Human rights challenges during conflict are scrutinised

Working for human rights in conflict-ridden countries or regions can be a daunting task. The Middle East and North Africa is, perhaps, the region where human rights defenders most often face these challenges. How does one monitor human rights violations, how does one eliminate false evidence and how does one make sure that violations are recorded but not recorded twice?

These were just some of the issues tackled as the Danish Institute for Human Rights conducted a ten-day course in the Jordanian capital Amman. Present were both the institute’s partners from across the region as well as human rights defenders from Syria and other countries. Altogether, 23 participants from Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Libya, Syria, Tunisia and Yemen took part in the course.

“It may seem an impossible task to work with human rights during a conflict as gruesome as what we are witnessing in Syria right now. But that only makes it ever so more important to do so. We need to be able to talk about what has happened, bring perpetrators to justice and spur a fact-based reconciliation. For that to be possible, we need to keep on working with human rights,” Niklas Kabel Pedersen, manager of the Danish Institute for Human Rights’ Middle East and North Africa Programme explains.

The Syrian human rights activist, Maarouf Touameh, who has fled to Jordan, took part in the course. He monitors human rights violations committed by all parts in the conflict in his homeland.

“People tell me it is not worth it to document the atrocities during the war. But I believe, it is essential for future generations to know what happened,” he says.

Cooperating with authorities

The course was not only focused on the challenges individual human rights defenders face, but also what can be learned for governmental authorities – many of them are partners of the Danish Institute for Human Rights.

“We pair activists with authorities for them to work with challenges they both face during conflict. Enabling to seek common solutions and developing tools useful to both is a highly fruitful.

Participant Nadia Jaouda from Libya agrees:

“We can all learn from each other’s experiences. Civil society can learn from governments and vice versa. Even though we have different backgrounds and mandates, we all have an important part to play in the protection of human rights,” she says.

For the Danish Institute for Human Rights point of view, there is no doubt that the course has been a success. Not only have the different partners learnt from each other, but the course has also been a unique opportunity to meet all of the institute’s partners.

“In that way we make sure that our activities reflect the actual needs on the ground – making the biggest impact possible,” says Niklas Kabel Pedersen.

The workshop and the Danish Institute for Human Rights’ work in the MENA region is supported by the Danish Arab Partnership Programme.