Advocacy in Action - International AIDS Society

Example: Lobbying or face-to-face meetings
Workshop participants meet city administrator to oppose mandatory testing
During an advocacy workshop held in the Philippines in 1998, participants read in the local
press that the Mayor of Davao City planned to introduce mandatory HIV testing of ‘Guest Relations
Officers’ (sex workers). This contradicted the Philippine AIDS Law that was passed in February 1998.
A request was made for an audience with the mayor, to explain the harmful effects of mandatory
testing and highlight that this acted against the recently passed AIDS Law. Iwag Dabaw, one of the
NGOs at the workshop, had built good relations with city officials through its previous external relations
work and was able to arrange a meeting with the city administrator.
In preparation for the meeting, the participants with experience of working with sex workers and
of gender and power relations drafted a position paper on mandatory HIV testing and a covering letter.
The group presented their draft to all the participants at the workshop, and made revisions after
comments from other participants and resource persons. The whole group worked together to improve
the documents and everyone signed the letter. The group prepared for the meeting with discussion,
identification of a lead spokesperson and support team, sequencing and logistical arrangements.
Along with a local sex worker group, Lawig Bubai, the group met the city administrator at City Hall to
explain the content of their position paper, and requested that he pass the paper to the mayor. Two
local journalists attended the meeting.
The mayor was persuaded and did not impose the mandatory HIV testing. The meeting also received
coverage in two local newspapers.
After the meeting, the group reviewed and analysed how the meeting had gone.
The exercise illustrated several points to the participants:
• Preparation for a meeting is as important as the meeting itself
• Opportunities for advocacy are often unplanned, so be prepared for unforeseen events
• Advocacy work is often done under time pressures and as reactions to events.
Advocacy in Action Card 4 Lobbying or face-to-face meetings
Reference: Adapted from an advocacy workshop, International HIV/AIDS Alliance and International Council of AIDS
Service Organizations (ICASO), Philippines, November 1998.
Advice
✔ Try to begin by praising the decisionmaker
for any past support on your issue.
✔ Try to begin by pointing out areas of
agreement and mutual interest with the
decision-maker.
✔ Try to listen, as well as talk – you need
to hear what your target thinks.
✔ Try to link your objective to an issue the
decision-maker cares about.
✔ Try to know more about the issue than
the decision-maker! Gain a reputation
for being knowledgeable.
✔ Try to be willing to negotiate, but be
clear about how far you will compromise.
✔ Try to decide who will say what, if there
is more than one of you.
✔ Try to end by summarising what the
decision-maker has said or promised.
✘ Try not to ask the decision-maker to do
more than one thing at a time, unless he
or she seems very eager to help you.
✘ Try not to confuse the decision-maker
with too many messages.
✘ Try not to give too much information –
for example, graphs, statistics.
✘ Try not to use technical terms or jargon.
✘ Try not to give false or misleading
information – it can cause you problems
in future.