A human security approach to preventing Torture and Organized Violence

Contact person: Finn Kjærulf

Country: Guatemala

Partner: The Human Rights Office of the Archbishop of Guatemala ( ODHAG) is addressing human rights violations in Guatemala and working to put focus on and heal the scars caused by the internal armed conflict. ODHAG helps the process of reconciliation, prevents present day torture and organized violence (TOV), and works for victims' redress.

Context: Guatemala, a country with a population of 14 million people, of which half are living in poverty, is severely affected by 36 years of internal conflict. The conflict formally ended with peace accords in December 1996. According to The Economist between 250 and 350 tonnes of cocaine - or almost the whole amount heading for USA - now passes through Guatemala. The competition to get a part of the profit - with a wholesale kilo price starting at USD12.500 - is leaving a very bloody trail through Central America.  The levels of violence in the country have increased continuously since 1997 and are at present at one of the highest levels in the world. The homicide rate is 48 per 100.000 - five times the global average - and the responsible persons are rarely prosecuted. Only 2% of homicides are brought to justice in Guatemala. There has been a recent important advance regarding torture prevention: In 2010 the law about establishment of a national mechanism for the prevention of torture and ill treatment was passed.

Project: The RCT and the ODHAG have in collaboration been implementing healing, empowerment and development strategies in communities in Guatemala since 1999, and started the 4th phase of the cooperation in 2011. The new project runs till 2014 and focuses on actions and processes which provide a response to the escalating violence challenges in the country. The project responds to the challenges through research, documentation and different prevention approaches. The project works towards addressing and facilitating intersectorial cooperation; generation of good practices; institutionalization of knowledge and implementation of exit strategies aimed to create sustainability of the project processes.

The objectives of the RCT and the ODHAG partnership:

• To contribute to reduce violence and reinforce security by promoting development that decrease social and economic inequalities at the community level and that push for changes of institutional practices and public policies. This will be achieved through actions, advocacy processes and research.
• To generate evidence based knowledge about mechanisms of violence, within a human security approach.
• To work towards institutionalization of knowledge about prevention of TOV in public and social organizations.
• To enforce Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, victim assistance and TOV prevention.

References:

Psycho-social Support to Large Numbers of Traumatized People in Post-conflict Societies: An Approach to Community Development in Guatemala. Journal of Community & Applied Social Psychology, 15: 136-152 (2005). (Article co-written by RCT and ODHAG)