Refugees As Survivors (RASNZ), Auckland, New Zealand. Correspondence to
Torture Abolition and Survivors' Support Coalition, Washington, D.C., USA. Correspondence to
Torture. 2023;33(2):85-101. doi: 10.7146/torture.v33i2.135716.
As an IRCT member organization supporting survivors of torture, the Torture Abolition and Survivor Support Coalition (TASSC) International places survivor engagement at the core of their work, aiming to provide safe and inclusive spaces for survivors to speak out and take meaningful action to prevent torture. This article describes TASSC's model for engaging survivors in advocacy and presents evidence on the personal impacts such engagement can have.
Each year from 2016-2019, TASSC administered a simple survey with questions for survivors to complete after their annual "Advocacy Day" in Washington D.C. Quantitative and qualitative data was collected to inform internal service provision and the design of future events.
Across the four years a total of 140 survivors and compatriot human rights advocates participated in the annual Advocacy Day, and a majority completed the surveys. In their survey responses, survivors agreed they had many positive thoughts and feelings after advocacy. Their reported positive experiences included a sense of being listened to and heard by an understanding and responsive audience, the power of feeling part of a group that was speaking out on behalf of themselves and others, and a sense of motivation and hopefulness for the future.
Although undertaken primarily to inform internal processes, TASSC's surveys with survivors who engaged in advocacy shed light on the potential value of well-designed advocacy experiences. Consistent with past research, survivors reported strong motivations around and compelling benefits from participating, despite the challenges that the deeply personal nature of their engagement could present. This feedback suggests TASSC has a strong model that could be replicated elsewhere, but it would be beneficial to further investigate the experiences of survivors engaging in advocacy in other country settings.
作为支持酷刑幸存者的国际酷刑委员会成员组织，酷刑废除和幸存者支持联盟（TASSC）将幸存者的参与置于其工作的核心，旨在为幸存者提供安全和包容的空间，让他们发声并采取有意义的行动来预防酷刑。本文描述了 TASSC 让幸存者参与宣传的模式，并介绍了这种参与可能对个人产生的影响的证据。
2016 年至 2019 年期间，TASSC 每年在华盛顿特区举办“宣传日”活动后，都会为幸存者提供一份简单的调查问卷，让他们填写。收集了定量和定性数据，以为内部服务提供依据，并为未来的活动设计提供信息。
在四年中，共有 140 名幸存者和志同道合的人权倡导者参加了年度“宣传日”活动，其中大多数人完成了调查。在他们的调查答复中，幸存者表示在宣传活动后他们有很多积极的想法和感受。他们报告的积极体验包括：被一个理解和回应的听众倾听和理解的感觉，作为一个代表自己和他人发声的群体的一部分的力量，以及对未来的动力和希望感。
尽管这项调查主要是为了为内部流程提供信息，但 TASSC 对参与宣传的幸存者进行的调查揭示了精心设计的宣传体验的潜在价值。与过去的研究一致，幸存者报告了强烈的参与动机和巨大的参与收益，尽管他们的参与具有很强的个人性质，可能会带来挑战。这一反馈表明，TASSC 拥有一个强大的模式，可以在其他地方复制，但进一步调查在其他国家背景下参与宣传的幸存者的经验将是有益的。
