On October 21, in its capacity as Technical Secretariat, AIPG co-organized the XII Focal Points Meeting of the Latin American Network for Genocide and Mass Atrocity Prevention in collaboration with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Worship of Costa Rica. The meeting was hosted virtually and served as an opportunity to promote the collaborative efforts undertaken between member states and present national and regional initiatives discussed at previous Focal Points Meetings.
The XII LAN Meeting included a segment of interactive dialogue with Ms. Alice Wairimu Nderitu, AIPG alumna and United Nations Special Advisor on the Prevention of Genocide, and Mr. Fernando Lottenberg, Commissioner of the Organization of American States for Monitoring and Combating Antisemitism. The meeting space aimed to analyze and exchange perspectives on the regional challenges of hate speech, as well as the role of governments, the corporate sector, and the Network from a preventive perspective.
Attendees from Argentina, Brazil, Bolivia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Panama, Paraguay, and Uruguay, came from areas within their governments related to human rights and the prevention of violence within Ministries of Foreign Affairs, Justice and Defense, as well as the Office of the Ombudsperson of their countries. This year’s meeting was chaired by AIPG Executive Director Dr. Tibi Galis, Ambassador of Costa Rica, Charles Hernández, Director of Foreign Affairs, and Eugenia Carbone, Latin American Program Director/Technical Secretary of the Network.
During the event, the participants reaffirmed the importance of the long-term projects within the Network’s remit. These projects aim to promote maintaining the mechanisms and pillars of Transitional Justice, the fight against discrimination, and the protection of vulnerable groups (migrants, LGTBIQ+ persons, and indigenous peoples) as priority areas for regional work in the area of prevention. Central to these initiatives is the axis of combating and preventing hate speech, the challenges presented by corruption and impunity, and early warning systems in the context of social mobilizations.
Eugenia Carbone, Director of the Auschwitz Institute’s Latin American Program and Technical Secretary of the Latin American Network, explains:
From the AIPG Latin America Program, we are proud to have supported, once again, the creation of a space for dialogue with Latin American government officials engaged in the incorporation of a prevention approach in their respective human rights agenda. Consistent with the objectives of each year’s Focal Points Meeting, we analyzed persistent challenges alongside others that have arisen in the region, and discussed ways to work together to prevent atrocities. The XII meeting was also significant in recognizing the value of the Network’s trajectory and preparing concrete actions for the upcoming 10th anniversary of its creation (April 2022).