Phase 3 - Ethiopia

For the third phase, the ACT Project has been implemented in 12 of the countries already selected under previous phases. 17 countries participated in it for the first time, among which Afghanistan, Burkina Faso, Comoros, Ethiopia, Samoa and Uzbekistan.

Human Rights Awareness Raising on selected topics

Ethiopian Muslim Relief and Development Association organized a human rights sensitization workshop in the Hetosa Woreda, Ethiopia. Issues addressed during the workshop included: women’s rights, harmful traditional practices and ways to promote attitudinal changes within the local community. Beneficiaries of the workshop were individuals from public and traditional institutions. At the conclusion of the workshop, participants acquired basic knowledge and skills on democracy, good governance, human rights and gender issues. The workshop also enhanced participants’ awareness of democracy and Ethiopian constitution and the consequences of harmful traditional practice affecting the marginalized groups. It also changed participants’ attitude about women’s contribution to the social and economic development. The workshop has also caused the local government bodies to give due attention for such thematic issues in future undertakings.

Children’s Rights

Birhan Integrated Community Development Organization in Ethiopia produced a four-fold brochure on “How to Avoid Corporal/Physical Punishment on Children at Schools and ” and distributed more than 2,000 copies of it to children in Addis Abbeba schools on the occasion of interactive information sessions on children’s rights. In addition, two workshops on the prevention of abuses on children and promotion of children’s rights were organized for more than 120 participants (teachers, teenager’s leaders of established children’s rights clubs). Furthermore, a training workshop was conducted on child rights advocacy for 50 members of child rights clubs from the Woreda 1 quarter; the programme focused on communication through dramas and puppet shows. At the end of the programme, participants were able to produce a drama and to create puppets so as to promote children rights in their schools. At last, the grant recipient organized a questions and answers competition on the rights of the child in which more than 500 students and scholars took part. On the occasion of the African Child Day on 16 June 2002, the recipient distributed 250 t-shirts and 500 caps promoting the rights of the child. The recipient also set up child rights clubs with promotional and teaching materials on human rights. It was reported that approximately 12,000 school children and community members were directly or indirectly reached by these activities.

Human rights in the Administration of Justice

The Centre for Advancement of Peace of Democracy in Ethiopia (CAPDE) conducted a need assessment study regarding training for police officers in the Gambella region. Based on the results of the study, which reflected the absence of human rights awareness raising sessions for the police, CAPDE designed and piloted a training programme for 47 investigation officers and district heads of the regional police (among which 3 women), and drafted a training manual for members of the police. After the programme’s implementation, the trainees engaged to widespread the message among their colleagues, and to report to the NGO on improvements noticed.