Between December 10 and December 15 2014, four ADHOC staff traveled to Indonesia (Lampoung province, Sumatra) to learn about the experiences of an international partner regarding Alternative Dispute Resolution. ADHOC staff who traveled to Indonesia where Mrs. Chhan Sokunthea, head of Women, Children’s and ADR Section, Mr. Ny Sokha, program officer of the ADR Section, Mrs. Thim Narin, Kompong Cham coordinator and Mr. Sam Chankea, Kompong Chhang Coordinator.
ADHOC staff learned 4 key strategic lessons which will be further studied and implemented in the Alternative Dispute Resolution work of ADHOC:
- Integrate the use of internet in responding to people’s concerns and public conflicts
- Organize public forums for solving large scale conflicts between people
- Integrate conciliation and advocacy in case of a conflict between people and a company
- Help people representatives to participate in national public policy reform
The last finding focused on the sustainability of civil society run alternative dispute resolution programs. All the people involved with mediation at our partner in Indonesia work as volunteers. These volunteers do not receive a salary but are compensated for expenses made. This compensation comes either from the government or from micro-financing through the communities who the volunteers serve.
ADHOC is excited about the information shared and the lessons learned. We look forward to implement the lessons and allow more Cambodians to have Access to Justice. The study trip and information exchange was made possible through financial support from the European Union and CCFD.