Date published: 20.05.2021
First HMB Report Released
Hafiza Merkezi Berlin proudly presents the report Shout Out, Let Them All Hear You – Evolving International Advocacy Approaches and Practices of Civil Society in Turkey, researched and written by Özlem Zıngıl.
Read the report in English or Turkish.
This report is a modest attempt to explore the scope of the engagement with international organisations, to what extent this engagement leads to effective advocacy and which areas need to be developed. While it is vital to analyse the existing advocacy strategies and support it with various capacity building attempts, we, at HMB, are also willing to develop a critical perspective towards the international human rights system, the underlying power dynamics supporting it and underline the relevance and importance of different forms of struggles to support each other in defending democracy, rule of law and peace. International advocacy is one of many ways to shout out loud, we hope to contribute to all the different and equally important attempts to let them all hear us!
Through our research, we have developed several key recommendations:
● Advocacy strategies need to be implemented. The monitoring reports on human rights situations should encourage the international actors to consistently defend the CSOs’ concerns within their spheres. However, the CSOs first need to be clear on their strategies, including who to influence and what to change, then integrate the data collected through the human rights monitoring into their advocacy works.
● In this respect, it is important to empower the CSOs vis-à-vis emerging trends and changing environments. For example, the changing approach and practice with regard to engagement with the CM offers an entry point to support civil society in Turkey in implementing advocacy strategies.
● There is also a strong need to foster channels of communication and exchange. Exerting pressure to prompt change requires using a smart mix of tools. However, civil society in Turkey overwhelmingly resorts to certain tools. International organizations’ human rights bodies and their mechanisms should be used as a tool for advocacy. On the other hand, international organizations are not the only ‘power holders’. Further, international networks and alliances and their member organizations have an enormous ability and power to multiply the voices and the channels of access to promote the demands.
● Communicating and working with their international counterparts is important for civil society actors in Turkey, as such contact will enable the sharing of knowledge, resources, and capacities. However, there is a need for a hub that can enable/increase the channels of communication and encourage civil society, and manage all international relationships in Turkey.