AIHR's Presentation

The Arab Institute for Human Rights is an independent Arab non-governmental

organization based in Tunisia. It was founded in 1989 at the initiative of the Arab Organization for Human Rights, the Arab Lawyers Union, and the Tunisian League for Human Rights and with the support of the United Nations Centre for Human Rights. The Institute received the UNESCO International Award for Human Rights Education for the year 1992.

Goals :

The Arab Institute for Human Rights aims to promote a culture of civil, political, economic, social and cultural human rights, as enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and international conventions, and to strengthen the values of democracy and citizenship.

The Institute works on:

* Developing activities of human rights training and education

* Developing scientific research and training tools in the field of human rights

* Developing the role of media in promoting human rights culture

* Strengthening the capacity of civil society organizations in the Arab countries

* Providing expertise in the field of human rights for governmental institutions

* Facilitating the exchange of information on human rights.

* Promoting the culture of women's and children's rights.

 International Relations:

• A non-governmental organization with the status of NGO having executive relations with the UNESCO since 2005

• A non-governmental organization associated with the UN Information Department since 2002

• A special consultative status with the UN Economic and Social Council since 1997

• An observer status with the African Commission on Human and Peoples Rights since 1997

• An observer status with the Arab Human Rights Standing Committee since 1992

Target groups:

* Non-governmental organizations and civil society organizations

* Actors in the field of education (including Ministries of Education, teachers and lectureship, students and curriculum developers ...).

* The Executive, Judiciary and Legislative

* Special groups such as women, children, refugees and persons with specific needs

* Media professionals

* Poor and marginalized groups

  Structures :

• Board of Directors

It consists of the President of the Institute and representatives from the three founding organizations, and one representative from the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), UNESCO, UNICEF, and United Nations Development Program (UNDP). The Board, which shall meet on a regular basis, designs policies for the Institute and develops its strategies and programs. The Executive Board, which includes the President and two deputies, follows decisions of the Board of Directors between its meeting sessions.

• Scientific Committee

It is an advisory body composed of a group of Arab trainers, educators and researchers specialized in the field of human rights. This committee provides scientific advice to implement the Institute's projects.

• Branches of the Arab Institute for Human Rights

The Arab Institute for Human Rights has three sub-regional offices in:

1- Beruit-Lebanon

2- Cairo- Egypt

3- Casablanca- Morocco

And two offices in Tunisia:

1- Mednine,South of Tunisia

2- Bizerte, North of Tunisia

New orientation of the Arab Institute for Human Rights:

The AIHR drafted a new strategic plan for the years (2012-2015) based on the vision that human rights and its culture should be in the heart of the changes that the Arab societies are living and a fundamental tool for the rising of societies that preserve the rights and freedoms.

This strategy considers that enhancing human rights is a joint responsibility during this phase, that work on the official institutions, elected institutions and the civil society organizations.

1 . S trengthening the sustainability of Arab Civil Society Organizations and new actors in the following areas:

•Institutional: The organizations' leadership and governance, financial management, membership development, community building and needs assessment, strategic planning, etc.

•Thematic: Building capacities in issues of human rights and democratic transition processes (human rights, women's rights and gender equality, citizenship, freedom of opinion and expression, social development, political participation, election monitoring, political and civil awareness, sustainable environment and development, good governance, transitional justice issues, etc.).

•Methodologies: Adoption of a human rights-based approach through the analysis, planning, needs assessment and selection of solutions according to the principles of participation, networking and coalition building, public education, adopting of a gender approach, advocacy techniques, negotiation and monitoring, policy development, sustainability, evaluation and impact measurement.

•Means:

- Specialized training and the training of trainers (TOT) (direct attendance and e-learning).

- Open fora for various categories.

- Publication of training and educational guides.

2 . I nstitutional reform and strengthening the capacity to participate and influence the development of policies and laws

• Drafting or amending constitutions in compliance with human rights standards (constitutionalization of human rights and placing them in the heart of the democratic transition process)

• Judicial reform

• Security reform

• Media reform

• Administration reform

• Education reform

• Transitional justice issues

• Issues of good governance, transparency and accountability

• Model of development and economic, social and cultural policies

Means:

- Create a resource center for documentation, information and experiences on the democratic transition.

- Exchange of experiences and expertise at the regional and international levels (visits, experiences, etc.).

- Organize workshops and seminars.

- Prepare research and analytical papers and policy briefs.

- Forming groups of experts on specialized issues.

3 . T he culture of human rights and the margins: Reducing the gaps of rights and reducing the margins:

• The AIHR aims at reinforcing the role of human rights to face the marginalization with its political, cultural, economic, geographical, and social dimensions.

• This program targets the poor, vulnerable and excluded groups, taking into account women and children, refugees, people living with disabilities, prisoners, residents of rural and disadvantaged areas, minority groups, etc ..., as these groups are characterized by a limited capacity to claim their rights and to access and control over resources.

Means of empowering marginalized groups to access their human rights:

• Building knowledge on issues of marginalization (the production of knowledge about the mechanisms of exclusion and marginalization and the means to fight them, building models and documentation of good practices, developing educational tools to empower these categories in analyzing and claiming rights).

• Strengthening the capacity of actors and stakeholders to address the problem of marginalization (the development of methodologies for the training of communities and local leaders on issues of marginalization - building national and regional expertise in the education of marginalized groups).

• Developing a culture of human rights in the promotion of social responsibility towards the issues of marginalization (establishing processes to influence social policy and legislation - enhancing the adoption of social responsibility of the private sector - building spaces to link between the actors in the areas of development, solidarity and human rights).