Social Work with People Practicing Same-Sex ... - ILGA Europe

Press-conference, 2005
98
7.2. Steps of the Advocacy Campaign
In order to change laws, policies and human behaviour, one needs much more than
just good will. You can draw attention of those in power towards specific issue only
through series of consistent and adequately planned measures. This is why we should
use different methods in rational and wise manner. One should not start picketing of
the Verkhovna Rada just to gain publicity in the press. Picketing and demonstrations
are radical methods, which can be used only as the last resort.
While planning your advocacy campaign activities, it is necessary to correlate your
capacities with the magnitude of the problem. The main thing in the campaign is series
of consistent, interrelated and interlinked activities, focused on one goal. For example,
prior to any efforts, aimed at the achievement of legislative changes, it is important to
gain support of some political forces, or to break through the opposition's resistance.
At the same time it is expedient to involve other organizations, to develop and
submit collective statement to the decision-makers. Thanks to advocacy efforts, some
newspaper may publish articles on the topic, and so on. This creates the continuity of
the campaign — the chain of little victories that will inevitably lead you to your goal.
Advocacy is relatively new type of activity for Ukraine's non-governmental sector;
it is powerful tool to achieve intended goals. Thanks to advocacy organizations
and individuals can accomplish major changes in the policy, in the work of various
institutions and organizations, and in the people's minds. However, effective advocacy
requires very good organization of the process, discipline, careful planning, clear and
specific goals, and a series of well-considered actions to achieve them.
Now let us consider the overall sequence of actions in the development (planning) and
implementation of the advocacy campaign.
1. Identification of problem or issue to be the object of advocacy.
No advocacy campaign can cover the entire range of issues pertaining the target group.
It is clear that such social group as Ukrainian LGBT community has a lot of urgent
problems and important interests that need to be addressed or considered without
delay. However, specific advocacy campaign needs to be focused on one specific issue
or limited number of interrelated issues. For example, there is no sense in working on
protection of interests of homosexual conscripts and in lobbying LGBT-related discourse
in scientific studies, conducted in Ukraine within one advocacy campaign. On the other
hand, each of these two issues can successfully become the object of separate advocacy
campaigns.
2. Selection of campaign coordinator
Prior to taking any actions, you need to identify concrete person, who will be responsible
for the implementation of the advocacy campaign. Without assigning relevant
coordination functions to a specific individual, it will be impossible to ensure effective
planning and implementation of the campaign. Later on, in the process of specification
of goals and objectives of the campaign and in the advocacy campaign planning, the
coordinator's functions can be entrusted to someone else, but the person, responsible
for the entire campaign, should emerge at the very beginning.
3. Analysis and study of problem/issue
At a first glance the essence of the issue, identified as the object of the advocacy,
may seem absolutely clear. However, in practice our vision of the problem is frequently
lopsided. If we want to see the problem in its many-sidedness, we need to undertake
more deep analysis.
Any advocacy campaign should be based on precise and correct information, figures,
facts and knowledge of the problem, which needs to be addressed by the campaign.