Youth Empowerment for Human Rights Observance, Monitoring and Reporting (YEHROM) Project – 1st December 2011 to 31st March 2014.

Supported by the Independent Development Fund (IDF)

The goal of the project was: Improved observance, monitoring and reporting of human rights violations in Wakiso District.

The interventions of the project aimed at contributing to the improvement in the promotion and protection of human rights by strengthening the capacity of the different stakeholders to observe, monitor and report human rights violations.

The project was set out to address the overwhelming post electoral human rights concerns that included arbitrary arrests; restriction of freedom of expression and opinion; violent suppression of lawful assemblies organised by opposition candidates which end up in killing of innocent children by ‘stray bullets’ and subjecting opposition political party supporters to inhumane and degrading treatment; mob justice which is quite often witnessed with property destruction and infringement on the right to life and security of a person; malpractices and rigging of votes which had been witnessed during elections in Uganda – a thing that violates the right of citizens to elect their leaders through free and fair elections;  among others. A case of Mob justice was witnessed at Busambaga village when a youth killed his father and the community killed the youth in turn. Other cases of human rights violations mentioned above had been witnessed during the subsequent by-elections and during the political violence which revolved around the primacy of state institutions, allegations of fraud and malpractices, and the arguments about legitimacy that addresses the transparency and fairness of the electoral process and votes recounting.

The major cause of the continued human rights violations mentioned above was among the submissions of the Uganda Human Rights Commission during the Universal Periodic Review of Human Rights in Uganda (July 2011) that although there were various human rights protection mechanisms (i.e courts at village, parish, sub-county, district and national levels, Ombudsman, civil society and other national human rights institutions), these mechanisms had not sufficiently been utilized in honour of the due process of the law; and where there is  keen interest by different stakeholders to seek for redress of violations meted out to the grass-root people, some of the human rights protection mechanisms at the grassroots had limited capacity to adequately protect and enforce human rights.

The specific project objectives were:

1. To raise the level of awareness of the youths and other community members in Wakiso District in human rights observance, monitoring and reporting through a comprehensive and effective sensitization programme on human rights; and
2. To strengthen the capacity and enhance the participation of the youths in the communities of Wakiso District in the observance, monitoring and reporting of human rights violations.

As such:

1. 164 peer educators were trained which was 103% of the target, an over score according to the plan.  Other than simply being trained to reach out to their peers with valuable information on human rights, the peer educators’ capacity was strengthened to preach about human rights and to actively perform the role of watch-dogs for the respect of human rights in their respective communities. Indeed, due to their vibrant activities, peer educators were co-opted by their regional police as crime preventers. Consequently, majority of the peer educators received certificates as crime preventers, a thing that did not only build their capacities but also grew their social and career profiles.

2. Trained youth social groups:

The project’s approach and methodology of empowering youth social groups in human rights observance, monitoring and reporting contributed to consolidating capacity of these groups to better understand how to implement Human Rights Based Approach (HRBA). Working with youth groups was an indiscriminately good method that brought on board youth of different social, economic, academic, religious, cultural backgrounds, enabling grass root human rights propagation.      Unique to note is the ease with which some members of such groups, minding their low literacy levels grasped the basics of human rights. They could easily illustrate them in an easy-to-understand manner during village dialogues, techniques that peer educators assimilated into their routine, who sometimes appeared academic at such forums.

HUYSLINCI officially oriented 80 leaders of youth groups in basics of human rights.3. Made Follow-ups and conducted periodic project review meetings:

The engagement of a broad range of human rights stakeholders during follow-ups and review meetings, including peer educators, youth social groups and opinion leaders, law enforcement officers, leaders/authorities and the technocrats built collaborative efforts and contacts for effective monitoring and reporting on human rights concerns within the project operational area. In addition, this methodology provided an opportunity for the stakeholders (rights-holders) to know their rights and government (duty-bearers) to be aware that the rights holders know their rights and can claim them, thus, the cause for respect and promotion of human rights. The collaboration has mainly been seen through the increased (number of) cases referred to police by peer educators, increased cases jointly handled by local leaders and peer educators, number of human rights sensitization meetings jointly held by peer educators, local leaders and police, number of alerts made by one category of human rights advocates to another informing them of the forthcoming human rights event e.g. seminars, meetings, etc. The above achievements were benchmarked after the training and orientation of peer educators and other human rights advocates, comparing their performance before the training and its improvement thereafter.

Through monitoring, follow up visits and project review forums, the HUYSLINCI project team gradually reinforced the knowledge of their human rights advocates and stakeholders through responding to matters that posed challenges to them, exposing them to additional human rights information  and brainstorming on cheaper means through which human rights can be propagated, mainstreamed and issues handled expeditiously.4. Offered Legal aid clinics:

Organizing Legal aid clinics was one of the project strategies to assist victims of human rights abuse to seek redress from the existing mechanisms. Accordingly, during the legal aid clinics, rights-holders were guided on legal procedures and relevant mechanisms to seek redress of the specific cases articulated during such activities.  However, according to the project evaluation report, carrying out legal aid clinics was not a sustainable intervention. It was recommended that just like the commendable work done by peer educators in awareness raising and reporting on human rights violations/abuses in their respective communities, the project strategy should have considered training paralegals to sustain provision of the legal support/guidance services to victims of abuse.

These legal aid clinics were essential to ensure and promote legal procedures for human rights abuses and to encourage more effective reporting of cases of violence and abuse in the community. However, one of the most common challenges was the failure to follow up the cases reported. This was especially so because of the long distances that existed between those who sought justice and where they sought it e.g. police. There is therefore need to establish or revitalize periodic village level courts where magistrates and police could go to arbitrate and pronounce justice among conflicting parties to mitigate the failure of the poor-to-do communities to access such services.

Importantly, the implementation of the YEHROM project exposed need to empower communities economically for them to have means of acquiring due redress to their cases. It was observed that due to the high poverty levels among the people, majority inevitably had their rights terribly violated but without option to acquire justice.

Due to budget restrictions, bi-annual legal aid clinics were organised (4 clinics throughout 2 years of the project) but these were too few to fulfil the purpose for which the component was incorporated in the plan. An evaluation of the activity revealed that not once did any of the organised clinics respond to all inquiries/issues presented by participants due to time constraint. This was an indicator that many of such clinics deserved to be conducted although the means could not allow. HUYSLINCI then partly utilised village level meetings organised by peer educators and village leaders to respond to any cases that required professional guidance.5. Engaged the public during commemoration of international youth and human rights days:

The human rights concepts are perceived to make young people disobedient in socio-cultural contexts where the young are expected to be submissive towards adults without questioning no matter whether the matter directly affects the child. In this regard, the project considered involving young people in the discourse of human rights concerns during the international human rights and youth days. This caused communities to appreciate advantages that knowledge about their children’s rights and entitlements can bring to their children as well as the wider community.

Thousands of stakeholders took part in events organized by HUYSLINCI in commemoration of the International Human Rights Day and youth day. This proved support for improved respect for human rights, increased human rights awareness and above all it caused for appreciation of the roles individuals ought to play realizing the tenets of the project as well as increased participation in monitoring and reporting on human rights.

Further, these events enhanced the building of reliable and wide networks for reliable allies in the cause for human rights promotion and protection. Field interviews demonstrated that through the fora, participants were able to identify with or build contact with institutions and individuals with whom to foster the project tenets. In this regard, following profound reconsiderations of the organization’s status due to the successful public engagement events supported by IDF, HUYSLINCI was nominated on the Wakiso District Human Rights Committee and received an orientation on how to engage in human rights observance and monitoring in the district.6. Trained law enforcement officers:

The targeting of law enforcement officers helped to fine-tune the police officers’ knowledge, awareness and practices within their scope of work to increase safety and reduce violence against inmates in the police custody. According to the HUYSLINCI M&E findings, the 121 law enforcement officers trained in human rights.   79% of police officers, through a preliminary assessment, confessed that they made no reference to human rights standards while doing their work/addressing human rights issues. The post training evaluation revealed a 99% mindfulness of human rights principles by the trained group. They also declared passing on the acquired knowledge to their colleagues who never directly went through the same training.

Peer educators and local leaders who made referrals of cases to police report good and hospitable reception of clients and quick attention to their complaints/cases something measured as a positive change and partly attributed to the project.7. Trained local, religious and opinion leaders:

The local and religious leaders demonstrated that they are powerful allies in observation, monitoring and reporting of human rights. These leaders have broad access to the various categories of community members and have ongoing interventions that provide platforms for empowering communities to embrace the tenets of the project. Field visits and evaluation reports demonstrated that they have been in position to sensitize their constituencies.

Cases mainly reported to have been handled include: domestic violence and other social conflicts like bad debtors, hatred, land wrangles, child neglect and torture, etc.

The performance evaluation of the work of local leaders for example, revealed an increased number of cases handled expeditiously by local leaders due to the substantial knowledge and later, the confidence got through the empowerment process on human rights (knowledge breads confidence).8. Facilitated Youths experience sharing and learning retreats

This proved an important exercise that enabled merger of ideas, share of experiences, lessons, challenges and solutions to different teasing situations among youth and peer educators in their struggle to promote human rights. Done among previously trained and the newly trained human rights educators, such experience sharing meetings kept the formerly trained on board and active, gave them an opportunity to experience the new dynamics and the human rights situation at hand. The newly trained ones also got chance to learn of exceptional challenges and solutions in handling human rights cases.

It equally gave HUYSLINCI and participating groups chance to compare the different human rights situations from a broader perspective – knowing reasons for the dominance of specific human rights violations in the different Sub Counties and how best to encounter them like land grabbing in Ssisa, child labour Makindye Ssabagabo, Domestic violence in Entebbe Municipality and child neglect in Katabi Sub County.9. Marking of international human rights days

For the 2 years of the project, HUYSLINCI organised and participated in the marking of the International human rights day, forums that prompted debate on various human rights issues in the country, deriving lessons from as well as the way forward on dealing with them. The forums also created avenues for networking with other CSOs with whom joint action was done in awakening communities and the public to become mindful of the principles of human rights and to live by them. At such events, each CSO showcased their areas of focus and strengths, participants got to know who to approach for the various services and through this, plus other District arrangements, HUYSLINCI was appointed on the Wakiso District human rights committee, representing all Human rights CSOs in the District adding to previous such achievements like being the child rights cluster conveners for 2012 under the Human Rights Network.

With such achievements, HUYSLINCI ably commits to continuing with the promotion of Human Rights observance, monitoring, and reporting in Wakiso District and Uganda at large.10. Used the media and other IEC material in the promotion of Human Rights

As part of the project design was the translation and distribution of IEC material. This included the translation of human rights handbooks into Luganda, the commonest language in central region. These books served as part of the peer educators’ kits, all level leaders and opinion champions and the lucky and resourceful members if the public. Posters campaigning against domestic violence, child neglect, child labour, etc were also produced.

HUYSLINCI also made use of radio talk shows and spot messages to pass on human rights messages to the public. Through these and such modes, HUYSLINCI was able to reach a diverse populace, captured diverse human rights scenarios from within and without the project jurisdiction that enabled her to refine her approaches time and again, while dealing with human rights. Feedback from such engagements and media was shared with key stakeholders at review meetings in preparation of them to be ready to face and deal with the various challenges in their localities and after the life of the project.

Further, the use of media publicised HUYSLINCI and the Independent Development Fund (IDF) with whom the promotion of Human Rights was done.