When invited, we send 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. We create space for local activists to work for social justice and human rights.
Where does PBI work?
Currently, we have volunteers protecting human rights activists in Colombia, Indonesia, and Mexico, as well as a project restarting in Guatemala and a joint project with other organizations in Chiapas, Mexico.
How can I help?
PBI volunteers and supporters around the world demonstrate that individuals working together can act boldly as peacekeepers even when governments cannot or will not. You can help in a variety of ways (see 'What You Can Do' links opposite). The effectiveness of our volunteers depends directly on the support that we can draw on.
Brigadas Internacionales de Paz (PBI) es una organización que promueve la paz y defiende los derechos humanos.
A petición de organizaciones locales, enviamos grupos de voluntarios a áreas que se encuentran en conflicto y bajo represión política. Estos voluntarios acompañan a defensores de los derechos humanos, a sus organizaciones y a aquellos que son víctimas de la violencia. Los responsables de las violaciones de los derechos humanos no quieren que el mundo sepa de sus acciones. La presencia de los voluntarios, apoyada por una red de emergencia ayuda a disuadir la violencia. De esta manera creamos el espacio para que activistas locales puedan trabajar en pro de la justicia social y de los derechos humanos.
¿Dónde trabaja PBI?
Actualmente las Brigadas Internacionales de Paz tienen proyectos a largo plazo en Colombia, Indonesia, y México y un nuevo proyecto en Guatemala, al igual que un proyecto en conjunto con otras organizaciones en Chiapas, México.
¿Cómo puedo ayudar?
Los voluntarios de PBI y las personas de todo el mundo que brindan su apoyo, nos demuestran que trabajando en forma conjunta se puede actuar valientemente para restablecer la paz, con o sin el apoyo de los gobiernos. Tú puedes ayudar de diferentes maneras. La eficacia de nuestros voluntarios depende en forma directa de todo el apoyo que se pueda obtener.
Links
On volunteers:
"The accompaniment volunteer is literally an embodiment of international human rights concern, a compelling and visible reminder to those using violence that it will not go unnoticed."
On being nonpartisan:
"Nonpartisanship is a widely misunderstood issue facing all humanitarian organizations working in conflict situations...Nonpartisan service responds to demonstrable objective and external criteria rather than to alignments in the conflict. Categories such as the poor, the suffering, and those in need are criteria that cross boundaries of specific political conflicts. To be partial but nonpartisan, then, is to say, "We will be at your side in the face of injustice and suffering, but we will not take sides against those you define as enemies."
On deterrence:
"If the general deterrence attempt of the international community could ensure respect for human rights, there would be no need for accompaniment. When Mejía underestimated or ignored the international community's concerns about the GAM, and Hector and Rosario were killed, PBI accompaniment was the next line of defense. Immediate deterrence becomes necessary when general deterrence fails. Accompaniment does not replace the general deterrence attempts of the human rights community: the two complement each other."
On the idea of political space:
"The concept of political space is crucial to understanding how the incremental protection and encouragement provided by accompaniment interact with each other. Each actor in a complex conflict situation, whether a soldier or a human rights activist, perceives a broad array of possible political actions and associates a certain cost or set of consequences with each action. The actor perceives some consequences as acceptable and some as unacceptable, thereby defining the limits of a distinct political space."
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