Legal frameworks and advocacy communication for the field of rights were the focus of the second phase of the Mobilizing Support course run by CESE in Salvador (Bahia) between 6 and 8 April.
The training was part of the Change the Game Programme, a programme to strengthen organizations in terms of local fundraising and mobilizing support strategies, which is an initiative of the Dutch foundation Wild Geese, in conjunction with the Smile Foundation (India), KCDF (Kenya) and CESE (Brazil) and with support from the Dutch government.
The initiative brought together representatives from 10 organizations and movements representing a range of social sectors, such as rural workers, indigenous peoples, the ecumenical movement, children and young people, quilombola communities and people affected by mining.
For the training on how to use legal frameworks to defend rights , the course counted on the expertise of the Association of Lawyers for Rural Workers in the State of Bahia (AATR-BA). Through practical activities and oral explanations, the participants were able to make contact with and improve their knowledge of the range of agencies and municipal, state and federal bodies with which advocacy may be undertaken, and the legal instruments that apply to each.
The discussion about real legal cases enabled those present to discuss and share their knowledge of certain concepts, such as the judicialization of social conflicts. “There are pathways to be taken before judicializing a case, for example, we can look at the table of allies and identify ways de influence powerful actors in favour of our causes”, observed the representative from the ACT Brazil Ecumenical Forum, Ana Gualberto, remembering learning from the first phase of the course on mobilizing support. Maurício Correia, the AATR facilitator, calls attention that judicialization must be undertaken in a mature and strategic manner and that organizations should assess other possibilities of intervention.
The Bahia Collective for the Right to Communication (Coletivo Baiano Pelo Direito à Comunicação: CBCOM) contributed in the Communication for Advocacy training. The public relations Alex Pegna used an analogy with “coronelism”, i.e, a specific arrangement in the Brazilian Old Republic (end of XIX century), responsible for the centralization of the political power in the hands of a locally dominant oligarch, to refer to the scenario of concentration of media in the country and pointed to possibilities for alternative communication to break down the social movements’ invisibility in the mass media.
“Our education is colonizing. We are educated to defend those who have always had power in their hands. With the media looking over them, they are afraid of sending in the police,” asserted Anastácio Peralta, leader of the Guarani Kaiowa from Mato Grosso do Sul, regarding the power that media visibility has to curb the violence of local ranchers against the indigenous peoples.
After reflecting on the highs and lows of communication campaigns conducted by a number of movements, it was time to roll up sleeves. The participants were challenged to develop communication campaigns regarding a common point: the use of agro-ecological food in school meals. The campaigns’ principal mistakes and successes were discussed, refining skills to develop communication products in social movements and organizations.
“This course is really valuable; I already have so many ideas in mind. We have a problem in the union movement (common to many social movements), which is a lack of funding for communication professionals. Since we have addressed this communication issue, I hope to do better work in this area. We have seen some examples that we can adapt to our context,” said Lucas Mendonça, from the Parochial Environment Commission (Caetité, Bahia).
Lucas added that he found the training in legal frameworks interesting. “I didn’t know all the institutions that were presented here. Our work ended up being somewhat restricted, because we didn’t know about the possibilities for advocacy as a whole. This course has broadened our horizons in this sense”, said the representative of the Parochial Environment Commission.
Refining advocacy strategies will also contribute to the struggles of the Tupinambá indigenous peoples from Serra do Padeiro, in the South of Bahia. “On our return, we will focus mainly on the construction of the school, which has been delayed by several years. To give you an idea, they flattened the land, sent the chairs and ceramics and nothing else! We don’t know what happened. We will run these advocacy activities, seeking out all possible means to see the college completed”, asserted the Tupinambá Osman Barbosa.
The Casa Branca Candomblé House of Worship
In order to demonstrate to the course participants the historical and cultural riches of African origin, the group visited the Casa Branca Candomblé House of Worship in Engenho Velho, first house of Afro-Brazilian worship to be recognized as national heritage.
During the visit, comparisons with indigenous culture were inevitable. While in Candomblé an Orisha references each natural element, Anastácio Peralta noted that this profound connection with nature also occurs in indigenous cultures, saying, “We indigenous also have a prayer for each natural element.”
Next phase
The next and final phase of the Mobilizing Support Course will address the monitoring and evaluation of advocacy activities and will be held between 30 May and 1 June.