Events of the 26th of June for the International Day in Support of Victims

We have to to be mobilized for this day topursue together the fight against impunity and strongly reaffirm that respectfor human dignity means that such practices are forbidden under allcircumstances.

On this day dedicated to the victims oftorture and ill-treatment, OMCT and its SOS-Torture Networkorganize events all around the world to promotetheir support for victims of torture.

Nothing can justify torture under anycircumstances! With the OMCT, sign the Manifesto

OMCT

International Secretariat

June20, Brussels: OMCT Secretary General, Gerald Staberock, briefed the EU Parliament Sub-Committee on Human Rightsabout lessons learnt in the fight against torture in North Africa and theSouthern Neighborhood. The hearing was part of the annual hearing on theoccasion of June 26, the UN Day for Victims of Torture. OMCT Secretary General highlightedkey challenges in fighting torture in the region two years after the ArabSpring. He laid out the need to make the fight against torture a centralelement in any transition process, stressed the need to strengthen local civilsociety against torture, inject law reforms for the prevention of torture andto tackle the lack of accountability and reform within the security structuresin the region. He also reminded about the challenge to anchor universal humanrights norms clearly in the new constitutional and legal frameworks. Thepresentation was also based on the work the OMCT is conducting since two yearswith offices in Tunis and Tripoli supporting anti-torture reforms in the twocountries.

For a webstream of the hearing:

http://www.europarl.europa.eu/ep-live/en/committees/video?event=20130620-0900-COMMITTEE-DROI

June 25, 7 pm, Vienna (University of Vienna):

On the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the ViennaWorld Conference on Human Rights, a HumanRights Talk entitled « Key Challenges to the Absolute Prohibition of Torture: ways towards Enforcement andImplementation »will be organised.The podium discussion will be held by:

- Edita Lintl (Member of HEMAYAT, Center forVictims of War and Torture, Vienna)

- Manfred Nowak (Universityof Vienna, Research Director of the Ludwig Boltzmann Institute of Human Rights,former UN Special Rapporteur on Torture)

- Gerald Staberock (Secretary-Generalof the World Organisation Against Torture – OMCT)

- Henri Tiphagne (President of the AsianForum for Human Rights and Development, Director of the 
Human RightsOrganisation People’s Watch - India) 


For a webstream of the entire event:

Libya

June 25

10 am – 1 pm: Round-table– “No to torture inside jails”: proposed by the Victims Organization forHuman Rights, with the cooperation of the OMCT, this round-table will discussimportant issues such as the position of Islam towards the phenomenon oftorture, the role of media in the fight against torture, and the situation inLibya before and after the February 17th Revolution.

4 pm: in cooperation withthe Tripoli Human Rights Film Festival, the OMCTorganised a film screenings : “TheForgotten” (Carles Caparrós, 2010, Spain). Synopsis: In the Western world,mental illnesses are considered diseases; in a number of African countries,psychological problems are often seen as a sign of being possessed by thedevil. Marked individuals are bound in chains and excluded from mainstreamsociety. The protagonist of this film is the charismatic Gregoire, who runs anetwork of centres that care for the mentally ill and homeless in the IvoryCoast and Burkina Faso. In an environment where medical care is only availableto those who can pay, his centres are the only hope for these people. “The Forgotten” is about the importanceof human dignity amid poverty and ruin.

5.30 pm – 7 pm: Concert – Songs celebrating the February 17thRevolution and the city of Benghazi. In presence of Malik L, DJ Ezooo, MohammedBusaifi and Volcano & Black Tiger

8 pm: film screening “Burma VJ”(Anders Østergaard, 2009, Denmark). Synopsis: “BurmaVJ” reveals the incredible bravery of Burmese video journalists during theuprising of September 2007 against the military junta ruling the country. Goingbeyond the occasional news clip from Burma, “Burma VJ” brings us close toBurma’s video journalists who insist on keeping up the flow of news from theirclosed country despite risking torture and life in jail. Armed with smallhandycams they make their undercover reportages, smuggle the material out ofthe country, have it broadcast back into Burma via satellite and offered asfree usage for international media.

June 26

9 am – 6.30 pm: PublicConference – “Drawing force from the past to master our future” – incooperation with the National Council for Civil Liberties and Human Rights inBenghazi. This conference aims to expose the past, present, and future of thefight against torture in Libya, focusing on issues of collective trauma andtransitional justice. The first session will recall abuses of the Qaddafiregime before the February 17th Revolution and strategies employedto protect victims. Then, Libyan civil society stakeholders from across thecountry will share their views on the current situation and practices oftorture, ill-treatment, arbitrary detention, and enforced disappearance.Finally, the president of the Tunisian Organization Against Torture willpresent international and regional standards against torture and discuss therights of detainees, and will ask what Libya and Libyans can do in the futureto construct safe communities guided by the rule of law.

1 pm: Inauguration of ‘Graffitiagainst torture’ – a mural made by Benghazi and Tunisian artists, incooperation with the Cultural Council of the Union for the Mediterranean .This mural is the result of a creative workshop with Benghazi youth

and the participation of three Tunisianartists – Willis from Tunis and two graffiti artists from the Zwewla group – as well as twograffiti artists from Benghazi, Hamzawi and Nadeer.

7 pm – 9 pm: Poetry night

During all events, check out live coverage by bloggersof “Libyablog”: follow #SOSTorture and http://libyablog.org – in cooperation with RFI – Atelier des Médias

Tunisia

La Tunisie commémorait la journée internationale pour le soutien aux victimes de la torture

June 26, all day, avenueBourguiba: OMCT, together with 20 otherorganisations will be mounting a tent on Avenue Bourguiba. Video clips will bediffuse and materials distributed (brochures, stickers, badge buttons)

June26, Maison de la culture Ibn Rachiq: closure of the photoexhibition “Sous le Jasmin”:

- 10 am: press conference, Maison dela culture Ibn Rachiq. Press contact: Emtyez Bellali: +216 24 34 21 50, eb@omct.org

- 5 - 6 pm: theatre play “Paroled’Hugo” from the book Le dernier jourd’un condamné (V. Hugo)

- 6 - 7 pm: homage to all personsportrayed in the photo exhibition

June 27, 5 pm, Maison de la culture Ibn Khouldoun: OMCT together with Dignity, OTRPS, REMDH andLTDH will sponsor a theatre play entitled “Syloun”,

which isabout solitary confinement, the life of detainees in there and ill-treatmentto which they were subjected.

The Philippines

The United Against Torture Coalition(UATC)-Philippines, including Philippine Alliance of Human Rights Advocates (PAHRA), MedicalAction Group (MAG), Task Force Detainees of the Philippines (TFDP), three members of the SOS-Torture Network, organises two events in the framework of theInternational Day in Support of Victims of Torture:

- June 19, 9 am – 17pm, Manila: a workshop entitled “Civil Society Organizations’ Learning on theRecommendations for Effective Implementation of the Anti-Torture Law” wasconducted. Theobjective of the workshop was to contribute in generating solutions forstrengthening implementation of the law in terms of documentation,investigation and prosecution of alleged cases of torture, increased number ofvictims will receive effective medical and psychological services and legalsupport, and in breaking torture impunity in the country.

- June 26, Manila: the UATC organises, for theseventh consecutive year, the run “Basta! Run Against Torture” (BRAT). Thisyear theme is “Make Philippines a Torture free zone”. This year’s BRAT willfocus on Torture Free Detention Centres – an important step to ensure theeffective implementation of the law. Aside from demanding accountability ofjail officers and overseers of detention centres in ensuring that torture andill-treatment is not practiced through formal compliance procedures and educationof officers and detainees, the UATC is also proposing more pro-activepositioning in monitoring by all concerned parties with emphasis in thecommunity’s participation.

June 26, 9 am, Manila: KARAPATAN organises aForum on International Day in Support of victims of Torture.Victims of torture and arepresentative from a victim’s family will testify.

Colombia

June 26, 5.30 pm – 8.00 pm, Bogota(Biblioteca Nacional): OMCT and la Coalición Colombiana contra la tortura willorganise a panel discussion on the situation of torture in Colombia. It will befollow by a short play represented by “Teatro la Candelaria”. Presscontact : Betty Monzon, prensa@reiniciar.org

These events are realized with the financial aid of the EuropeanUnion, the Foundation Oak, theSwiss Confederation and Sigrid Rausing Trust. The contentof these events lies in the responsibility of the OMCT only and cannot beconsidered as reflecting the position of the European Union, the FoundationOak, the Swiss Confederation or Sigrid Rausing Trust.

[1]http://www.omct.org/international-campaigns/campaign-prohibition-torture/#campaign_signing_form