International Human Rights Academy

(August 13 - 28, 2004)
by Atty. Maita C. Gonzaga

Atty. Maita C. Gonzaga

It is said that the best things in life are oftentimes things which one did not actively seek. I guess that could also be said of experiences. I was not supposed to attend the IHRA. My boss, Atty. Carlos P. Medina, was slated to attend but found out, rather late in the day, that peace talks between the Government of the Republic (GRP) and the National Democratic Front were to be held in Oslo at the same time as the IHRA. As he was the Chairperson of the GRP’s Joint Monitoring Committee for the Comprehensive Agreement on Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law, he knew he could not be absent from the round of peace talks at such a critical time.

Having been asked to name a replacement and thinking I would benefit from such an experience, Atty. Medina submitted my name for consideration. I readied my CV and filled out an application. In no time at all, I was informed that my application was approved, the substitution permitted, and I was to prepare the necessary travel documents for a trip to the Netherlands. Ms. Simone Okaj-Braun of FNF’s International Academy for Leadership (IAF) emailed me with the details of the IHRA and the arrangements made for the FNF scholars. Such attention to detail and care for our convenience was the hallmark of Simone, whose patience and thoughtfulness I would later on come to appreciate very much.

As I mentioned in the introduction the organizers required of us, having lived all my life in a tropical country half a world away, Europe fascinated me. While I had been to the Netherlands before when I backpacked my way across the continent after law school, the prospect of seeing it again was exciting. But more than that, I was looking forward to meeting individuals from other parts of the globe who shared the same passion for human rights advocacy. I was also looking forward to learning new things from experts in human rights and humanitarian law.

An Auspicious Start on Friday the 13th: The FNF Frame Program

Having arrived in Europe on August 11 (I wanted to make a side trip to Brussels and knew I wouldn’t have time to linger after the Academy), I was not with the rest of the participants who were met by an FNF representative at Schiphol Airport on the 13th. Instead, I intrepidly found myself hopping on trains and buses first from Brussels to Amsterdam, and then from Amsterdam to Utrecht. I arrived at the Carlton President Hotel right outside Utrecht town proper at noon on the 13th in time to share a “getting to know you” lunch with the other Filipino scholar, Atty. Regina Castillo. While we were both lawyers, she worked in the government while I belonged to an NGO outfit so we had a lot of interesting discussions regarding the practice of law in the Philippines and the state of the nation, both political and economic.

At six o’clock that evening, all eleven FNF scholars converged in a seminar room at the hotel and were warmly received by representatives of the Foundation’s IAF. Mr. Jorg Dehnert and Ms. Okaj-Braun formally welcomed us to the Foundation’s frame program. Mr. Dehnert gave us a quick but concise introduction to the Foundation and its goal of promoting liberalism in Germany and abroad. What I remember distinctly about his talk was his recounting of Friedrich Naumann’s ideas which included the belief that informed, educated and active individuals were good for democracy. I mean, this is something we almost take for granted nowadays but at the turn of the century, such an idea could arguably have bordered on the radical. Upon giving the matter more thought, I had to admit that while it is a readily accepted idea today, an informed, educated and active citizenry remains an aspiration which the Philippines, for one, has yet to achieve. But then again, that’s what we’re here for, isn’t it?

The next activity, moderated by Dr. Stefan Melnik, saw us introducing ourselves (the scholars, that is) to the group and learning about each other’s work and advocacies. I was very excited at the prospect of getting to know the other participants better as they came from places I’ve only read about and yet were doing work which, to my mind, was very similar to my own advocacies.

There was Larissa, an economist from Peru who became a very good friend; Bhimarjun from Nepal who, I was delighted to learn, was a constitutional expert I could bug about comparative constitutional law; Geetha from India who had very strong opinions about vital issues; Balu, also from India, who I had a difficult time understanding because of his accent but whose ideas regarding the balance between globalization and national self-reliance were extremely thought-provoking; Nataly from Argentina whose work in the Parliament of Argentina sounded terribly exciting; Ahmad whose stories of Palestine and the conflict never failed to make me pause and reflect on the tragedies we human beings are capable of; Ali from Pakistan whose work in human rights curriculum development mirrored something we want to do in the Philippines as well (and who was very happy about Pakistan winning a crucial cricket match against India while we were in Amsterdam); Sharon from Malaysia who is definitely a kindred spirit (and a great partner in crime); Douaa from Egypt who never failed to brighten my day with her motherly concern (not to mention her shopping abilities) and who Sharon and I plan to visit early next year; and of course, Reggie who works with Senator Pangilinan and who I’m glad I got to know quite well away from Manila.

The frame program continued the following day with Dr. Melnik on liberalism and human rights. We were given an overview of history and activities in the field of human rights and the Foundation’s work in it. We discussed our work, the organizations we represented and how FNF can help human rights activists in our respective countries. Finally, we talked of the major human rights problems in our countries and how liberalism can make a useful contribution towards solving them. The working group session for this particular discussion was very spirited and we had a very lively discussion on how liberalism and the ideas traditionally associated with it (e.g., tolerance, the rule of law, etc.) could make a difference in our worlds.

Dr. Melnik was a veritable trove of information. I enjoyed not only the sessions he moderated but the informal discussions at lunch and dinner where the more casual exchange of ideas and stories were very entertaining.

While the IAF staff made sure that we had a pretty good idea of the Foundation’s work and what liberalism was all about, they did not neglect to ensure that we get a chance to see Utrecht and arranged for a guided tour of the historical city center on Sunday. We had a chance to explore the lovely town on foot and were treated to an excellent lunch in the city which was made infinitely more enjoyable by the company of friends.

The International Human Rights Academy

From the very first day of the Academy when all of us (around eighty participants from all over the world) trooped to the Utrecht City Hall to be welcomed by Mrs. Brouwer-Korf, the Mayor of Utrecht; Mr. Vande Lanotte, the Deputy Prime Minister of Belgium; and Mr. Dorresteijn, the Dean of Utrecht University’s Faculty of Law, I knew that it was going to be a singular experience.

In the two weeks of the Academy, we had lectures on various topics ranging from international law to transitional law, from human rights to humanitarian law, from UN treaty-based mechanisms to regional mechanisms. I looked forward to every lecture, eager to learn new things from people who were movers and shakers in the field, advocates working for a common cause. There were sessions which I found exceptional. I listened to Paul Hunt, the Special Rapporteur on the Right to Health, speak of his mandate and the constraints he had to deal with and knew that here was a man who could make a difference. I paid special attention to the sessions on the Interamerican System and the Interamerican Convention not only because my work deals with the establishment of a similar system but also because the sessions were presented by Claudia Martin, an Argentinean lawyer from the Academy on Human Rights and Humanitarian Law of the American University whose slight and petite build hid a first class brain. While not all the speakers were very organized or commanding in their delivery, the subject matter of their talks were guaranteed to have us endeavoring to keep up with the discussion. Suffice it to say that every session was different and succeeded in making me think.

Aside from the lectures held in the hotel, we also had a day trip to the Hague where we made a visit (a pilgrimage of sorts for someone like me) to the Peace Palace. While we were at the Hague, we listened to a lecture on the functioning of the Yugoslavia Tribunal. After that, a member of the International Forensic Team also talked about forensic investigations of mass graves which I found to be very disquieting, to say the least.

How do I describe the academic program of the IHRA in one word? Excellent. Not perfect but excellent nonetheless. Points for improvement would include the option of putting the reading materials in CD-ROM format instead of hard copy. I would also have liked other topics discussed during the two-week program. For instance, a talk on the International Criminal Court would have been very helpful and a session on Human Rights in Asia would have been appreciated. I made sure to include such observations in detail when I completed my evaluation form so I hope that the organizers of the Academy will take such suggestions into consideration when planning the next program.

One Final Note

In 1754, an English earl, Horace Walpole, later known for his extensive correspondence, created a word which I have always liked – serendipity. Fortunate accidents. Inadvertent wisdom. To quote Walpole himself, accidental sagacity.

My attending the International Human Rights Academy (IHRA) in Utrecht last August was, for me, a grand adventure comparable to that undertaken by the princes of Serendip (an adventure which was the subject of a fairy tale from which Walpole coined the term). In his version of a Sinbad adventure, The Last Voyage of Somebody the Sailor, John Barth wrote that, “[One] doesn’t reach Serendip by plotting a course for it. [One has] to set out in good faith for elsewhere and lose [one’s] bearings serendipitously.”

I left to attend the IHRA to gain theoretical knowledge and academic learnings regarding human rights and international humanitarian law and while I did do that, I stumbled upon a deeper appreciation of the work that I do here in my own country. Accidental sagacity? Conceivably. I sat there and listened to the experts talk of the different regional human rights mechanisms and began to understand the enormity of that which we in the Working Group for an ASEAN Human Rights Mechanism are undertaking and the potential of being able to do a world of good if we succeed.

I set out for the Netherlands to meet new people and while I did do that, I also came face to face with myself and gained a better understanding of why it is I love my work. “Your personal calling is the intersection of your heart’s greatest happiness and the world’s greatest needs”. A Jesuit said that, I don’t recall exactly who. But there in a place miles away from home, I stopped being restless and accepted that perhaps my work, insignificant though it may seem sometimes, is what I am meant to do in the greater scheme of things. Inadvertent wisdom? Perhaps.

Like everybody else, I grumbled and whined about the cumbersome weight of all the readings we were given by the IHRA (10 kilograms out of an allowed check-in baggage allotment of 20 kilograms!) but I carried them all home nonetheless. And while I sit here, writing this report, going through the materials I came home with, I realized that I brought home so much more than the 10 kilograms of readers and books. I came home with email addresses of new friends and plans of meeting up in the future. I brought home new learnings and a deeper appreciation of my work. I packed away a more enlightened comprehension of my values and wonderful memories of a fortnight in beautiful Holland. In other words, I came home infinitely enriched by the experience. And that is unquantifiable.