On Sep 17, 1:29 pm, chaofacandidateforlaopresid...@yahoo.com wrote:

The Inter Mountain Peoples Education and Culture in Thailand
Association (IMPECT), which coordinates the “Highland People Task
Force”, a local advocacy network, has been working for more than 15
years to increase the empowerment of ethnic leaders and networks in
promoting indigenous and highland ethnic peoples by both cultural and
development aspects.

UNDEF is supporting, in partnership with UNDP, a two-year initiative
implemented by IMPECT aimed at enhancing the participation of
indigenous and highland ethnic people in national development policies
and at reducing social discrimination against them.

The project develops four key activities focused on:

increasing access to information on human rights situation,

strengthening the capacity of minority group leaders to advocate their
rights,

establishing mechanisms of legal protection, and

enhancing a dialogue and interactions between civil society
organizations, government departments and international counterparts.
In one year, significant progresses have been achieved in most of
these fields of action.

Since the beginning of the project, successful workshops on human
rights protection including the right to a legal status and to social
services have been held for ethnic leaders: 120 participants have been
familiarized with forestry law and management as well legal matters
related to forced eviction. Furthermore, two capacity building
workshops have aimed at enhancing community leaders’ ability in public
speaking and in negotiation skills. Finally, two seminars have been
organized on constitutional issues with the aim of encouraging the
participation of communities in constitutional processes.