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AdvocacyNet
Fellow Update
June 25, 2008
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Thirty-four Peace Fellows are volunteering this summer in 21 countries or territories with community-based partners of The Advocacy Project (AP). AP issues a weekly digest of their blogs.

 

Highlights:

Court in Belgrade: Not Quite the O.J. Simpson Trial
Soldier's Murder Spurs Manhunt in Trinidad
Early Marriage or Occupation in Palestine - Which is Worse?
Fujimori Trial Heats Up in Peru
A Fake Arm and Real Respect in Jordan
Students Share Eyes with Classmates in Bangladesh
Record Turnout for Dalit TV Premiere in Nepal
Experiencing Dichotomy in El Salvador
No Safe Haven for Pygmies in Uganda
A Snapshot of an American's Guilt in Nepal

 

Excerpts:

 

Court in Belgrade: Not Quite the O.J. Simpson Trial
Janet Rabin (Georgetown University) is working with the Women in Black Network from Serbia (WiB) in Belgrade.
"The thing that shocked me the most was when Radoslav Mitrovic, the man accused of being responsible for the deaths of 48 people, walked right out into the courtroom (after being let out of the barred area by a guard) and began to converse with the witness and the judges, disputing several points that had been made. He was wearing no handcuffs, no prison clothes. Am I suffering selective amnesia? Is that normal? Maybe I should watch some old footage of the O.J. Simpson trial and see how he was allowed to comport himself in the courtroom..."

 

Soldier's Murder Spurs Manhunt in Trinidad
Jennifer Scott (University of Glasgow) is working for women's rights with The Women's Institute for Alternative Development in Trinidad.
"For me, news of the army's operation in Richplain shows signs of behavior commonplace in a military state and an erosion of the rule of law. It is disheartening that weak investigations follow most of Trinidad's homicides yet a soldier's murder, in civilian circumstances, invokes such a high-scale man hunt."

 

Early Marriage or Occupation in Palestine - Which is Worse?
Hannah Wright (Bristol University) is working with the Women's Affairs Technical Committee (WATC) in Ramallah, Palestine.
"The women in this focus group identified early marriage as the greatest obstacle to achieving their dreams... While the women's concerns had focused largely on their status within the family and lack of access to education, the greatest concern for most of the men who attended was the political situation, and they felt the greatest obstacle to achieving their goals was the occupation."

 

Fujimori Trial Heats Up in Peru
Ash Kosiewicz (Georgetown University) is working with the Peruvian Forensic Anthropology Team (EPAF) in Lima, Peru.
"Almost eight years later, Fujimori stands trial. He faces charges of corruption and human rights violations, including alleged command responsibility for the actions of the Colina death squad. Colina, formed during Fujimori's era to eliminate the Shining Path, is responsible for two massacres... . Fujimori claims to have known nothing about Colina, an independent group with connections to the Peruvian military. Former members of the military and Colina say otherwise. On Wednesday, Montesinos will give his much-awaited testimony before the Fujimori tribunal. Previous witnesses have claimed Montesinos informed Fujimori about Colina's actions."

 

A Fake Arm and Real Respect in Jordan
Krystal Sirman (George Washington University) is working with Survivor Corps in Amman, Jordan.
"R [the LSN receptionist] is a beautiful, funny, and cheerful young woman, who every day straps on a passive prosthetic arm, which has no movement or functional capacity. What struck me the most while watching R performing her lines was that even this woman, who is surrounded by caring and supportive family, friends, and coworkers and embodies strength and courage daily, is still so easily vulnerable to the pain and heartache that accompany such an injury... That, to me, is what LSN is all about; encouragement, friendship, dependability, and respect. And I like that."

 

Students Share Eyes with Classmates in Bangladesh
Danita Topcagic (University of Denver) is working  with the Blind Education and Rehabilitation Development Organization (BERDO) in Dhaka, Bangladesh.
"The center where I am staying is running a school for blind, The School of Happy World, which is two years old and only has seven students... Some of the students in the group are visually impaired so they share with others what they see. The system this group of students has developed is astonishing. They help each other move around by holding hands and informing each other of obstacles on the road such as steps or mud puddles. They help one another to the bathroom and the ones who can see explain quite enthusiastically and descriptively everything around them."

 

Record Turnout for Dalit TV Premiere in Nepal
Heather Gilberds (Carleton University) is advocating for Dalit rights with the Jagaran Media Center (JMC) in Bhutwal, Nepal.
"The staff at Jagaran Media Center had hoped 600 people would attend, but more than 1,200 people filled the seats of the auditorium at the premiere of Dalan, a 25-part fictional television series that depicts the trials faced by three generations of a Dalit family. The audience was comprised of young and old, Dalits and non-Dalits, journalists, political figures, and members of the international community. The large turnout is an indication that groups lobbying for Dalit rights are getting their voices heard. However, the struggle is far from over."

 

Experiencing Dichotomy in El Salvador
Larissa Hotra (George Washington University) is working with conflict survivors with Survivor Corps in El Salvador.
"I'm here, now, and in the moment. More than ever, El Salvador, El Sal, Salvador, The Saviour is starting to sink in. Subtle Sal. I'm not sure what it is about this place, but it's got some sort of magic to it. Well, rather, I do know what it is. It's the distracting dichotomy of this country. Simultaneously stressful and subtle."

 

No Safe Haven for Pygmies in Uganda
Juliet Hutchings (American University) is working to raise awareness of the plight of pygmies with the World Peasants and Indigenous Organization in Central Africa.
"But, instead, these peasants who were outcast in their homelands are finding that the discrimination and real danger they felt at home is not that far from them even in the safety of Kampala. Ignorance about indigenous people is rampant, with folks easily accepting that pygmies are a curse and indigenous people are no more worthy of a good job than a dog on the side of the road. The paradigm must shift here in Africa if everyone is to be free to earn enough, live well enough, and say what they want to the world and their governments."

 

A Snapshot of an American's Guilt in Nepal
Raka Banerjee (UC San Diego) is advocating for human rights and good governance with Nepal Social Development and People's Empowerment Center (NESPEC) in Gaighat, Nepal.
"I think that the poverty is the primary cause of the sense of guilt, you feel so aware of your own comparative wealth that it further increases your sense of being an outsider, and makes you feel guilty for the presumption of even traveling to such places. Certainly photography results in a similar discomfort, the simple act of taking a photograph becomes imbued with the same tensions, of wealth, of foreignness, of placing yourself outside of the scene which you capture. It's enough to prevent me from taking a single picture, and it has, in the past. Now that it's part of my job, I can't escape it, and perhaps it grants me a bit more of a feeling of legitimacy in putting that extra distance between myself and my surroundings."