What others say about us

26/10/2008 13:30:00 Emhrn

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The network has succeeded in creating broad credibility within civil society in the region and with representatives of the EU and EMP institutions

The network has succeeded in creating broad credibility within civil society in the region and with representatives of the EU and EMP institutions, and is therefore often quoted or mentioned in different contexts.

In 2008/2009, the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs in collaboration with SIDA (Swedish International Development and Cooperation Agency) and Europeaid, commissioned an evaluation mission of the Network. The conclusions of the final report were favorable. It reads: "The EMHRN is attentive to creating synergies with like-minded NGOs. Its strength and added value lays in its regional specificities and highly visible presence in Brussels compared with other organisations operating on a global scale. For some, its added value lies in its ability to distinguish itself from the bigger human rights organisations by retaining a more European and nuanced approach to human rights "
Read the full report

Other recent evaluations of the EMHRN declare that:

‘The EMHRN has proven an invaluable and indispensable NGO partner to the work of EU members, EC officials and EMP institutions. It has contributed to a better understanding of the Barcelona Process, has lobbied effectively and has brought its members closer to EMP institutions. The activities of the EMHRN have had impact on civil society, both in the Mediterranean countries and in the European Union […]. The EMHRN contributed directly to the capacity of NGOs to work with their constituencies […] Membership with the EMHRN has generated more horizontal cooperation among members and exchange of expertise […]

EU Evaluation of the EMHRN, 2003 - EuropeAid/ME8/B77050/IB/1999/0283B

‘The EMHRN is developing into a major NGO networking resource in the region, with considerable knowledge and regional expertise. Likely the single most important achievement of the Network has been its ability to support and facilitate civil society organisations and the fact that it has emerged as the only autonomous organization to function as a) a forum for human rights organization in the Mashrek and Maghreb region, and b) as a direct partnership between NGOs in the South and North. As such, the Network has considerable potential as a bilateral and multi-lateral cooperation partner for European institutions and governments who wish to develop and implement democracy and reform agendas in the region [...].

DANIDA Evaluation of the EMHRN, 2004 - DANIDA, March 2005

In his article "Civil Society in North-South Relations. The Case of the Euro-Mediterranean Partnership. A view from the South", Sari Hanafi writes about the EMHRN:

"The Barcelona process gave rise to different types of networks. Important examples are the Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Network [...] The EMHRN, located in Copenhagen, is an example of a network that has developed within the human rights field. It was founded in 1997 and has since delivered studies and reports, thus disseminating current information on human rights conditions in the Mediterranean." (ORIENT/Jg. 46/2005/Heft 3/S. 414–428)

EuroMesCo - the Euro-Mediterranean Study Commission says about the EMHRN:

« It is noticable that while the EMHRN participates actively in the different civil foras (in particular as organisers), the network is clearly undertaking a lobbying strategy of its own. This strategy is based on an increased institutionalisation of the Network centered around concrete lobbying efforts with the Member States, Mediterranean Partner States and other Euromed Partnership stakeholders etc, basing itself systematically on the basic Partnership texts. [… ]The Network thus aims at establishing itself as a watch dog ensuring the implementation of the political intentions of Barcelona and the legal obligations in the agreements (conditionality clause). […] EMHRN meetings, reports and initiatives have increased significantly and likewise one has noted a real will for cooperation between the Network and other civil society actors, and also with certain European Parliamentarians, in particular on the Israeli-Palestinian issue.” (EuroMesCo Paper 19: November 2002: Parlements et société civile dans la sécurité euro-méditerranéenne by Erwin Lannon, in French)