protected])


Name of Section........................ Contact person name....................................

TAPE ORDERS

Please supply the following lengths of tfz tape:

80 mm double sided tape...........................................................................................................

This tape is 80mm wide, has black and yellow stripes, the AI candle and translations of ATorture Free Zone@ in English, French, Spanish and Arabic. Samples of this tape have been handed out at the Athens campaign international coordinators meeting in October, the Latin Americas press officers meeting in November , the November International HRE meeting in Cincinnati, USA, and the international Directors meeting in London in November. The main difference in this version of the tape will be that the wording will be agreed with EDAI, EFAI and ARABAI and that the weight of the tape is a little lighter as it will be printed on recycled plastic. Any Section which has not had sight of this tape should contact the IS and we will send you a sample.

80 mm adhesive backed tape.....................................................................................................

This second format is the same as the first, except that it is single sided with an adhesive backing. It is intended to have lengths cut off it to supply people with campaign stickers of whatever length they want.

1,000 mm single sided tape.......................................................................................................

This third format is printed on one side only, 1 metre wide and is intended for high profile publicity events.

LOGO

The name of the language you are supplying..........................................................................


The text on the tape should read...............................................................................................


The text beneath the candle should read...................................................................................


A literal translation into English would be................................................................................


A broad translation into English would be................................................................................


Appendix 2




Source: Amnesty International, International Secretariat,
1 Easton Street, WC1X 8DJ, London, United Kingdom