Annual Report 2006 - Prisoners of Conscience

PRISONERS OF
CONSCIENCE
APPEAL FUND
ANNUAL REPORT 2006
Prisoners of
Conscience
Appeal Fund
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CONTENTS
Pg 1
Pg 2
Pg 4
Pg 6
Pg 8
Pg 9
Pg 10
Pg 12
Pg 13
Pg 15
Pg 16
Pg 18
Pg 20
Pg 21
Pg 23
Pg 26
Pg 28
Review of Year
Statistics
Overseas: Focus on Iran
Iranian Referral Agency Profile – Association of Iranian Political Prisoners (AIPP)
AIPP – A Founder’s Story
Overseas: Focus on Zimbabwe
Pietermaritzburg: Kwazulu-Natal Christian Council (KNCC)
Johannesburg: SAWIMA
CRISIS in Coalition Zimbabwe
Mthwakazi Art and Culture Project
General situation for Zimbabwean exiles in South Africa
UK Grants
Events: BBC Radio 4 Appeal
The Royal Geographical Society (with IBG): The Good, The Bad And The Ugly
Events: PBI visit to PoC
Referral Agencies
Financial Statement
REVIEW OF YEAR
Throughout 2006, we experienced strong demands on our resources, both
in the UK and overseas. Our beneficiaries came from 29 different countries
and they were resident in the following countries: Colombia, Egypt, France,
Gambia, India, Iran, Kenya, Krygyzstan, Mexico, Pakistan, Peru, South
Africa, Tibet, Turkey, UK, USA and Zimbabwe. 54% of our funds went to
overseas recipients, with 46% helping beneficiaries in the UK.
Back in the UK we continued to maintain
our provision to prisoners of conscience
giving direct help to people who had been
driven into exile, usually with little more
than the clothes they stood up in. While
it is disheartening to encounter repeated
evidence of the dreadful treatment meted
out to people who have dared to stand up
for justice and humane values we continue
to be encouraged by the support of our
donors and by the spirit and determination
of our beneficiaries.
We undertook various fundraising initiatives
in 2006 including a BBC Radio 4 appeal
and a lecture at the Royal Geographical
Society in London, both given by John
Simpson. We also received an incredible
sum from a legacy of £188,000, which will
be used to underpin our grants in years to
come. Even without the legacy money, our
income from individual donors increased
this year by 18%. Grateful thanks are due
to all of our committed donors who enable
us to carry out our work.
To facilitate our grants, 53 referral agencies
were successful in referring beneficiaries to
us in 2006. We are very grateful to all of those
who assisted us in our mission this year.
We continued to benefit from increased
support from charitable trusts this year
– 81 different trusts and foundations
contributed to our work in 2006, 13
of which were new contacts.
“ THOUGH YOU TOOK YOUR
ASSISTANCE AS A SIMPLE HUMAN
TOUCH, TO ME IT WAS SOMETHING
THE SIZE OF A MOUNTAIN.”
From a beneficiary
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1
STATISTICS
53 AGENCIES WORKED WITH IN 2006
IN 2006, 54% OF OUR FUNDS WENT TO RECIPIENTS
OVERSEAS COMPARED TO 35% IN 2005. WE
HELPED PRISONERS OF CONSCIENCE IN COLOMBIA,
EGYPT, FRANCE, GAMBIA, INDIA, IRAN, KENYA,
KRYGYZSTAN, MEXICO, PAKISTAN, PERU, SOUTH
AFRICA, TIBET, TURKEY, UK, USA AND ZIMBABWE.
£51,275 OVERSEAS RELIEF
£42,311 UK RELIEF
£13,273 BURSARIES FUND
£14,400 PROTECTIVE ACCOMPANIMENT
(Mexico)
£121,259 TOTAL GRANTS
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Association of Iranian Political Prisoners
British Red Cross Edinburgh
Central African Development Action
Christian Solidarity Worldwide
Citizens Advice Bureau Beswick
Citizens Advice Bureau Bolton and District
Citizens Advice Bureau Bow
Citizens Advice Bureau Hackney
Citizens Advice Bureau Hull - North St
Citizens Advice Bureau Kensington
Citizens Advice Bureau Liverpool
Citizens Advice Bureau Middlesbrough
Citizens Advice Bureau Portsmouth
Citizens Advice Bureau Redbridge
Citizens Advice Bureau Southampton
Citizens Advice Bureau Tottenham
Citizens Advice Bureau Toxteth
Council for Assisting Refugee Academics
Displaced People in Action
Doncaster Primary Care Trust (West)
Education Action International (RETAS)
Ethiopian Community Centre in the UK
Exiled Journalist Network
GARAS
Guchusum Movement of Tibet
Hackney Community College
Helen Bamber Foundation
Human Rights Watch - East Asia Division
Jesuit Refugee Service UK
Kurdish Community Centre
Lambeth Primary Care Trust
Leeds Ethiopian Community
Medical Foundation
Medical Foundation - Manchester
Migrant & Refugee Communities Forum
Migrants Resource Centre
Mondair Solicitors
NICEM - One Stop Shop
Northern Refugee Centre
Notre Dame Refugee Centre
Peace Brigades International
PEN Emergency Fund
REACHE - North West
Refugee Council (Children’s Section)
Renewal Refugee and Migrant Project
Reporters Sans Frontieres
SJMC Advice Centre
Solidarity Peace Trust
Southgate College Student Services
St Pancras Refugee Centre
The Roby
Welsh Refugee Council (Cardiff)
Welsh Refugee Council (Newport)
COUNTRIES OF ORIGIN OF BENEFICIARIES IN 2006
Afghanistan
Azerbaijan
Angola
Burma
Burundi
Cameroon
Colombia
Congo (DRC)
Congo Brazzaville
Eritrea
Ethiopia
Gambia
Georgia
Iran
Iraq
Ivory Coast
Madagascar
Mexico
Pakistan
Peru
Rwanda
Sierra Leone
Sudan
Tibet
Turkey
Uganda
Ukraine
Uzbekistan
Zimbabwe
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OVERSEAS: FOCUS ON... IRAN
BUS STRIKES IN TEHRAN
Early in December 2005 a strike was
called by the Union of Workers of the
Tehran and Suburbs Bus Company, lead
by Mansour Ossanloo. The protestors
were campaigning for higher wages and
government recognition of their union. This
particular transport union has an interesting
history, having played an important role in
the 1979 revolution which overturned the
Shah’s government. However, as religious
activists began to dominate the new regime
the union’s generally secular approach to
individual and collective rights began to be
seen as unacceptable. It was banned in the
early 1980s, then re-established in 2004
with the aim of achieving official recognition.
After the first bus strike, on 22 December
2005, twelve union officials, including Mr
Ossanloo, were arrested. Undeterred,
the bus drivers called another strike and
secured the release of all those detained,
with the exception of Mr Ossanloo who
was being held in Tehran’s Evin prison. He
suffers from a serious eye condition and his
colleagues and family became increasingly
worried about his health as the days
passed and he continued to be denied
access to a lawyer.
A further strike to call for Ossanloo’s release
was planned for 28 January 2006 but at
this point the Iranian government changed
their tactics and ordered a mass arrest of
drivers on the day before the strike was
due. Hundreds were detained, including the
4
wives and children of three union officials.
Although these relatives were released after
a few days they were shaken by the verbal
and physical abuse they experienced. One
of them, a 12 year old girl, described how
her mother was punched and kicked and
her 2 year old sister was injured when she
was thrown into a police van.
Most of the bus drivers arrested were kept
in prison for months and pressured to sign
declarations saying they would cease all
union activities. They were blindfolded and
questioned for hours and days at a time,
some were forced to stand all night tied to
a pillar, others were beaten on the soles
of their feet. Their interrogators told them
they were traitors who received orders
from abroad and wanted to overthrow the
Islamic regime and ruin Iran.
Mansour Ossanloo was released from
prison in August, only to be rearrested
on 19th November 2006. Plain clothes
security agents apparently seized him on
the street. When Ossanloo asked to see
an arrest warrant and their identification
cards they threatened him with a gun and
punched him, even though one of his eyes
was bandaged following an operation the
previous week. He was imprisoned for a
further month, then released again on 19th
December. This repeated pattern of arrestassault-imprisonment means that Ossanloo
and his family, like many union activists and
members in Iran, live in a constant state of
fear and insecurity.
The International Transport Workers’
Federation (ITF) and International Trade
Union Confederation (ITUC) have both
campaigned on behalf of the bus drivers,
organising demonstrations outside
embassies and making a formal complaint
to the International Labour Organisation, of
which Iran is a member. However, the issue
of union recognition remains unsettled.
President Ahmedinejad claimed his
government would root out corruption and
improve life for people on low wages, like
Tehran’s bus drivers. The official reaction to
the bus strike seems to indicate that this
is one promise the government isn’t in any
hurry to keep.
As their families’ main breadwinners
the drivers were also extremely worried
about the hardship their relatives were
enduring. Even when some of them
agreed to leave the union and were
released they found their bank accounts
had been frozen and the bus company
refused to give them back their jobs. The
Association of Iranian Political Prisoners
(AIPP), one of PoC’s partner agencies,
which was recording and publicising
the drivers’ struggle, suggested we may
be able to help. Altogether PoC made
grants worth £8,400 to thirty one drivers
in 2006, allowing them and their families
to buy food, clothing, school books and
uniforms for children and pay utility bills.
5
IRANIAN REFERRAL AGENCY PROFILE
– ASSOCIATION OF IRANIAN POLITICAL
PRISONERS (AIPP)
The Association of Iranian Political Prisoners (AIPP) was founded in March
1989 by a group of former Iranian political prisoners. Some of the group’s
founders were later forced to leave Iran and as a result established an exiled
branch of the organisation in June 1994. AIPP in Exile has members in eleven
countries, including Sweden, Australia, England, Holland, Germany and the
United States.
The main inspiration for AIPP’s foundation
was the mass execution of political
prisoners which took place in Iran during
the summer of 1988. It is estimated that
up to 10,000 prisoners were executed over
a period of about two months. Witnesses
described batches of prisoners being
rounded up and taken for execution at
half hourly intervals, some were shot and
many were hanged from gallows. The large
prayer hall at Tehran’s Evin prison was used
for shootings and an amphitheatre hall at
Karaj´s Gohardasht prison was used for
hangings. It is also estimated that as many
as 30,000 political prisoners were executed
in previous years, between 1981 and 1987.
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The pretext for the 1988 killings seems
to have been the end of the war with
Iraq which had lasted eight years and
exhausted both countries. Unfortunately,
the ceasefire was viewed as a chance to
attack Khomeini’s regime by the People’s
Mujahideen, an armed dissident group
which had accepted protection from
Saddam Hussein. The rebels were soon
defeated but their opportunism gave
the Iranian government an excuse to
purge all political prisoners, the majority
of them members of organisations
like trade unions, women’s groups
and non-violent political parties.
Appalled by the violence and suffering
unleashed by the Iranian government
AIPP’s founders came together to create
an organisation that ‘struggles against the
violation of human rights and for human
dignity’. Taking the Universal Declaration
of Human Rights as their guide AIPP
campaigns against torture and the death
penalty and promotes freedom of speech
and assembly for all non-violent political,
social and cultural groups in Iran. As well
as trying to provide a framework for a more
humane and just society they also give
practical support to political prisoners and
their families. This support includes helping
torture victims find appropriate medical care
and raising money to cover legal fees for
individuals facing court cases.
AIPP has a website at www.kanoonzendanian.org which has regular updates
on the human rights situation in Iran. It
is full of alarming details of apparently
arbitrary arrests, torture and execution.
The case of Akbar Mohammadi shows the
high price paid by many people who dare
to oppose the authorities. Mohammadi
was arrested in 1999 after student
demonstrations and sentenced to fifteen
years in prison. Severe beatings damaged
his spine and he was released in 2005 to
have specialist medical treatment. A few
months later Mohammadi was rearrested
and sent to Evin prison. There he began
a protest hunger strike and died of a
heart attack after nine days without food.
According to other prisoners Mohammadi
received no medical care in prison and
was chained to his bed in an effort to
force him to abandon his hunger strike.
Although AIPP’s reports can make
depressing reading they also give a
vivid picture of Iranian society’s strength
and diversity and the many courageous
people who speak out and challenge
the government. Despite revolution, war,
controversy over nuclear programmes
and continued conflict across the Middle
East Iranians persist in joining unions,
campaigning for better rights for women
and ethnic minorities and taking to the
streets to demonstrate. This refusal to toe
the government line is surely a sign that
AIPP’s goal of a more democratic Iran
which respects the rights and dignity of all
its citizens will be achieved.
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AIPP – A FOUNDER’S STORY
OVERSEAS: FOCUS ON... ZIMBABWE
Babak* was just seventeen when he was first imprisoned and tortured. At that
time Iran was not an Islamic republic but a monarchy, ruled by Muhammad
Reza Shah Pahlavi. Babak was arrested during a student session in 1968
and experienced the first of many beatings which permanently damaged
one side of his body.
Sadly, the political, social and economic situation in Zimbabwe worsened
during 2006. By the end of the year, nearly 7,000 cases of abuse and torture
were recorded, with a particularly notable increase in the use of torture. Police
and army personnel and agents from the Central Intelligence Organisation
(CIO) have all regularly been accused of severe human rights violations.
After being released from prison in 1970
Babak came to London where he studied
and became very active in the Iranian
Students’ Confederation. Early in 1978
he returned to Iran and took part in the
uprisings which overthrew the Shah.
Babak and many of his fellow activists
wanted to replace the monarchy with a
secular, democratic government which
respected human rights. Their hopes were
disappointed as Ayatollah Khomeini’s
supporters began to impose their strict and
punitive vision of Islamic government.
Poverty and ill-health resulting from
economic collapse have only been
exacerbated by government policies. The
UN estimate that more than 5,000 families
displaced by Operation Murambatsvina
in summer 2005 are still in urgent
need of food, housing and health care.
Murambatsvina, literally ‘drive out the filth’,
saw the destruction of hundreds of homes
in Harare and other cities. The displaced
were driven out into the countryside and left
to struggle for survival without shelter, food
or employment. Perhaps it is not surprising
that life expectancy in Zimbabwe is now the
shortest in the world, with women living, on
average, 34 years.
In 1981 Babak found himself imprisoned
again, along with thousands of other
Iranians whose opinions and behaviour
were seen as suspect by the new religious
regime. He was taken to Tehran’s Evin
prison where he was tortured by a group
of people which included Assadollah
Lajevardi, often called the ‘butcher of Evin’.
Babak first met Lajevardi when he was
imprisoned by the Shah – at least some
traditions survived the revolution. Prisoners
have described how Lajevardi would boast
of inventing new torture methods; two of
the best known were the ‘wardrobe’ and
the ‘coffin’, names which leave very little to
the imagination.
Babak endured 13 months of torture, after
which he was transferred to the prison
hospital, more dead than alive. Six months
later he was finally put on trial, a trial which
lasted five minutes and did not permit
him to hire a lawyer or speak for himself.
He wrote ‘trials of this kind continued for
years...people were put on execution row.’
Following his ‘trial’ Babak was transferred
to Ghezelhessar prison which he described
as ‘another story of cruelty’. He was finally
released at the end of 1986, during the
time Ayatollah Montazeri managed the
prison system, between 1985 and 1987.
Montazeri is credited with improving
prison conditions and reducing torture
and arbitrary executions. Unfortunately, his
influence did not extend into the summer
of 1988 which saw the mass executions
described above.
Babak believes that his release from
prison only eighteen months before
the summer 1988 killings was a bit
of good fortune that almost certainly
saved his life. The knowledge of his
narrow escape lead him to become
one of AIPP’s founders, with the aim of
creating an Iran that no longer subjects
its people to the torments he endured.
Almost unbelievably, many brave people
continue to challenge the government
and plan a better future for their country.
These activists and supporters, who aim
to change their society using non-violent
criticism and protest, epitomise the type of
person we exist to help. These individuals
are the preservers of a great wealth of talent
and courage which will be invaluable for the
future rebuilding of Zimbabwe, when that
day hopefully comes. Modest grants, given
at the right time, really do sustain those who
have the ability to bring about immense
political, social and economic change.
Our relationship with the Solidarity Peace
Trust (SPT) developed in a very constructive
manner in 2006 and has enabled us to
assist victims of human rights abuses both
in Zimbabwe and in exile in South Africa.
In November 2006, PoC’s Director, Lynn
Carter, and volunteer photographer, Sophie
Baker, travelled to Johannesburg to meet
SPT personnel and beneficiaries of this
collaboration.
Lynn Carter writes…
Our host for this trip was Selvan Chetty,
the Deputy Director of SPT. We spent the
first weekend in Port Shepstone, where the
SPT office is located and where we met the
small SPT office team. We then travelled
to Pietermaritzburg and Johannesburg to
meet more partner agencies through whom
pocs are also referred. Below is a snapshot
of the people we met and the work that
they do.
*Not his real name – it has been changed to protect his identity.
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9
PIETERMARITZBURG: KWAZULU-NATAL
CHRISTIAN COUNCIL (KNCC)
KNCC supports and enables churches and church leaders in the province.
Their many projects include democracy development initiatives, AIDS networks,
peace and reconciliation, healing of memories, issues of police abuse,
capacity building and training. They have also been offering material support
to Zimbabwean refugees based in Pietermaritzburg – they estimate there are
about 500 Zimbabwean exiles in the city, surviving on next to nothing. There are
in excess of 2 million Zimbabwean refugees in South Africa in total.
I was fortunate enough to meet several
Zimbabwean exiles who had received
grants from us and was struck by their
bravery and determination, despite the
dreadful treatment they had endured.
One young man, Tapson, had a particular
impact on me. Tapson was a young activist
in the opposition MDC party and suffered
terribly as a result. He was constantly being
arrested and detained due to his political
activities. When not in detention, he had
to report to the police station every week.
The final straw came, however, when he
was abducted by the secret police and
viciously beaten and left for dead miles
from anywhere in the bush. Miraculously, he
survived and, with help, fled into exile.
10
Tapson has a young family back in
Zimbabwe and struggles to earn a living
in South Africa. With no support from the
South African authorities, he has been
ingenious in his bid to earn a living. He
received a modest grant of about £100
from us. With that he bought wire materials
to make African tourist souvenirs. This
enables him to eke out a small living until
he can return to Zimbabwe (his dearest
wish). I went to Tapson’s “home” – part of
a disused garage that he has to live in. The
doors don’t close properly and it looked
damp, but he is definitely making the best
of a bad job.
As I said goodbye, he told me how he had
felt the day that he had received our grant.
He said it was hard to explain, but that it
had given him hope. He was so grateful
to everyone who was helping him.
A marvellous example of how a
small PoC grant can make a huge
difference thanks to his ingenuity
and hard work.
“ HE SAID IT WAS HARD TO
EXPLAIN, BUT THAT IT
HAD GIVEN HIM HOPE.”
Tapson, Pietermaritzburg
11
JOHANNESBURG: SAWIMA
CRISIS IN COALITION ZIMBABWE
SAWIMA is a non-governmental and apolitical organisation that is dedicated
to address the socio-economic challenges that face the Southern African
immigrant communities, to ensure these challenges do not hinder people’s
development and sustainability. SPT-funded, they exist on very little to provide
a drop-in advice service for (mostly) Zimbabwean refugees in Johannesburg.
This is a movement that began under a tree in a park in Johannesburg.
SAWIMA offers general advice and counselling to those who seek their help.
Established in 2001, the Crisis in Zimbabwe Coalition campaigns for a more
just and democratically governed Zimbabwe.
At SAWIMA, I met another of our
beneficiaries, Kumbirai Toma.
Kumbirai was a Prosecuting Attorney in
the department of the Attorney General
in Matebeleland South. Sometime in
March last year, he was assigned a case
to prosecute. The accused people were
from the ruling Zanu PF party and the
complainant was an opposition MDC
supporter. He delivered his duty well and
got the accused persons convicted and
sentenced by a magistrate. Thereafter the
Minister of Home Affairs, who happened
to be an MP of Matebeleland South,
castigated the whole trial saying it was
done by people who support the traitor
party, meaning the MDC. Some secret
agents were sent to attack and kill the
prosecuting team.
The magistrate escaped to Botswana while
Kumbirai tried to remain in Zimbabwe.
However, the agents came to his house
twice looking for him, turning the place
upside down and terrorising his family in
the process. His family went into hiding
in Harare and he had to border-jump
into South Africa. Kumbirai is sure that
if he had been at home on either of the
12
times that the agents visited, he would
be dead by now. He does have status to
live and work in South Africa now, and he
has managed to find a job as a university
lecturer two days a week. Although this is
better than nothing, he is far from settled
or secure, and worries constantly about his
young family back home.
To date, the Coalition has run both
systematic and ad-hoc or short-term
programmes, which are specifically aimed
at highlighting pertinent issues regarding
Zimbabwe’s economic and political
meltdown. These issues include human
rights, political freedom, women’s rights,
electoral reform, constitutional reform,
demilitarisation and depoliticisation of
state institutions especially those that
are responsible for governance, repeal of
repressive legislation, restoration of peace
and land reform among other issues.
Since 2001 the Coalition work has revolved
around regional and international lobbying
on the isolation of President Robert
Mugabe’s regime for gross human rights
abuses, the muzzling of the independent
media, condoning of political violence
especially targeting opposition and civil
society activists. They have also sent
out large volumes of information in the
form of research papers, reports, alerts,
statements and conducted think-tanks and
public meetings on the ever-deteriorating
economic and political crisis in the country.
“ I AM WRITING TO INFORM YOU
THAT MY FAMILY HAVE ARRIVED
SAFELY. IT WAS A GREAT JOY
FROM THE FIRST MINUTE. YOUR
ASSISTANCE SPICED OUR UNION.”
From a beneficiary
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MTHWAKAZI ART AND CULTURE PROJECT
“ MAY I EXPRESS OUR VERY WARM
GRATITUDE TO THE PRISONERS OF
CONSCIENCE APPEAL FUND FOR
THE TWO GRANTS FOR COLOMBIAN
PASTORS’ FAMILIES TOTALLING
£850. THIS WILL BE AN ENORMOUS
ENCOURAGEMENT TO BELEAGUERED
PEOPLE IN COLOMBIA AND TO
PEACE-LOVING CHRISTIANS THERE,
THREATENED AND MANY OF THEM
ALREADY HUGELY HURT BY THE
MILITIAS AND GUERRILLAS.”
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Again, this is a small volunteer-led group
that uses art and drama to highlight the
situation in Zimbabwe. We met a few of the
volunteers and project members at their
small, SPT-funded office in Johannesburg.
Many of them also make crafts to sell to
make ends meet. Almost all of them are
very young and alone. I was so impressed
by their determination not just to survive,
but to return to a democratic Zimbabwe as
soon as possible.
“ HER CHILDREN
ARE LIVING
UNDER DIFFICULT
CONDITIONS AND
THIS GRANT IS A
GREAT RELIEF. ”
From a referral agency
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GENERAL SITUATION FOR ZIMBABWEAN
EXILES IN SOUTH AFRICA
There is little or no financial provision for asylum seekers in South Africa.
There are two types of temporary permits of admission which exist.
Section 22 Permit: Temporary, renewable
permit contemplated in the 1998 Refugees
Act, issued to an asylum seeker as a
testament that the bearer’s claim for asylum
is still to be certified, allowing the bearer to
reside in South Africa, but prohibiting work
and study (unless otherwise stated).
Section 24 Permit: Identification document
contemplated in the 1998 Refugees Act
granting refugee status to bearer and
allowing him/her to reside in South Africa for
a period of two years (renewable).
The exiles we spoke to in Pietermaritzburg
explained the illogical and corrupt process
of obtaining these permits. As there is no
Office of Home Affairs in Pietermaritzburg,
they have to travel to Durban to apply
for these permits. The office seems to
apportion permits to those who can pay a
bribe over those who can’t. In many cases
the Section 22 permit (which offers the
least right to remain) is only issued for up to
two weeks. This means the individual must
travel regularly to Durban to keep having it
renewed – no mean feat when they have
no money. Some of the people we met
explained that they would get there the
night before and sleep outside the office on
the street in order to stand a better chance
of being seen. However, in many cases,
they would be turned away and asked to
come back – especially if they had no bribe
money available.
As there are no official refugee
organizations, the advice and support
that most exiles receive comes through
the churches or through resident
Zimbabwean support groups. Our grants,
therefore, have been very gratefully
received. To summarise, I was hugely
impressed by our colleagues working
in the field and by the beneficiaries on
whose behalf we are sending support.
It is vital that we maintain our support to
SPT, through which we can reach many
worthy prisoners of conscience cases.
This project has been generously funded
by the John Ellerman Foundation and the
Dischma Charitable Trust.
“ I WOULD LIKE TO EXPRESS MY
PROFOUND GRATITUDE FOR YOUR
ENORMOUS HELP IN FUNDING MY
EDUCATION THROUGH THE PRISONERS
OF CONSCIENCE APPEAL FUND.”
From a beneficiary
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17
UK GRANTS
In the UK PoC still has two main grants projects; the payment of relief grants
to individuals who have been forced to flee their countries of origin, leaving
behind family and friends, and the Bursaries Fund; a scheme to help refugee
professionals requalify while in exile.
Our ‘standard’ relief grant is usually for
a relatively small amount - £350 or less.
But this money, channelled directly to an
individual at a crucial point in their life,
often when they have nowhere else to
turn, has an immense impact. Over the
years PoC grants have been used to buy
a vast range of items, from cookers to
text books, overcoats to travel cards. All
of these purchases represent something
more than practical assistance, they have
allowed people to regain their confidence
and independence and feel like valued
individuals again.
One of our beneficiaries summed up just
what a grant had meant to him: ‘I salute
you for your hard work in helping the
persecuted and traumatized people. It really
goes beyond description my gratitude. I
urge you to maintain such high standards
and hope the Fund will grow bigger to help
the ever increasing people who are forced
to flee their countries because of despotic
regime and oppression.”
Our Bursaries scheme continued in 2006 in
a slightly reduced manner. We awarded 10
bursary grants totalling just over £13,000.
This project began in 2001, largely in
partnership with RETAS, the Refugee
Education and Training Advisory Service.
We are now also collaborating with
CARA, the Council for Assisting Refugee
Academics, joint-funding applicants who
satisfy both CARA and PoC remits. Due
to limited funds, PoC offers funds for
post-graduate fees only, while CARA can
supply additional funds for other costs such
as travel, books, etc. In this way we can
complement each other and offer more
assistance to certain applicants.
The range of courses taken by our
bursary recipients reflects the very special
talents and experiences that are so often
characteristic of ex-prisoners of conscience.
International Peace and Security, Clinical
Microbiology and Biomedical Science
are just some of the courses that have
been studied by bursary recipients.
Over the six years that we have been
running this project, we have helped
83 people at a total cost in excess of
£300,000. Half of them have already
graduated and many are working. Six have
dropped out and four failed their exams,
which is no mean feat considering the fact
that many are disadvantaged by physical
and mental problems resulting from torture
and previous ill-treatment.
Few other organisations are able to offer
funding for postgraduate courses for
refugee professionals and we are very keen
to continue this work, which has such
positive outcomes for the beneficiaries and
their families.
Originally funded by a generous legacy and
a one-off grant from the Home Office, 2005
was the only year of this scheme when we
did not receive any dedicated funds for our
bursaries and, as a result, this put great
pressure on our general funds. In the light
of this, we were not able to accept any new
bursary applications in 2006, and could
only help previously successful candidates
who were progressing onto the next year
of their course. We normally give about
£50,000 to £60,000 to this project each
year for university fees only, although we
estimate that we could easily distribute
double that amount annually if we were
able to give more support costs to each
individual. We are now seeking to raise at
least £50,000 for next year’s distribution.
“ THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR YOUR
RECENT GRANT AWARD OF £500
FOR MY CLIENT ... SHE WILL NOW
BE ABLE TO PURCHASE BEDS AND
BEDDING FOR HER CHILDREN, THE
GRANT WILL MAKE AN ENORMOUS
DIFFERENCE TO ALL HER FAMILY.”
From a referral agency
18
19
EVENTS: BBC RADIO 4 APPEAL
We were lucky to be awarded a slot as one of Radio 4’s good causes and
even luckier to have our appeal read by John Simpson, BBC World Affairs
Editor and PoC Patron. With the help of a very friendly and professional team
at Radio 4 our appeal was initially broadcast on Sunday, 14th March 2006
and then repeated the following Thursday.
John spoke about two prisoners of
conscience, Joseph and Khambay. Joseph
had been persecuted for defending the
rights of Cameroon’s English-speaking
community. After being imprisoned and
tortured he fled to the UK where a PoC
grant helped him to update his teaching
qualifications and find employment teaching
autistic children.
Khambay, an elderly man from Laos, was
arrested and sentenced to fifteen years in
prison for becoming a Christian. Working
together with Christian Solidarity Worldwide
(CSW), one of our partner agencies, we
managed to send a grant to Khambay,
enabling him to be fitted for a pair of false
teeth. This simple procedure improved
Khambay’s life and health so much he
asked the attending dentist to write to PoC,
expressing his delight and gratitude.
Joseph and Khambay’s experiences
are very different but they are both truly
courageous individuals who were in need
of support at a crucial point in their lives.
John conveyed their unique stories with all
the passion and precision he brings to his
news reporting. Thanks to his donation of
time and talent our two minute radio appeal
raised £27,000 and put us in contact with
over 300 new donors.
JOHN SIMPSON RETIRES FROM POC AFTER
MORE THAN TEN YEARS AS PATRON
Sadly, this was John’s last official event for us as PoC
Patron. Due to certain contractual obligations with the
BBC, John had to step down in 2006. For more than
ten years, he has been a tremendous friend to PoC.
His personal appeals on our behalf have raised literally
hundreds of thousands of pounds towards our work
and have encouraged many new supporters to join us.
We could not have hoped to have a more passionate,
fluent and persuasive advocate of our work and will
remain eternally grateful to him for his support.
20
THE ROYAL GEOGRAPHICAL SOCIETY (WITH
IBG): THE GOOD, THE BAD AND THE UGLY
A couple of days after the Radio 4 appeal, on 14th March, John was back
in action, helping to publicise PoC’s work to an audience of 700 at the Royal
Geographical Society. The title of his lecture, ‘The Good, The Bad And The
Ugly’, allowed him to give us a fascinating glimpse of the experiences he has
had, reporting from more than one hundred countries around the world. The
central theme which emerged from John’s talk was heroism – as embodied
in ‘ordinary’ people who decide to make a stand against corruption, brutality
and oppression.
To illustrate the power of individual dissent
John took us back to Latin America in the
1980s, a time when much of the continent
was under military rule. During the course
of many trips he met two ordinary heroes,
Luis and Tex, who faced up to powerful
opponents and did what they could to
alleviate suffering and injustice.
and relatives of the ‘disappeared’, trying to
gather precise facts about the time, place
and manner of their abduction.
Luis, the mayor of a small town in Peru,
had an argument with drug cartels who
assumed they could always get their own
way by using violence and bribery. Tex, who
was working as a US government official
in Argentina, became outraged by the
phenomenon of the ‘disappeared’, those
people who were snatched off the street
or out of their own homes, often never to
be seen again and certainly never to be
brought to trial.
Luis resisted the drug dealers, an
extraordinary achievement which will be
remembered for many years in a small
town in Peru. Tex’s painstaking reports
brought results which were equally
remarkable, even though they took years
to become apparent. Generally speaking,
those individuals whose disappearances
were documented by him and his team
were not murdered. They reappeared,
sometimes years later, after dreadful
suffering, but alive, able to search for their
families and bear witness. The survival
rate for people who had featured in Tex’s
reports was far better than for those
whose abductions went unrecorded.
Luis, with the help of reporters like
John, devised a risky strategy of using
international publicity to defy the drug
barons. Tex, supported by a team of brave
volunteers, began to interview the friends
John’s talk brought to life Luis and Tex’s
personalities and the drama of their actions
in the most vivid and moving way. Everyone
at PoC would like to thank him for a very
memorable evening.
21
EVENTS: PBI VISIT TO POC
We have been working in partnership with Peace Brigades International UK
Section (PBI-UK) since 2004, contributing to the protective accompaniment
of the Cerezo Committee. In June 2006, Susi Bascon (PBI-UK Coordinator)
brought Alejandro Cerezo to meet PoC staff and supporters.
Alejandro is the youngest of the three
Cerezo brothers who, back in September
2001, were sentenced to 13 years in prison,
for allegedly setting off bombs in three
banks in Mexico City. Evidence to support
this accusation of terrorism and guerrilla
activity was not produced and many people
working in the human rights field in Mexico
felt the brothers had been targeted because
of their student activism and participation in
civil society groups.
“ THANK YOU FOR PUTTING A
SMILE ON MY FACE AFTER YEARS.
I LIKE TO STUDY BUT FINANCE
ALWAYS LIMITS ME. I AM SO
GLAD YOU HELP ME OUT. ”
From a beneficiary
22
The arrest and imprisonment of Alejandro,
Hector and Antonio led to the foundation
of the Cerezo Committee, established
by their sister and brother, Emiliana and
Francisco, to campaign for their pardon
and release from jail. A shocking setback
occurred when their lawyer, Digna Ochoa y
Placido, was found dead under suspicious
circumstances in October 2002. To date,
no-one has ever claimed responsibility for
this death, which was “staged” as a suicide.
Despite this, Emiliana and Francisco
continued their work and learnt about
other prisoners of conscience throughout
Mexico (Francisco Cerezo believes there
to be around 400 cases in Mexico but the
government refuses to acknowledge any).
By speaking out, Emiliana and Francisco
found themselves subject to harassment;
surveillance, death threats and feared
Francisco would also go to jail. The Cerezo
Committee has now grown into a fullyfledged NGO which documents human
rights abuses across Mexico, with a special
emphasis on keeping a tally of political
prisoners and pressing for their release or,
at least, an improvement in their treatment.
Alejandro was released from prison in
January 2005 but his brothers are still
detained in maximum security jails. They are
now starting their fifth year of imprisonment;
Hector is 26 and Antonio is 28. Five years
have been taken from the life of each of
these young men, years when they should
have been completing their education,
finding jobs, meeting new people and
perhaps starting families of their own.
Instead Hector and Antonio have spent
much of this precious time in observation
cells, measuring about 3 by 3 metres,
denied reading and writing materials,
exchanging just a few words with their
guards each day.
Alejandro and Susi gave us a fascinating
view of Mexican politics and society,
enabling us to see how the work of both
the Cerezo Committee and PBI fitted
into this larger picture. Their message
was that Mexico has, in a sense, fallen
off the human rights radar. To outsiders
it seems everything is moving in the right
direction; there are elections, there are
23
human rights groups and it is just a matter
of encouraging these trends and sorting
out a bit of poverty here and a touch of
corruption there. In reality, the situation is far
more ambiguous.
Alejandro explained how the Mexican state
has two faces regarding human rights, one
for international consumption and one for
the domestic audience. The international
face emphasises the importance of humane
behaviour and legal accountability whilst
the domestic one is far more authoritarian.
The government says it is building human
rights institutions yet these institutions show
no signs of independence, they always
follow the government line and justify the
authorities’ actions, no matter what they
are. The government also wants to send
a clear message to anyone who becomes
too critical and it is willing to use quite
direct forms of repression to silence and
intimidate dissenters.
Alejandro described a ‘set piece’ action
which took place in May 2006. Army
personnel, wearing police uniforms,
invaded a small town and arrested around
200 people, including community leaders
and human rights activists. Anyone who
encountered the army was threatened
and abused and women were sexually
molested. This sort of tactic is often used to
frighten people in remote towns where there
are likely to be few influential observers and
little media presence.
24
Despite this often hostile atmosphere,
the Cerezo Committee has expanded
from a tiny pressure group, run by a small
group of friends, into an organisation
with five offices in Mexico and one in
Canada. They are just starting to establish
a presence in Madrid, a process which
will hopefully be given impetus as a
result of Alejandro’s European visit.
Alejandro described how the authorities
put pressure on the families of political
prisoners in an effort to demoralise and
humiliate them. His sister, Emiliana, is
regularly strip-searched and X-rayed when
she goes to visit Hector and Antonio. There
seems to be a policy of sending political
prisoners to remote jails, making visiting
and maintaining family contact very
difficult. Over the past year in particular
conditions for political prisoners have
become more severe, apparently with
the aim of isolating them and breaking
their morale.
As well as documenting human rights
abuses they run a number of economic
projects which generate revenue as well as
publicising the Committee’s work. A cafe
near the national university in Mexico City
acts as a business and cultural centre, a
place for holding meetings, showing films
and displaying paintings, some of them the
work of political prisoners, including Hector
and Antonio. In Oaxaca province there is a
small workshop which makes shirts and bags
decorated with the Cerezo Committee logo.
This was a very special meeting as it
enabled us to meet, face to face, someone
who has benefited from PoC’s support.
There is no substitute for hearing the voice
of those who have faced persecution, yet
found the strength to survive and testify
to their experiences. Of course, like so
many of PoC’s beneficiaries, Alejandro has
done much more than simply survive. His
capacity to step from a prison cell into a
role as a human rights campaigner is a
great tribute to his tenacity and powers
of endurance, as well as his courage. His
whole demeanour demonstrates how quiet
patience and good humour can be the
most formidable opponents of injustice and
arbitrary power.
Thanks to both Alejandro and Susi for
helping to organise this meeting and
making it so memorable.
In the midst of this depressing
news it was very impressive
to hear of the Cerezo
Committee’s many and
varied activities.
25
REFERRAL AGENCIES
Referral agencies distributing £5,000 or more in 2006
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
Solidarity Peace Trust
Peace Brigades International
Education Action International (RETAS)
Guchusum Movement of Tibet
Association of Iranian Political Prisoners
Council for Assisting Refugee Academics
PEN Emergency Fund
SOLIDARITY PEACE TRUST (SPT)
The objectives of SPT are to assist
individuals, organisations, churches and
affiliated organisations in southern Africa,
to build solidarity in the pursuit of justice,
peace and social equality and equity in
Zimbabwe. It shall be the special concern
of the Trust to assist victims of human rights
abuses in their efforts to correct and end
their situation of oppression.
We started working with SPT in 2005.
www.solidaritypeacetrust.org
REFUGEE EDUCATION AND TRAINING
ADVISORY SERVICE (RETAS)
RETAS is a division of World University
Service (now Education Action International),
which was set up in 1992 to assist refugees
and exiled academics in Europe. RETAS
works with refugees in the UK giving them
advice and information on education and
employment. We have been receiving
referrals from RETAS since 1995, and they
have been our main referral agency for
Bursary Fund applicants since 2001.
www.education-action.org
26
South Africa/Zimbabwe
Mexico
United Kingdom
India/Tibet
Sweden/Iran
United Kingdom
Holland
£25,000
£14,400
£11,815
£8,725
£8,400
£5,668
£5,000
PEACE BRIGADES INTERNATIONAL (PBI)
Peace Brigades International (PBI) is a nongovernmental organization (NGO) which
protects human rights and promotes
non violent transformation of conflicts.
When invited, PBI sends teams of
volunteers into areas of repression and
conflict. The volunteers accompany human
rights defenders, their organizations and
others threatened by political violence.
Perpetrators of human rights abuses
usually do not want the world to witness
their actions. The presence of volunteers
backed by a support network helps to
deter violence. PBI creates space for local
activists to work for social justice and
human rights. We have been collaborating
with PBI since 2004.
www.peacebrigades.org
GUCHUSUM MOVEMENT OF TIBET
Guchusum is an ex political prisoner
organisation based in Dharamsala,
India. They help the suffering Tibetans
remaining in Chinese prisons in Tibet and
provide much needed support to expolitical prisoners and their families who
have journeyed into exile. Guchusum is
endorsed by HH The Dalai Lama, the
Tibetan Government in Exile and the
Indian Government. All 256 members of
Guchusum are former political prisoners.
Guchusum is named according to the
months in which major demonstrations
occurred in Lhasa. “Gu” is for September
27, 1987, “Chu” is for October 1, 1987, and
“Sum” is for March 5, 1988. We have been
collaborating with Guchusum since 1999.
www.guchusum.org
ASSOCIATION OF IRANIAN POLITICAL
PRISONERS (IN EXILE)
Following the massacre of political
prisoners by the Islamic regime of Iran in
the summer of 1988, a large number of
former Iranian political prisoners established
the Association of Iranian Political Prisoners
in March of 1989. The AIPP (in Exile) is the
overseas organisation of the Association of
Iranian Political Prisoners. The AIPP (in Exile)
was formed by a number of the founders of
the AIPP, who were forced to flee Iran and
live in exile, in June 1994. AIPP(in Exile) has
members in 11 countries and is currently
active in Sweden, Holland, Germany,
Australia, U.S.A, Canada, England and
Pakistan. We have been collaborating with
AIPP (in Exile) since 2004.
www.kanoon-zendanian.org
COUNCIL FOR ASSISTING
REFUGEE ACADEMICS (CARA)
CARA’s core work revolves around twice
yearly refugee-academic grant giving
rounds (February and August) and a
higher-education information signposting
service. These two activities underpin
CARA’s primary objective to support
refugee academics in their effort to rebuild
shattered academic and/or professional
careers within the UK and ensure that their
specialist knowledge and abilities continue
to benefit mankind.
CARA also facilitates and guides the work
of the CARA/SAR UK Universities Network,
established in 2005 to assist academics
at risk and defend and promote academic
freedom and university values worldwide.
We have been joint-funding eligible
candidates for post-graduate study with
CARA since 2004.
www.academic-refugees.org
PEN EMERGENCY FUND (PEF)
The PEN Emergency Fund has for more
than thirty years raised funds to help writers
and journalists imprisoned or otherwise
threatened for the practice of their right to
freedom of expression, and has provided
support for their families. Cases are brought
to its attention by International PEN’s
Writers in Prison Committee. We have been
collaborating with PEF since 1999.
www.internationalpen.org.uk
27
FINANCIAL STATEMENT
SUMMARY STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES
FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2006
INCOMING RESOURCES
Donations and grants
TRUSTEES STATEMENT ON THE SUMMARISED ACCOUNTS
FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2006
UNRESTRICTED
RESTRICTED
2006
2005
£
£
£
£
396,718
119,591
516,309
290,345
Fundraising events
7,548
7,548
Bank interest
8,115
8,115
3,803
Other incoming resources
4,075
4,075
2,040
TOTAL INCOMING RESOURCES
416,456
119,591
536,047
296,188
69,361
3,123
72,484
79,139
130,802
85,978
216,780
238,637
10,525
9,242
RESOURCES EXPENDED
Costs of generating funds
CHARITABLE EXPENDITURE
Relief Payments and supporting costs
Governance costs
10,525
TOTAL RESOURCES EXPENDED
210,688
89,101
299,789
327,018
NET INCOMING/(OUTGOING)
RESOURCES FOR THE YEAR
205,768
30,490
236,258
(30,830)
Transfers between funds
(4,114)
4,114
Fund balance brought forward
60,311
17,065
77,376
108,206
£261,965
£51,669
£313,634
£77,376
FUND BALANCE CARRIED FORWARD
2006
2005
5,748
8,372
Current assets
319,849
83,584
Current liabilities
(11,963)
(14,580)
£313,634
£77,376
261,965
60,311
51,669
17,065
£313,634
£77,376
NET ASSETS
AUDITORS’ STATEMENT ON THE SUMMARISED ACCOUNTS OF
PRISONERS OF CONSCIENCE APPEAL FUND
We have examined the summary accounts set out opposite.
RESPECTIVE RESPONSIBILITIES OF TRUSTEES AND AUDITORS
The summarised accounts are the responsibility of the trustees of the charity. It is our
responsibility to report to you our opinion on their consistency with the full financial
statements.
Opinion
In our opinion the summarised accounts have been extracted from, and are consistent with
the full financial statements of the charity for the year ended
31 December 2006.
John Green & Co
Certified Accountants and Registered Auditors
SUMMARISED BALANCE SHEET
AS AT 31 DECEMBER 2006
Fixed assets
These summarised accounts are a summary of information extracted from the audited annual
accounts, on which the auditors’ opinion was unqualified. The full report and accounts
were approved by the trustees on 24 April 2007 and have been submitted to the Charity
Commission. These summarised accounts may not contain sufficient information to allow
for a full understanding of the financial affairs of the Charity. For further information the full
accounts, the auditors’ report on those accounts and the Trustees’ Annual Report should be
consulted. Copies of these may be obtained from the secretary at PO Box 36789, London
SW9 9XF.
Suite 2.16 Astra House
Arklow Road
London SE14 6EB
24 April 2007
FUNDS:
Unrestricted funds:
Restricted funds
TOTAL FUNDS
28
29
STAFF
Lynn Carter, Director (full-time)
Emma Lundie, Grants Officer (part-time)
Kirsty Bennett, Grants Officer (part-time)
Rachael Tyndall, Administrator & Volunteer
Co-ordinator (part-time)
Brigitte Istim, Fundraiser (part-time)
Belinda Ryan (maternity cover)
TRUSTEES
Andrew Scadding (Chairman)
Gary Allison
Anne Bolitho
Lucy Chandler
Sherna Ghyara Chatterjee
Prins Gunasekara
Gillian Harvey (Vice Chairman)
Martin Macpherson
John Morrison (retired May 2006)
Denis Neale
Jacqueline Sealey
PATRONS
Dr M A Zaki Badawi (Died January 2006)
The Rt Rev Simon Barrington-Ward
Justin de Blank
Sir Louis Blom-Cooper KT QC
Tom Blumenau OBE JP
Lord Briggs
The Right Rev John Crawley
Dame Judi Dench DBE
Cecil Evans
Lady Antonia Fraser
Rosamund Horwood-Smart QC
Baroness Helena Kennedy QC
Sir Ludovic Kennedy
Bruce Kent
Norman Marsh QC CBE
Caroline Moorehead
Rabbi Julia Neuberger DBE
Jonathon Porritt CBE
Lord Puttnam CBE
John Simpson CBE (retired 2006)
Guy Stringer CBE FRSA
Rt Hon Jeremy Thorpe PC
Zoë Wanamaker CBE
Sir Osmond Williams Bt MC JP
INTERNATIONAL PATRON
Desmond Tutu, Archbishop Emeritus
Prisoners of Conscience Appeal Fund
Relief for non-violent victims of religious & political oppression
PO Box 36789, London SW9 9XF. www.prisonersofconscience.org
Tel: 020 7738 7511 Fax: 020 7733 7592 Email: info@prisonersofconscience.org