(Please send comments to Courtney Mireille O'Connor
<[log in to unmask]>.)
Greetings, Fellow Forced Migration List Members!
I have been a member of this valuable listserv for a
few weeks, but onlynow have a moment to introduce
myself. Although you will find my name below, most
Spanish-speaking colleagues know me as "Mireya".
In my former life, I worked for various human rights
NGOs, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (in the
field and in headquarters) and the UN
Secretary-General (on the first peace mission to
include a human rights component, the UN Observer
Mission in El Salvador).
I have been my own boss since 1995, providing advice
and other services on a contract basis to governments,
intergovernmental organizations and nongovernmental
organizations concerned with human rights, protection
of uprooted persons, armed conflict, conflict
transformation, peace-building and post-conflict
reconstruction.
My current projects have me focussing on the four
following themes, all of which influence the
protection of uprooted persons in some way:
1. Expediting individual, 1951 Convention status
determination worldwide with rebuttable presumptions
triggered by evidentiary benchmarks implicit in the
OAU and Cartagena alternative refugee definitions.
2. The combined use of technical assistance and
education/training in human rights and conflict
mediation to de-escalate, resolve and prevent
internal conflict, with an unyielding focus on root
causes.
3. Combating machismo ("masculinism", "male
patriarchal ideology") as the most effective and
long-lasting strategy for breaking the public-private
continuum of violence.
4. How can the international beverage alcohol
industry apply their resources to combating violence
in the home (and its repercussions outside the home)?
Any thoughts, guidance or tips that a list member
might be able to provide on one or more of these
topics would be greatly appreciated. I would also be
happy to reciprocate.
Looking forward to many thought-provoking exchanges,
Courtney Mireille O'CONNOR
International Jurist &
Operations/Policy Advisor
Washington, DC USA
Tel. +(202)588.1383
Fax: +(202)588.0638
Mobile: +(202)213.8103
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