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Programs

Training and Education

The Training and Education activities are primarily conducted by Sulong CARHRIHL in areas or among groups or sectors affected by armed conflict. The program aims to develop deeper understanding of human rights, international humanitarian law and peace building and capacitate members in human rights and peace advocacy.

Sulong CARHRIHL also offers specialized trainings that are appropriate and responsive to the specific concerns of communities, schools, professions and organizations.

Networking for Peace and Human Rights

Sulong CARHRIHL builds active partnership with groups and individuals who share its goals. It provides avenues for dialogues, learning and interaction, especially among the different indigenous peoples’ groups across the country, the youth, women, educators and media practitioners. It supports concrete actions undertaken by partners that will promote the observance of the CARHRIHL and support their peacebuilding efforts.

Sulong CARHRIHL provides secretariat support for the Luzon-wide Indigenous Peoples’ Network (IPNet), a grouping of Dumagat, Aeta, Mangyan, Tingguian and other tribal leaders and federations that are constructively responding to the impact of armed conflict in their communities.

A Sulong Youth Network brings together concerned students and out-of-school youth in urban and rural settings and enables them to undertake various HR, IHL and peace initiatives. Ongoing networking activities aim to generate similar networks among women and educators.

Consultations

Sulong CARHRIHL holds public consultations in armed conflict-affected communities. These consultations are a means to examine the concerns of the community, identify ways to respond to these concerns, explore new partnerships, and expand the peace and human rights constituency nationwide.

Documentation and Monitoring

Sulong CARHRIHL monitors and documents cases of CARHRIHL violations. It maintains a database, which is useful as resource for research, advocacy programs and policy intervention.

Sulong CARHRIHL does not file cases on behalf of the victims but can help facilitate and assist in the process and coordinate with the government-NDF Joint Monitoring Committees and other parties involved. Together with its partners, it forms Local Monitoring Teams (LMTs) to respond to specific needs of individuals/communities resulting from CARHRIHL violations. Its LMTs are formed from among its partners who specialize in providing legal, psychosocial, humanitarian and other services.

Sulong CARHRIHL also offers training on documentation, using its specialized HR and IHL templates for documenting. It has assisted in the development of functional monitoring tools for IP communities, and has been facilitating evaluation and development of appropriate documentation and monitoring practices.

Support for the Peace Process

Sulong CARHRIHL supports the meaningful and peaceful negotiation between the government and the CPP-NPA-NDF. It monitors and analyzes the progress in the peace negotiations and shares these updates to their partners and the public.

Sulong CARHRIHL and its partners continue to engage the government and the CPP-NPA-NDF through dialogues, consultations, written communication, or the mass media in the hope of finding common ground and feasible ways forward to advance the observance of the CARHRIHL and eventually lead to the just and peaceful resolution of the armed conflict.

Policy Review, Legislative Advocacy and Research

Sulong CARHRIHL issues policy reviews and researches that are crucial to its advocacy. It has issued policy papers and continues to undertake analysis of and research on the extra-judicial killings, the Citizens Armed Forces Geographic Units (CAFGUs), responses of indigenous communities to the armed conflict, the implementation of the CARHRIHL, and various legislative initiatives.

Sulong CARHRIHL is a member of the Civil Society Initiatives for International Humanitarian Law (CSI-IHL) which successfully lobbied for the passage of the International Humanitarian Law Act in 2009. It also supported the passage of the Anti-Torture Act and sat in the Technical Working Group in the House of Representatives (13th Congress) for the Landmines Bill.

Sulong CARHRIHL was the lead civil society organization that organized the consultations on and helped draft the National Action Plan on Women, Peace and Security, together with the Philippine Commission on Women and the Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process. The NAP operationalized UN Security Resolutions 1325 and 1820 and was launched on March 25, 2010.