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AMAN is Palestine’s first
coalition of Civil Society Organizations,
and thus faces the challenge of learning and
modeling best practice in its own
operations, management, leadership and
institutional governance. The past two years
have provided the nascent Coalition with
useful experience and lessons learned in
order for AMAN to realize its full
potential, and put into practice systems
that ensure it achieves the highest ethical
standards in all aspects of its work.
The current
Coalition members have already understood that the values of
transparency, integrity and accountability must become living
mechanisms for the Coalition itself
AMAN’s
imminent accession to Transparency International represents a
pivotal moment in the development of the Palestinian chapter,
and also for Transparency International itself. The accession
process is completed and AMAN is currently acting as
Transparency International Palestine (TIP) . Key among the
challenges and opportunities represented by this step is the
need to ensure that AMAN fully meets its obligations at both the
programmatic and institutional level. Membership of the
international movement will provide considerable benefits to
AMAN, notably by providing access to a critical networking
mechanism that can provide much needed credibility for a new
coalition in a highly complex and challenging operating
environment. AMAN intends to be a dynamic partner within
Transparency International, and to benefit fully from all the
opportunities that membership represents.
Regionally,
AMAN has been active in sharing experiences with it's regional
partners, namely in Lebanon, Morocco and Bahrain. AMAN plans to
continue this partnership, and considers it as a vital role to
its credibility and learning process.
Establishment
Based on a principled commitment to the
objectives of ensuring integrity,
transparency and accountability, in response
to the pressing need for enhancing and
fostering democracy and a system of good
governance in Palestine, and as an
embodiment of these principles which form
essential components of democracy, a group
of concerned and serious Palestinian
institutions of civil society took the
initiative in February 2000 to form "The Coalition
for Accountability and Integrity-AMAN."
The purpose for such an initiative is to
launch a program for combating corruption in
the Palestinian Society, and achieve the
widest possible participation in its
implementation.
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Founding Organizations of AMAN: |
A group of
six concerned Palestinian NGOs joined efforts to form a
Coalition to oversee the initial period of inception and lay the
groundwork for eventually forming Transparency Palestine to be a
member of Transparency International, an international civil
society movement with an exclusive focus on corruption. The
heads of these six NGOs established the Founding Committee of
the Coalition and elected a General Coordinator
.
One of the first tasks that the Founding Committee undertook was
to set-up a full time Secretariat to mange the day-to-day
operation of the Coalition.
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The
Palestinian Initiative for the Promotion of Global Dialogue
and Democracy “MIFTAH”, Jerusalem
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Arab
Thought Forum “ATF”, Jerusalem
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The
Palestine Trade Center “PalTrade”, Ramallah
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The
Palestinian Institute for the Study of Democracy “MUWATIN”,
Al-Bireh
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Al-Mezan
Center for Human Rights, Gaza
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The
Palestinian Council on Foreign Relations, Gaza.
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Relations with Transparency
International ( TI ) |
An
important part of AMAN’s strategy for combating
corruption is not limited to local initiatives/activities
but includes AMAN’s involvement in activities on
international and regional levels. One of AMAN’s main
objectives under programme Capacity Building was the
completion of TI’s accreditation process to become
Transparency Palestine. The Coalition of AMAN is
currently the Palestinian National Chapter for Transparency
International (TI), and is acting as the contact
organization for regional transparency chapters, and other
similar organizations working in the areas of transparency,
accountability, and integrity. Other AMAN activities
include active participation of its members in TI’s Annual
General Meetings and regional meetings for the past four
years. These members have also presented papers at these
global meeting on issues pertaining to Palestinian
corruption. Currently, AMAN is actively
participating in the network for the Middle East and Near
Africa (MENA) to make an Arabic adaptation to TI’s
Sourcebook and efforts on the Public’s Right to Access of
Information. AMAN is also preparing to complete the “Input
Form” for TI’s Global Corruption Report 2006.
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Coalition Structure
and Functionality |
Based
on AMAN's internal bylaws, AMAN consists
of two bodies: one is legislative and
the other is executive. The legislative
body is the General Assembly that
consists of 18 members that represent
the coalition. Each organization has
three representatives. The General
assembly is responsible for electing the
board of Directors (an executive
committee), adopting the rules and
regulations necessary for governing the
coalition, and approving the
administrative and financial reports
presented by the Administrative Board.
AMAN's
executive body is the Secretariat that
is led by the Board of Directors and the
General Coordinator. The Board of
Directors is responsible for running
the Coalition, preparing internal
regulations and instructions. The Board
is composed of:
1- Dr.
Hanan Ashrawi,
Founder and first Secretary General of
the Palestinian Initiative for the
Promotion of Global Dialogue and
Democracy- MIFTAH (December 1998-
January 2006), and an elected member of
the Palestinian Legislative Council for
the Jerusalem district, Board
Chairperson.
2- Dr.
George Giacaman: General Director, the
Palestinian Institute for the Study of
Democracy, MUWATIN, Board Member.
3- Dr.
Ziad Abu-Amr:
Former President of the Palestinian
Council on Foreign Relations and
re-elected as a member of the
Palestinian Legislative Council in
January 2006. Board Member.
4- Dr.
Kammal Al Sharafi, Chairperson of the
Board of Al-Mezan Center for Human
Rights, Ex-PLC Member, North Gaza
Distict, Board Member.
5- Abdel
Rahman Abu Arafeh, Director General,
Arab Thought Forum, Board Member.
AMAN is
headed by a General Coordinator.
The duties of the General Coordinator
include supervising AMAN's daily
operations and ensuring that decisions
of the Board of Directors are
implemented. AMAN’s General Coordinator
is:
- Dr. Azmi
Shuaibi,
a former member of the Palestinian
Legislative Council (1996-2006), where
he headed the Budget Committee
(1997-1999) and the Economic Committee
(2002-2006). He was mayor for Al Bireh
Municipality between 1976 and 1982 and
was the Minister of Sports and Youth
from 1994 to 1996.
AMAN
Secretariat
consists of the technical, financial,
and administrative teams that implement
the activities and programs or any other
activities deemed necessary by the Board
of Directors.
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Mission Statement |
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Promoting values and systems
of accountability, transparency and
integrity in the Palestinian society. |
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Objectives |
General Goal: Building a National Integrity System
Goals and Objectives:
1-
Ensuring that combating corruption is on the agenda
of the Palestinian society.
2-Raising the Palestinian public awareness on
corruption phenomenon; its supporting environment;
its destructive impact; its causes; characteristics,
and ways of combating it, in addition to providing
the necessary studies and polls for those working in
the field.
3-Building the capacities of civil society
organizations beginning with AMAN’s staff and the
like institutions working to combat corruption as
well as involving other parties to participate for
the purpose of building a national integrity system,
and to create an anti-corruption preventive network.
AMAN’s Work Strategies:
First: Adopt a positive and cooperative work
approach with the different governmental and civil
society partners by focusing on procedures and
activities that promote the values of integrity,
principles of transparency, and systems of
accountability as preventive anti-corruption
measures in the Palestinian society. In addition,
work on instilling integrity, accountability,
transparency and anti-corruption principles as a
continuous, and long term comprehensive process.
Second: Avoid involvement in following up or
investigating individual cases of corruption; focus
on discussing corruption, its reasons, its symptoms,
and its destructive impact,, particularly, in the
public services provided to the people by the
different sectors; provide mechanisms for combating
it. Moreover, encourage the different partners in
the Palestinian society (governmental and
non-governmental) to take part in preparing,
developing and implementing a national
anti-corruption work plan, as a civil society
initiative. For this purpose, AMAN was interested in
conducting an annual anti-corruption conference.
Third: Adopt a professional, independent and
impartial approach when implementing the different
activities; (i.e., apart from political
polarization, since the activities are intended for
all to participate in, and not an opportunity to get
even with others.
Fourth: encourage a wide public participation in
the different anti-corruption activities by creating
a positive environment that combats corruption.
This can be done through addressing representatives
from the various sectors for the purpose of raising
their awareness on corruption emphasizing the
importance of their role in limiting the spread of
this phenomenon
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Working Mechanisms: |
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The
Coalition functions as a network of specialized and
active institutions on the basis of precise criteria and
requirements that guarantee credibility,
professionalism, and effective results. It will analyze
and assign specific responsibilities and tasks among
participating institutions and experts to ensure
complementarity, coordination, and quality performance.
1-Creating resource pool of existing work and
assigning other required studies on the subject. The
output will be published and made available to the
public as a whole. In addition relevant world
literature will be published and disseminated in
Arabic.
2-The convening seminars, workshops, discussion and
dialogue sessions and a major conference to ensure
comprehensive, effective Palestinian participation from
the grass roots and civil society, as well as the
private and public sectors.
3-Energizing Palestinian media and convening of meetings
with media leadership and providing the different press
services with the necessary material on the subject.
4-Coordinating and cooperating with parliamentary groups
and blocs for the purpose of combating corruption and
activating accountability.
5- Addressing
directly all concerned parties, including the executive
authority and its public institutions to ensure the
recommendations, plans and suggestions.
6-Providing training programs in order to prepare
qualified Palestinian cadre in different institutions
and contribute to capacity building in the areas of
systems of accountability and transparency.
7- Enhancing
monitoring and oversight institutions and endorsing
their exercise by professional and legal means.
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Statement of Guiding Principles and
Values |
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The
following principles guide AMAN in all aspects of its
work:
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Co-Ownership and partnership
The
Coalition believes that it can best achieve its
objectives by ensuring that the broadest possible range
of stakeholders can be fully involved in common cause.
Thus the Coalition is committed to facilitating the
inclusion and involvement of people and institutions at
all levels in Palestinian society. It is equally
committed to building and developing relationship with
funding partners and other key stakeholders that enable
the capacities and common concerns of all to inform and
strengthen the effectiveness and impact of its
programming.
•
Empowerment
AMAN
plays a key role as a capacity builder with its
Palestinian stakeholders. It believes that ownership is
the objective of participation. It further believes in
the innate capacity of the Palestinian people to
strengthen their society and build accountability
systems and structures, and it is committed to being an
enabler of this process. Thus AMAN understands
empowerment to be a process of enablement of innate
capacity, not a traditional, top-down notion of
instruction.
•
Integrity and Accountability
The
struggle for accountability and integrity in the
Palestinian society is reflected in every aspect of the
Coalition's internal systems. The Coalition is a living
institutional embodiment of the values it espouses to
others. Thus the highest standards of management,
leadership and governance provide an institutional
framework of excellence within the Coalition itself, and
ensure that its programming is designed, monitored,
evaluated and reported according to these high
standards.
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Innovation
AMAN
uses a variety of delivery methodologies in order to
ensure the optimum impact of its program. It adopts
innovative programming implementation methodologies.
•
Sustainability
The
Coalition applies the principle of sustainability in
both program design and implementation as well as in its
internal systems. Thus AMAN is always mindful of the
need to design programming that yields enduring impact
for the benefit of the Palestinian people. It also
ensures that its internal systems are designed and
operated in order to diversify its dependence on
funding, and to mobilize the involvement of society in
sustainability of effort as well as sustainability of
results.
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NETWORKING |
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An
important part of AMAN’s strategy for combating
corruption includes AMAN’s involvement in activities on
international and regional levels:
This
research is part of a series of eight studies of
post-war reconstruction countries conducted by Tiri, an
international non-governmental organization that works
on prompting integrity worldwide, in cooperation with
NGOs in eight post war countries. The eight countries
covered are Afghanistan, Bosnia Herzegovina, Kosovo,
Lebanon, Mozambique, Palestine, Sierra Leone, Timor
Leste. The research is the basis for an advocacy and
monitoring agenda to promote integrity in reconstruction
both within the eight countries and internationally.
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AMAN
had signed a Cooperation agreement with the Kuwait
Transparency Association aiming at joining efforts
towards prompting values of integrity and systems of
accountability and transparency.
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AMAN
participates in completing the “Input Form” for TI’s
Global Corruption Annual Report on the Palestinian
Judiciary System.
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AMAN
participates with other regional TI Chapters on
developing joint projects on promoting the UN Convention
against Corruption UNCAC.
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AMAN
participated in several activities organized by
Transparency International in Jordan, Egypt, UAE,
Kuwait, Lebanon, Guatemala, and Libya.
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Copyright 2006 . All rights reserved. AMAN Coalition |
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