GENERAL PROGRAM OF ACTION
August 2003-July 2006
GENERAL DIRECTION
Consolidate the gains of the Federation through internal strengthening
and intensification of its international solidarity, lobby and campaign
work. Ensure to strike a correct balance between concrete participation of
the Federation's member-organizations in the implementation of the
regional plan and the Secretariat's role of being the center for
coordination and service.
Strengthen further the present level of solidarity achieved among
member-organizations as well as the solidarity achieved by AFAD with
federations from other continents.
Use all possible avenues to lobby at all levels for the enactment of
national, regional and international legislation facilitating the end of
impunity and preventing recurrence of cases. Actively take a significant
role in exposing the regional phenomenon of involuntary disappearances and
strengthen the foundation of the member organizations' campaign for truth,
justice and redress.
NOTE: the contribution of men and women constituencies of AFAD
AFAD’s STRATEGIC PLAN WITHIN A THREE-YEAR PERIOD
A. ON LEADERSHIP AND ADMINISTRATION
To ensure efficient and effective participatory management based on the
Federation's organizational situation as well as lessons of past
evaluations and summing up, regularize meetings at all levels and improve
the quality of participation and ensure strict compliance of reporting
system.
To ensure that AFAD Council and the Regional Secretariat complement each
other in fulfilling AFAD's mission, vision and goals.
To empower AFAD member- organizations through regular country monitoring
and formal as well as on-the job trainings at all levels:
3.1 Leadership Training - in the country level
3.2 Writers' and Documentalists' training - regional level
3.3 Diplomacy training - regional level
3.4 Organizers' training - regional level
Maximize opportunities for comprehensive organizational development,
considering the lessons learned from AFAD's concrete experience.
Effectively address internal and external threats that may hinder smooth
operation of the Federation. Conduct a professional management audit of
the Federation at the middle of the three-year term.
Ensure a regular and updated scanning and in-depth study of the
socio-economic and political environment to ensure that the Federation
contextualizes its work to the over-all situation in the region in order
to be well-grounded to the Asian people's struggles.
5.1 Participatory research on Asian situation vis-à-vis disappearances;
5.2 Regular updating of the general phenomenon of involuntary
disappearances and specific cases.
Deepen and widen the Federation's alliance work and networking nationally,
regionally and internationally.
6.1 Establishment of linkage by AFAD members to local, regional and
international human rights organizations and other NGOs;
6.2 Establishment of an international directory of groups and individuals
which are linked to AFAD and with clear levels of relationship;
6.3 Maximization of regional and international meetings for expansion of
network.
By the last quarter of the year 2005, sum-up the experiences of AFAD since
its beginning stage, the results of which shall serve as bases for the
plan for the next term.
Hold the Second Congress in August 2003 as programmed so that AFAD can be
ready for the next phase of its life as a Federation.
Hold the Third Congress after July 2006 and ensure that AFAD shall have
garnered both quantitative and qualitative development after 8 years of
work.
Strengthen and expand the existing secretariat, which could more
efficiently and effectively act as center for coordination and service.
Draw up and implement an updated and appropriate organizational,
administrative and financial policies for implementation at all levels.
Ensure gender balance in all levels within the AFAD structure as part of
the Federation's contribution to the empowerment of women in society.
B. ON FINANCE MANAGEMENT AND GENERATION
Beef up the financial capacity of the Federation by improving its work
thus, sustaining existing partnerships, forging additional partnerships
with other funding organizations and ensuring bigger counterpart from
member-organizations.
Beef-up the financial capacity of AFAD member-organizations by sustaining
existing partnerships, professionally relating with partners through
efficient and effective implementation of the work as well as submission
of reports.
Venture into other creative means of self-reliance efforts.
Ensure regular annual external financial audit.
Ensure annual internal financial audit to be done by the AFAD Council
during a scheduled activity in the Philippines (but not mainly just for
the purpose of internal audit, but principally for other agenda).
C. COMPONENTS OF WORK
INTERNATIONAL SOLIDARITY
a. Imbibe the spirit of regional solidarity among AFAD
member-organizations through immersion with families of the disappeared in
different parts of Asia, facilitating meetings among families of the
disappeared, mutual support expressed in joint activities and sharing of
experiences among member-organizations, profound understanding of the
situation of the member-organizations, equitable contribution towards
enriching the experiences of the Federation for it to achieve its
direction.
b. Conduct a synchronized commemoration of traditional events of AFAD,
e.g. International Week of the Disappeared; International Day of the
Disappeared; Human Rights Week; Human Rights Day, etc. and coordinate
these efforts with the efforts of similar federations in other continents.
c. Promote international solidarity through a system of exchange of
personnel or interns within Asia and Latin America and other continents.
d. Continue holding AFAD meetings alternately in all Asian countries where
AFAD has members and come up with breakthroughs in holding AFAD activities
in countries where repression is intense.
e. Facilitate personal exchange of experiences among families of the
disappeared through actual meetings and exchange of letters as part of
their continuing rehabilitation program.
f. Expand the membership of AFAD to existing organizations of families of
the disappeared in other Asian countries and assist in the formation of
organizations of families of the disappeared in other countries where
these are not yet established and eventually include them in the
constituency of the Federation.
g. Reach out to similar organizations, which are not necessarily based in
Asia, but because of security reasons, are based in other countries in
order to give more strength to the Federation.
h. Share in different creative ways AFAD's own experience of forming the
Federation to other continents, which are planning to establish or are in
the process of establishing their own regional formations.
- Computerization of the existing slide production of AFAD and translation
of scripts to different Asian languages.
- Video Production on the phenomenon of involuntary disappearances in Asia
and the response of AFAD.
i. Establish linkages with solidarity groups, which may facilitate
speaking tours for AFAD members in countries where they are based.
j. Conscious visits to solidarity groups, which may facilitate speaking
tours for AFAD members in countries where they are based.
k. Formation of AFAD support groups whereever and whenever possible.
l. Start and sustain appropriate forms of rehabilitation projects to an
initial number of families of the disappeared in the Asian countries where
AFAD has member-organizations and share results among AFAD
member-organizations and document the results through a video documentary
and/or a book.
INTERNATIONAL LOBBY
a. Systematize lobby work with members of the UN NGO Committee in order to
achieve a Consultative Status with the United Nations Economic and Social
Council (ECOSOC).
-Follow-up the status of the AFAD's application;
-Come up with an active and intensive lobbying;
-File applications of member-organizations.
b. Intensify lobby for the eventual ratification of the United Nations
Draft Convention on the Protection of All Persons from Enforced or
Involuntary Disappearances through participation in annual sessions of the
United Nations Commission on Human Rights and other activities during and
in between the said sessions.
c. Participate in the work of the United Nations open-ended Working Group
for a legally binding normative instrument for the protection of all
persons from enforced or involuntary disappearances.
d. Systematize lobby work in order to continuously implement the
resolutions of the Asian-Latin American Lawyers' Conference held in
Jakarta, Indonesia in November 2000 which aims, among others, to pursue
national, regional and international legislation combating impunity and
preventing recurrence of cases of involuntary disappearances. Give focus
in working for the enactment of laws criminalizing enforced or involuntary
disappearances.
e. Garner moral, material and political support from governments
supportive to AFAD by conducting national, regional and international
activities to forge working relationship with the diplomatic community.
f. Lobby for visits by the United Nations Working Group on Enforced
Disappearances to countries in Asia that need international attention and
action.
g. Study existing international mechanisms and utilize and maximize these
to attain the truth, justice and redress. Lobby for Asian governments'
ratification of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court and
explore the use of this mechanism to attain our goals.
INTERNATIONAL CAMPAIGNS
a. Systematize and intensify at all levels AFAD's projection of the
regional phenomenon of involuntary disappearances through its existing
publication and other forms of media work and other forms of information
dissemination drive. Improve and promote the existing AFAD website.
b. Organize synchronized activities such as pickets in embassies. Launch
regionally coordinated media and other information dissemination work on
particular country issues vis-à-vis disappearances.
c. Improve the content, format, layout, dissemination of the AFAD
magazine, The Voice for it to serve its purpose. Ensure access to
information and communications technology, i.e. development and
maintenance of a website, e-mail, electronic bulletin boards, telephone
lines for the Regional Secretariat and all member-organizations.
d. Sustain and develop further AFAD's regional and national network of
lawyers , which is indispensable in its campaign for truth, justice and
redress.
e. Pressure Asian governments to act by raising national issues and
campaigns of specific countries to the regional and international level
through different forms of campaign activities, e.g. joint statements;
letter-writing; speaking tours, regional press conferences, etc.
f. Systematize urgent actions on individual cases and send urgent action
appeals to concerned authorities in Asia and other parts of the world.
g. Make a breakthrough in filing of cases both in the national and
international tribunals and ensure a regional and international support on
this.
h. Come up with educational materials on the phenomenon of involuntary
disappearances and translate these to different Asian languages.
i. Ensure AFAD's full support to the campaign of each member-organization
in searching for the disappeared and in fighting against impunity.
j. Support efforts of member-organizations to call for the building of
memorials for the disappeared as a symbol of governments' admission of
their responsibility to the problem of disappearances and to remind people
of the heroism of the disappeared and other victims of human rights
violations.
