Documentation projects: from proposals to reports

1. Documentation projects: from proposals to reports Information is a cornerstone in the struggle against discrimination Facilitator: Judith Dueck HURIDOCS: Human Rights Information and Documentation Systems International A selection of slides used in the training workshop July, 2008

2. I. Fact Finding and Monitoring • Events happen, a negative situation exists • Fact Finding and Monitoring: Info Gathering, Investigation etc. • Documentation: Organizing the elements of information • Research: Background and related information • Analysis: What does the data mean? • Report preparation • Intervention (legal, medical, humanitarian etc.) • Information dissemination and action for change • Assessment and strategy revision

3. FACT-FINDING and Monitoring • FACT-FINDING-- identifying the violations in one event, and establishing the facts relevant to the violations. • MONITORING-- the close observation of a situation or individual case (over long term).

4. Getting the facts • Conducting investigations through trained observers (interviews, observation, on site inspections etc.) • Placing skilled workers in strategic areas to collect and document information on acts as they occur • Hot lines • Cameras, tape recorders, cel phones, PDAs • Using a low-profile fact-finding delegation consisting of persons from the locality (Low pressure, low publicity) • Using a high-level delegation of local well-known personalities • Using an international delegation • Trial observations and prison visits • Non-governmental tribunals and inquiry commissions • Surveys, research, examination of primary documents • Forensic investigations (disinterment, autopsy)

5. Fact-Finding • Acts committed (single or multiple), including updates on developments • Victims (individuals or groups) • Perpetrators (individuals or groups) including respective levels of involvement • Details of the event and context • The interventions carried out on the victims’ behalf • Sources of information (e.g. witnesses)

6. What is high quality information? • First-hand (not rumour or hearsay) • Detailed • Internally consistent • Corroborated from several angles • Demonstrates a pattern • Fresh

7. Sources of bias • The sample does not reflect the whole • Interaction interviewer/interviewed • Respondents report inaccurately on purpose • Cultural attitudes, inattention, lack of understanding, pressure of time and place • Inability to remember • Lack of understanding of question • Ideological bias of data collector, or sources

8. Confidentiality Ensuring that your sources’ identity remain secret when they have asked for anonymity or you deem the situation too dangerous to release such information

9. Gender / orientation Sensitivity • Ensuring that rights are respected regardless of gender or orientation • Ensuring that violations and discrimination are recognised and properly documented regardless of gender or orientation • Ensuring that information is handled sensitively with respect to gender and orientation issues

10. Supporting materials: • Hospital or clinic reports • Correspondence (letters etc.) • Police reports • Official responses to allegations • Newspaper articles & other news Media • Interview texts • Photographs, videos

11. Common fact-finding difficulties • Lack of access to area • Threat to personal security • Threat to security of witnesses • Gathering unreliable information • Reluctance of a witness to provide information • Lack of awareness concerning human rights • Lack of training or resources for fact-finding • Difficulty asking sensitive questions Session 5

12. Monitoring • May involve collecting a large quantity of data • Requires constant or periodic investigation and documentation of developments • Uses standards or normsto assess the situation • Results in areport, which provides a basis for further action

13. Kinds of Monitoring • case monitoring • situation monitoring

14. Who Monitors? • Set standards • Monitor compliance of governments with their treaty obligations • Monitor certain situations involving violations INTERGOVERNMENTAL ORGANISATIONS (IGOs) NON-GOVERNMENTAL ORGANISATIONS (NGOs) GOVERNMENTAL ORGANISATIONS (GOs) • Lobby with IGOs toward setting standards • Lobby with governments toward adopting international standards • Monitor compliance of governments with their treaty obligations • Monitor violations and cases • Enhance public awareness • Encourage own governments to adopt international standards • Monitor compliance of their own governments with treaty obligations • Monitor violations

15. UNIVERSAL STANDARDS DOMESTIC STANDARDS DOMESTIC APPLICATION Monitoring is done to see whether there are gaps between universally-accepted standards and those set through domestic (national) legislation. . . . or between domestic standards and how they are applied or met in reality. What are the standards or norms?

16. Regulating mechanisms state • External • Mechanisms: • Other States • U.N. Organs such as UPR, Human Rights Council, Office of the High Commissioner • UN treaty body mechanisms: commissions, rapporteurs, special representatives, etc • International media • IGOs • Internal • Mechanisms: • Parliament • Judiciary • Ombudsmen, NHRI, etc • Civil society • media people

17. FACT-FINDING or Monitoring INTAKE OFINITIAL INFORMATION Interviews, Surveys, videos, other info gathering techniques. ANALYSIS TO ARRIVE AT FINDINGS Proposals ORGANISING AND RECORDING Digital storage Hardcopy storage INTERVENTION AND COMMUNICATION Reports and Advocacy ANALYSIS OF TRENDS AND PATTERNS

18. Research • local background information • local legal infrastructure • governmental organizations • social services agencies • international organizations • university libraries, public libraries • Co-operation with other NGOs • Law offices • Media reports (papers, radio, T.V. etc.) • the Internet. HuriSearch. http://www.hurisearch.org/

19. Source: European Handbook on Equality Data

20. Why? • To provide a historical record • To assist and pressure governments in applying international standards or adopting new legislation • To undertake domestic legal actions • To engage in campaigns with the intent of enhancing public awareness • To help particular victims • To provide early warning of potential dangers • To engage in change strategies

21. Why? What change do you want? Monitoring and Fact finding Documenting (organizing) Research Analysis Strategizing Report preparation Information dissemination Interventions Action for change and Evidence based advocacy Assessment and strategy revision

22. What should be…. What is Effective Action for change What are the official standards?(domestic law, international standards, norms) What can be reasonably expected? What is the situation? What are the facts? What is the trend?

23. Three kinds of obligations • To respect: to abstain from doing anything that violates the integrity of an individual, or group, or infringes on their freedom. • To protect: to take the necessary measures necessary to prevent others from violating the rights of an individual or group. • To fulfill: to ensure opportunities for each person to obtain satisfaction of needs recognized by human rights instruments that cannot be secured through personal efforts alone.

24. Two kinds of violations Acts of commission: direct commission of a violation (police beatings) Acts of ommission: failure to provide adequate protection or take adequate step to prevent the violation (police refusing to protect while others beat)

25. Acts of Commission

26. Types of Acts: Acts of Commission • Physical attacks • Distribution of hate propaganda • Discrimination in hiring • Discrimination in School admission • Passing laws that discriminate • Implementing discriminatory laws or policies

27. Types of Acts: Acts of Omission • Failure by law enforcement bodies to protect victims against attacks by discriminatory groups • Failure by the legislature to enact laws that protect citizens from discrimination • Failure to remove discriminatory laws

28. II. Documentation • Events happen, a negative situation exists • Fact Finding and Monitoring: Info Gathering, Investigation, Interviewing etc. • Research: Background and related information • Documentation: organizing elements of information • Analysis: What does the data mean? • Report preparation • Intervention (legal, medical, humanitarian etc.) • Information dissemination and action for change • Assessment and strategy revision

29. What happened? Who was involved?

30. What information do we need ? • Information about the victim • Information about the perpetrator • Information about witnesses, observers, medics etc.(source / corroboration of information) • Information about the act • Information about the background or surrounding circumstances (event) • Information about any interventions

31. The Person • Victim • Perpetrator • Source of information • Intervening Party • Individual • Group • Organization • Anybody involved in anyway Page 36 and 57-63

32. What info do you need to get? • Victim – person or organization • Perpetrator – person or organization (official or not) • Source of information (persons, observers, people, organizations etc.) • Intervening parties (legal, humanitarian, medical, social services, individuals)

33. can be classified (e.g. beating, arrest, torture, execution) • very specific, occurred at a specific time ACT • Has broader scope (starting and ending dates, general location, etc.) • Has some sort of identifier (event title like “The Case of J. Doe) • Usually includes serveral acts and general situation information EVENT Acts and Events

34. EVENTS STANDARD FORMATS

35. Three formats PERSON is an individual or group who plays the role of Victim, Source, Perpetrator, InterveningParty or other organisation or person ACT is a very specific occurrence within an Event Act links Victims to Events EVENT is a general occurrence which may have one or more Acts

36. 102 Event Title Desacula et al. 111 Geographical Term Philippines 112 Local Geographical Area National Capital Region 113 Initial Date 18 11 1987 115 Event Description Edgar Desacula was arrested together with Ramon Aguilar by members of the Pasay City Police Force at Roxas Blvd at about 13:00. They were brought to the police headquarters for questioning. Aguilar was released while Desacula was passed to the Intelligence and Special Operations Group (ISOG) which conducted tactical interrogation and subjected him to torture for a period of 2 days. Desacula continues to be detained. 150 Remarks. The events happened after the Ministry of Defence announced that it will take stronger steps against militant labour. 151 Violation Status Confirmed 152 Violation Index Violent or coercive act by state agents153 Rights Affected Liberty of the person / Freedom from torture 154 HURIDOCS Index Detention] / Torture 155 Local Index Labour militancy 165 Comments This event should be investigated further to see if it is connected with the reported raid of the office of the Victory Labour Union 166 Supporting Documents Photo 87-331 167 Files 87-NCR-010 172 Monitoring Status Active The Person 903 Name 908 Confidentiality 910 Address 911 Date of Birth 912 Place of Birth 916 Sexual Orientation 918 Civil Status 919 Dependants 920 Education 922 Occupation 924 Health 926 Physical Description 928 Date Deceased 930 Group Description 931 Number of Persons in Group 940 Religion 941 Citizenship 942 Ethnic Background 945 Language 947 National Origin • The Event • 102 Event Title • 111 Geographical Term • 112 Local Geographical Area • Initial Date • Final Date • 115 Event Description • 116 Impact of Event • 151 Violation Status • 152 Violation index • 153 Rights Affected Documenting violations The Act 2114 Method of Violence 2116 Physical Consequences 2117 Psychological Consequences 2118 Age at Time of Victimisation 2154 National Legislation 2155 International Instruments Sampling of Available Fields

37. What fields do you need? What fields might you choose for information about the victim, the perpetrator, the act, the event - Employment or housing discrimination • Discrimination in prisons or by police • Discrimination in health services or schools • Hate speech in the media or from government sources Use Events Formats pages 32- 36

39. Opening screen of WinEvsys

40. HURIDOCS INDEX TERMS RIGHTS TYPOLOGY TYPES OF ACTS METHODS OF VIOLENCE INTERNATIONAL INSTRUMENTS EDUCATION OCCUPATIONS (ILO CATEGORIES) PHYSICAL DESCRIPTORS RELIGIONS ETHNIC GROUPS LANGUAGES GEOGRAPHICAL TERMS TYPES OF SOURCE MATERIAL TYPES OF LOCATIONS DEGREES OF INVOLVEMENT TYPES OF INTERVENTION RELEVANT CHARACTERISTICS TYPES OF PERPETRATORS STATUS AS VICTIM LEGAL COUNSEL TYPES OF COURTS AUTOPSY RESULTS STATEMENTS SIGNED MEDICAL ATTENTION SEXUAL ORIENTATION Microthesauri 48 Lists Sampling of Lists Available

41. Event classification (sample of fields) 102 Event title: Make up a name 108 Confidentiality: (yes or no) 112 Local Geographic area: (province, district, village or town) 113 Initial date of event :ddmmyyyy 114 Final date of event: 151 Violation Status: (MT 41 – p 164) 154 Index terms (MT 1 – page 9): 153 Rights affected (MT 3 – page 20) 161 Date of entry: today ddmmyyyyhhmm162 Entered by:you

42. III. Analysis • Events happen, a negative situation exists • Fact Finding and Monitoring • Documentation: Organizing information • Research: Background and related information • Analysis: What does the data mean? • Report preparation • Intervention (legal, medical, humanitarian etc.) • Information dissemination, action for change and evidence based advocacy • Assessment and strategy revision

43. Why do we need to analyze data? We need give undeniable, credible evidence • Find out what really happened • Convince legislators • Arouse other human rights workers to action • Provide evidence for indictment and prosecution of perpetrators in tribunals and national courts • Provide information for truth and reconciliation commissions • Get cooperation from media in spreading the word • Counter the claims of perpetrators • Provide an undeniable record to bring closure to victims and survivors • Manage your own operations

44. How does data analysis help us achieve these goals? When we analyze data, we can: • Show the pattern over time • Assess the magnitude and scope of human rights violations • Find patterns of violation that help identify specific perpetrators • Determine the different patterns of violations against different ethnic groups, sexes, age groups, orientations etc • Relate violations to the actions of perpetrating regimes, organizations groups, or individuals • Show how acts of repression are coordinated throughout a country, region, or in time • Give substantive evidence against perpetrators without revealing the identity of witnesses • Provide analytical measures of the extent to which rights are granted or denied

45. Raw data in a table From: Spirer & Spirer. Intermediate Data Analysis for Human rights

46. Controlled vocab and stats Reasons, numbers and percentages of all deaths in prison X. Cause Number % Not given 16 36% Suicide 15 33% Fell 5 11% Natural 3 7% Slipped 2 4% Jumped 1 2% Scuffle 1 2% Suffocation 1 2% Thrombosis 1 2% Total 45 100% Based on raw data from government sources

47. TABLE Number of physical assaults in Prison X

48. Line Graphs Graph 1. Number of physical assaults in two prisons 100 ----------------------------------------------------------- 90 ----------------------------------------------------------- 80 ----------------------------------------------------------- 70 ----------------------------------------------------------- 60 ----------------------------------------------------------- 40 ----------------------------------------------------------- 30 ----------------------------------------------------------- 20 ----------------------------------------------------------- 10 ----------------------------------------------------------- 0 ----------------------------------------------------------- 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 YEARS Prison A Prison B

49. BAR Graph Not Private Enough: Homophobic and injurious speech in the Lithuanian media Lithuanian gay league

50. Pie graphs compare parts of a whole P o w e r R e a c t o r town X (16%) I n d u s t r i a l M e d i c a l Town Y (28%) G o v e r n m e n t Town Z (2%) Town W (64%) Percentages of total incidents from all 4 towns Comparison of homophobically motivated physical incidents in 4 towns.