Socialization Workshops

Five socialization workshops were held for community leaders from the municipalities of Andalucía, Puerto Tejada, and the Alto Menga district of Commune 2 in Cali, as well as for a few artists of Cali and the Fundación Foro staff. The idea was to start from the recognition of Human Rights and to link the responsibility of all society to the enjoyment of these rights, starting with the socialization of the Charter of Human Responsibilities.

1. Andalusia – Valle: was held on March 7 with the participation of 36 persons (16 women, 20 men) belonging to groups of seniors, teachers, basic-secondary students, environmental organizations, and community leaders.

The group began by listening and reading Rubén Blades’s song Hipocresía, which served as way to raise awareness and to place elements of daily life on the discussion floor. This was followed by work in sub-groups geared by questions based on the CHR principles; the result of this work was socialized in a plenary session during which a lecture on the Charter was given (history, objectives, and principles).

The workshop identified the need to strengthen people’s attitudes to active civic action, as well as to clarify the basic elements of Human Rights and to show how they are continuously undermined by states and power groups.

2. Alto Menga sector, Commune 2, Cali: was held on April 2, 2005 with the participation of 20 persons (8 men and 12 women) belonging to the JAC and neighborhood community leaders.

The methodology used was a lecture, in which compliance with Human Rights was discussed as well as how the CRH then becomes a fundamental pillar for their application.

As in Andalucía, an appropriate community was found for its capacity to have an impact on immediate realities; by way of conclusion, the workshop identified the need to embrace attitudes that can strengthen group characteristics that will allow a community to act more proactively and cohesively to respond to the difficulties and needs of their context in their search to improve their living conditions.

3. Puerto Tejada – Cauca: was held on April 22 with the participation of 16 persons (7 women, 9 men) belonging to the organization of women leaders ASMUL, the Puerto Tejada Civil Defense, the town community-board association, the Sinecio Mina movement, the Puerto Tejada Family Commissariat, the Puerto Tejada council, ASOCODES, the JACs from the El Cementerio and Los Blancos districts, and ADESCOZ .

The workshop began by setting up work groups on Human Rights issues in view of socializing their thinking through cartoons. This exercise also served to open a brief historical review of Human Rights, with a focus on their viability and execution in their 50+ years of existence. This made it possible to introduce and present the emergence of the Charter of Human Responsibilities, its objectives, and its principles as a fundamental pillar for the achievement of these rights.

It should be noted that this group was fairly well-informed on Human Rights, which underscored the importance of its involvement in the CHR process. In its conclusions, the workshop showed high levels of analysis in view of promoting human responsibility in its potential for action.

The workshop was held just as the FARC guerillas had taken the neighboring town of Toribio and in a context of situations specific to the port regarding the municipality’s governance weaknesses and high index of basic unmet needs. As a result, the socialization workshop will be all the more significant, since it served as a guide for community leaders to undertake new actions from the angle of another dimension, that of personal, group, collective, or institutional commitment, depending on the role played in immediate and distant realities.

4. The artists from Cali workshop was held on April 12 with the participation of one person each representing the Fundación Teatro La Mascara and the folk-music band from the Pacific, Canalón, as well as the institutions promoting this agreement and Diego Escobar, in charge of the agreement for Cinep.

The methodology consisted in a short introduction of the emergence of the CRH, along with the screening of CRH-Brazil’s video, which raises awareness as to how art can be a most important element in the CHR education and socialization scenario. After that, discussion took place on everyone’s individual role in this phase, on its expected result of socialization work, and on the integration of these two entities in the CHR promotion and socialization work. Other forms and strategies to work on the Charter were formulated, including the methodological design of the event planned for May 27, 2005.

5. The Fundación Foro staff met on May 23 with the participation of 13 persons (9 women, 4 men) from the foundation’s administration and program departments. Its purpose was to socialize the Charter and to discuss possibilities of responsibility pacts in the various processes promoted by the foundation.

The methodology consisted in a short introduction of the emergence and objectives of the Charter of Human Responsibilities, after which the Chile video was screened. Three think groups were set up, each under a different guiding principle for its considerations to determine how the foundation could act in terms of this principle. Later on, a plenary socialization session was held including discussions and proposals for the articulation of the Charter in a number of planned projects.

6. Tuluá – Valle: was held on June 16, with the participation of 18 persons, all women belonging to the department of social work at the El Valle University in Tulúa.

The workshop began by setting up sub-groups with the purpose of designing dissemination strategies for Human Rights, targeted for children. This work produced a number of proposals, including cartoons, games, and posters. This was followed by a brief historical review of Human Rights, with a focus on their viability and execution in their 50+ years of existence. This made it possible to introduce and present the emergence of the Charter of Human Responsibilities, its objectives, and its principles as a fundamental pillar for the achievement of these rights.

It should be noted that this group showed great interest in Human Rights and human responsibility, which led to the workshop’s providing important analyses in the area of the work of these professionals and their daily tasks, public and private.