The ABC's of ADVOCACY

169 Pages·2010·3.78 MB·English

The ABC’s of ADVOCACY
Enriched with case studies from
Jordan, Lebanon, and Palestine
DanChurchAid
January 2010

III
THE ABC'S OF ADVOCACY
Entriched with Case Studies from Jordan, Lebanon and Palestine
Editors: Cristina Mansfield and Lina Alameddine, Partnership Center for Development
and Democracy (PCDD)
Graphic designer: Moon Design
THE ABC'S OF ADVOCACY presents the principles, strategies, and techniques of
effective advocacy campaigns in an easy-to-read format. The section on advocacy
cases from Jordan, Lebanon and Palestine offers a close-up look at examples taken
from the region.
This publication is funded by DCA based on the Advocacy Expert Series developed by
Pact Cambodia in 2004. Special thanks to the Advocacy and Policy Institute of
Cambodia and in particular to Victoria Ayer for designing a tremendously successful
advocacy training program. Thanks also to Colin Bunn who developed the original
graphics.
Lina Alameddine is the Director of the Partnership Center for Development &
Democracy (PCDD) in Lebanon, which promotes a cultural approach to development
and democracy. She has extensive experience training political leaders and civil
society practitioners throughout the Arab world and is a champion of women's rights.
Her most recent publication is entitled Advocacy and the WTO Liberalization Policies
and their Economic and Social Impacts.
Cristina Mansfield has been researching and teaching advocacy since 2004 when she
published Advocacy in Cambodia: Increasing Democratic Space. She has conducted
training in countries as varied as Kyrgyzstan, Uganda, Honduras, Lebanon, Palestine
and Haiti.
We encourage you to copy all or part of this guide and to share it with others.
An electronic version of this publication can be downloaded at:
DanChurchAid www.danchurchaid.org
Pact www.pactworld.org
PCDD www.pcdd.org
DanChurchAid, 2010
Published by DanChurchAid (DCA)
DCA is a non-governmental organization
Nørregade 15
DK-1165 Copenhagen K
Denmark

V
FOREWORD
I
n the past decades, human rights and democratisation has been on the
political agenda of most countries in the world. However, despite formal
democratic reform, decentralisation and other measures taken to narrow the gap
between state administrations and citizens, large population groups remain
excluded from political and economic development processes. Even where states
have specifically created opportunities for citizen participation and influence, certain
groups, particularly the impoverished and the discriminated, have either been too
alienated to engage in the processes or when they have, they have been silenced or
unable to speak the ‘right’ language. They have been ignored and threatened
because more powerful groups maintain that they do not have the right to
participate.
Established in 1922, DanChurchAid (DCA) is one of the major Danish humanitarian
non governmental organisations working with local partners, international networks,
churches and non-religious civil organisations to assist poor and marginalised
population groups world wide. DanChurchAid carries out its work with the objective
to help and be advocates of oppressed, neglected and marginalised groups in poor
countries and to strengthen their possibilities of a life in dignity.
The purpose of this manual is to provide a tool for marginalised or discriminated
groups, and the civil society organisations that work on their behalf, to advocate for
the equal rights and opportunities of all citizens, regardless of their gender,
religious or ethnic belonging. Its creation has been based on experience and lessons
learned drawn from advocacy work in the Middle East and endless efforts of DCAs
partners to promote democracy and human rights for all citizens in this part of the
world. We hope that the examples, best practices and strategic advise provided in
this manual may also be of inspiration to individuals and groups outside the Middle
east who work to narrow the gap between state administrations and citizens and
who speak on the behalf of those who are excluded from political and economic
development processes.
It is through their endless efforts and struggle that we can make more people feel
that their country, region or town is governed by the will of the people.
DanChurchAid
January 2010

VII
INTRODUCTION
A
dvocacy is a dynamic process that relies heavily on the local cultural and
political context. While it is not possible to apply techniques indiscriminately,
some of the basic principles – such as ensuring that those on whose behalf we
advocate are included in the process – are relevant to all contexts.
The ABCs of Advocacy aims to provide an audience of Middle Eastern advocates with
an introduction to advocacy enriched with real-life case studies. This manual was
created in response to growing interest on the part of MENA civil society for
materials designed for the region not by outsiders but by an activist familiar with the
needs of society. The first section begins by examining the role of civil society in
advocacy, power issues, and principles needed for successful initiatives. This is
followed by a review of campaign planning where the reader learns to identify and
analyze problems and define the advocacy issue. As part of the planning process,
advocates learn to set objectives and indicators, analyze stakeholders, and identify
targets. They also learn message development, analyzing strengths and weaknesses
and mobilizing resources for the campaign. At the implementation stage three major
advocacy strategies are reviewed in detail: lobbying, working with the media and
building coalitions. Finally, the reader receives an introduction to the emerging field
of electronic advocacy and the basics of advocacy evaluation.
The final section presents a dozen case studies from Jordan, Lebanon and Palestine.
The topics range from local-level advocacy to re-open a municipal library in Jordan
to a national campaign in Lebanon to improve accessing to the voting booths for the
disabled. The case studies are not necessarily success stories; rather they aim to
faithfully narrate the process that advocates went through. For that reason they are
valuable as learning tools. Together the cases provide a wealth of resources on
creative tactics as well as critical analysis of the challenges encountered by
advocates and the lessons they learned.
DanChurchAid and the authors would like to express their gratitude to the
organizations that were so generous in sharing their stories. It is in sharing that
we enrich each other.
Table of Contents
I. INTRODUCTION
Everyone is talking about advocacy these days, but what is it? 13
Why is Advocacy Important? 15
What is the Role of Civil Society in Advocacy? 15
Why Do We Need to Know About Power? 17
What Do We Need to Know About Power? 17
How Do Power Structures Affect Our Choice of Advocacy Strategy? 18
What is Our Role as an Advocate? 19
What Do We Need to Be Successful? 20
II. PREPARING YOUR ADVOCACY CAMPAIGN
What are the Steps of an Advocacy Campaign? 25
Step 1 Define the Issue/Identify the Problem 26
Problem Tree 26
Public Opinion Polls 27
Step 2 Research 29
Desk Review 29
Research Methods 30
Step 3 Plan 31
a. Setting Goals and Objectives 31
b. Setting Indicators 32
c. Identifying Stakeholders 33
d. Mapping Stakeholders 34
e. Identifying Targets 36
f. Deciding on a Strategy 38
g. Developing Your Advocacy Message 39
h. Analyzing Strengths and Weaknesses 41
i. Mobilizing Resources 42
Step 4 Implement 46
Strategy I: Lobbying 46
a. What is the Legislative Process? 47
b. Where De We Start Lobbying? (The Entry Points) 52
c. What Else Do We Need to Know about the Legislative Process? 68
d. How Do We Analyze Legislators? 69
e. How Can We Prepare Convincing Arguments for Legislators? 71
f. How Can We Create Opportunities to Meet with Legislators? 72
Table of Contents
Strategy II: Working with the Media 74
a. Why Should We Work with the Media? 75
b. How Do We Attract the Media? 76
c. How Do We Create Relationships With the Media? 77
d. What Tools Can We Use To Approach The Media? 78
e. What is Electronic Advocacy? 85
f. Why Do We Need to Track the Media? 92
Strategy III: Building a Coalition 94
a. What is a Coalition? 94
b. Why Should We Form A Coalition? 95
c. What Are the Essential Elements of a Coalition? 97
d. How Can We Promote Leadership in a Coalition? 98
e. How Can We Make Fair Group Decisions? 100
f. How Can We Manage Conflict Within the Coalition? 101
Sample Advocacy Activities 102
Step 5 Evaluate 103
CASE STUDIES
Lebanon
Child Custody Age 110
Compliance of Lebanese Law with CEDAW 114
"My Right" (Hakki) Campaign for People with Disabilities to Vote
with Dignity and Independence 118
"Our Right to Know" Campaign for the Disappeared 122
Jordan
Bill of Rights 127
Campaign against Early Marriage 131
Family Protection Law 134
Information Services for Youth 138
Palestine
Amending the Penal Code 142
Combating Violence Against Women 147
Palestinian Model Parliament: Women and Legislation 151
Patients' Rights 154
Women's Quota for Local Authorities 158
RESOURCES 163
GLOSSARY 166