English PDF - East and Horn of Africa Human Rights Defenders ...

52Journalists on the Frontline of Human Rights Defenceobjective manner. The principle information of who the human rights defender is, what happenedto him or her, when and where did it happen, should be featured in the first paragraph.Besides lobbying and letter writing on behalf of human rights defenders it is necessary to befamiliar with the EU Guidelines for Human Rights Defenders, so that when contacting EUEmbassies, specific information can be given about what they are requested to do for the case. Itis important to spend time making contact with EU Embassies so that there is a workingrelationship already established. It is then more likely that the case will be taken up if theinformation is credible. It is important to approach embassies in an encouraging manner and notin a demanding one. It is good policy to ask an embassy to take action, considering the importantrole they have and request them for feedback in to what they have done on the case. Reliabilityand accuracy are crucial in regards to urgent appeals to EU embassies. In general, the two mostimportant factors are speed and accuracy. If information is sent that is not accurate in an urgentappeal it is likely to take a long time before reputation for reliability is re-established.It is also good to check if access to a lawyer is available in case of arrest. Establish if the lawyeris pro-bono or if otherwise his fees are affordable. If this is not the case it needs to be establishedwhere to obtain money for lawyer fees. There are a number of international organisations, whohave anti-impunity funds and fund lawyer fees for human rights defenders, such as InternationalCommission of Jurists and Interights.There are also a number of international organisations who send experienced human rightslawyers worldwide, such as Front Line and the International Commission of Jurists, AmnestyInternational, and the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH).If a human rights defender is arrested it is important to get the phone number of the police stationand the name of the person who is responsible there. This information can be sent to national,regional and international contacts and asking them to mobilise immediate action on behalf of thehuman rights defender. Front Line has found that these phone calls show the authorities that thenational and international community is aware that the human rights defender is being held indetention. This could reduce the possibility of the human rights defender being ill-treated ortortured.While designing an international campaign, it has to be decided who the international communityshould contact, i.e. local, provincial, national or international authorities. There is need to assessand discuss which targets would be the most effective. Try different strategies and see which oneworks better.WorkshopsAgain, working groups were created to analyse certain scenarios in more detail and to draftpossible measures of campaigning.Workshop A: Authority’s refusal to renew the license of a journalist• Two scenarios are likely, depending on whether there exists an independent legalsystems that one can utilise;• In any case, there is a need to analyse the case at hand;