Mekong Alumni attend Building the Advocacy Capacity of Civil Society Organizations to Engage with the World Bank and Asian Development Bank training and make presentations about projects affecting their communities.
Mekong School alumni Shining (Burma 2006), Piseth (Cambodia 2008), Dang (Vietnam 2008), Nonglak (Laos 2008), Dorn (Laos 2007), and An Nhien (Vietnam 2008) had the chance to attend a 5-day training-workshop on Building the Advocacy Capacity of Civil Society Organizations to Engage with the World Bank and Asian Development Bank.
The workshop was organized by the Bank Information Center, Vietnam Rivers Network and the Institute of Tropical Biology in Ho Chi Minh City. Sessions on World Bank Group's accountability mechanisms brought together participants from regional NGOs, networks and community-based organizations to deepen their practical understanding of the World Bank Inspection Panel and Compliance Advisor Ombudsman functions and how they can use these internal corrective processes as tools to advocate for greater accountability in World Bank projects. On the final day of the workshop, Mr. Werner Kiene, Chairman of the World Bank Inspection Panel, and Compliance Advosor Ombudsman Emily Horgan travelled from Washington, DC to hear specific concerns.
Mekong School alumni Piseth (Cambodia 2008) presented the information he had gathered during his Mekong School field work session on the World Bank's support of the Sihanoukville Airport expansion project, highlighting the adverse impacts the project is having on the local community. Piseth spoke about the community members' concerns regarding land confiscation and compensation for nearly an hour, and the inspection panel members asked many questions in return. Afterwards, they complemented Piseth on the thoroughness of the facts he presented, and indicated that he had a very strong case. Piseth has now applied for a Mekong alumni small grant to work directly with the community to file a formal petition. Upon receiving the petition, the World Bank's Office of the Compliance Advisor/Ombudsman (CAO) will met to assess the validity of the complaint, and should they accept that the project indeed violates World Bank safeguard policies, they will send representatives to investigate. Should the investigation affirm the facts that Piseth presented, the project will be re-evaluated, and changes will be made to ensure the community members are treated fairly and receive just compensation. This is an example of the real-life impacts of our Mekong School students' investigative work.
At the workshop, Lao alumni Dorn and Nonglak also had the opportunity to present on the difficulties of ensuring that development projects in Laos are carried out fairly. The Chairman of the World Bank Inspection Panel said that he didn't understand why so many people from international NGOs complain about the Nam Theun 2 dam project, but that no Lao people have ever complained. Dorn and Nonglak explained that it was difficult for outsiders to access the project area and talk to local people freely and difficult for affected communities to get accurate information about what is going on, and that few people dare to make a complaint. The Chairman said that if any Lao people want to file a complaint about Nam Theun 2, the Inspection Panel is ready to listen and possibly investigate. Our Lao alumni took this as a direct challenge!
Shining also had the opportunity to present about the impacts of indirect funding by the World Bank of projects in Burma, and the Inspection Panel members listened closely to her concerns.
Dorn becomes the new Mekong Coordinator of the NGO Forum's International Committee and goes to Darwin, to attend the Diplomacy Training Program's Regional Indigenous Peoples Human Rights and Advocacy Program
Dorn (Laos 2007) attended the ADB Annual General Meeting in Bali, Indonesia as a guest of the NGO Forum on the ADB, where she was nominated to serve as the new Mekong Coordinator of the NGO Forum's International Committee. In her new position, Dorn will be the point person for communication between the Forum and regional members, encouraging active participation in advocacy and campaigning activities in the Mekong region.
Following the ADB meeting, Dorn traveled directly to Darwin, Australia where she joined Sangthorng (Cambodia 2008) in attending the Diplomacy Training Program's Regional Indigenous Peoples Human Rights and Advocacy Program. The program is affiliated with the Faculty of Law, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia, and brings together 30 participants from civil society organizations from the Asia-Pacific and Indigenous Australia. The course provides participants with a solid foundation of knowledge of the international human rights framework and the UN system. There are intensive sessions on advocacy and media skills, research and advocacy on the internet, as well as exploration of some of the human rights challenges associated with globalization. We will help Dorn and Sangthorng to bring the knowledge and skills gained at the training back to share with our Mekong Alumni Network.