The following organizations have stand up among others to say “no” to torture and illegal and arbitrary detainment in developing and transitional countries. An act of generosity, an act of solidarity and an act of strength.

1-Focus International
While partnering with JusticeMakers, 1-Focus International emphasizes its deep faith that collaborative innovation is key for synergistic solutions to bring to life a vision. I would like to truly thank Ms. Sandy Weiner, a coach at 1-Focus International, for her continuous excitement for JusticeMakers, her availability and for sharing great project ideas.

Here is what 1-Focus published on their site:

African Democracy Forum
Through its support to JusticeMakers, the African Democracy Forum re-emphasizes its leading position as a committed and dedicated advocate for the promotion of human rights and advancement the rule of law in Africa. Many thanks to the African Democracy Forum for sharing our passion and working actively and with dedication to promote JusticeMakers in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Asian Philanthropy Forum
While partnering with JusticeMakers, the Asian Philanthropy Forum reinforces its conviction that sharing intellectual capital, experiences and best practices is key to for systemic changes to take place in Asia but not only. Thank you Mr. Yuen for your kind words, encouragement and support.

CILIC
Through its support to JusticeMakers, the Civil Liberties Committee, a Malawian Human Rights NGO which started as a result of the collaboration of some bold Malawian lawyers, re-emphasizes the need for protecting, monitoring and promoting legal rights through advocacy, legal counsel and research. Thank you Ms. Emmie Chanika for your time, dedication and great support to JusticeMakers.

CIVICUS
While helping promote JusticeMakers, CIVICUS renews its noble conviction that citizens have a critical role to play in the building of a more equitable and fair society where human rights are upheld. JusticeMakers help profile CIVICUS as a non-profit organization deeply dedicated to the progress of civil liberties in some of the most challenging legal contexts. A special thanks to Mr. Eric Muragana for his continuous availability, commitment and solidarity.

Columbia Law School
While partnering with JusticeMakers, the Centre for Public Interest Law of Columbia reinforces its international position and recognition as a leading center of legal scholarship with a deep commitment to teaching and professional training. Many many thanks to Ms. Akua Akeya, the acting director of the Centre for Public Interest Law of Columbia, for her support, dedication and availability.

CUNY School of Law
Through its support to JusticeMakers, CUNY School of Law reemphasizes its belief that systemic social change can be achieved through the promotion of criminal law in developing and transitional countries. I would like to thank Ms. Michelle J. Anderson for her commitment, dedication and belief in JusticeMakers cause.

Echoing Green
While partnering with JusticeMakers, Echoing Green reinforces its profile as a major global actor of systemic social change. Together with JusticeMakers, Echoing Green brings criminal justice visions to reality. I would like to thank Ms. Lara Galinsky for her kind words, her faith in our cause and her true support.

GlobalGiving
While helping promote JusticeMakers, GlobalGiving´s work to connect dedicated, entrepreneurial and bold innovators with their pairs is stressed. GlobalGiving help synergistic solutions to bring to life project ideas with long-term sustainable impact. Thank you so much Ms. Joan Ochi for your enthusiastic support and commitment to JusticeMakers cause.

i-genius
While partnering with JusticeMakers, i-genius strengthens its leading position as an organization working to stimulate fresh thinking and brilliant ideas, to inspire new social entrepreneurs and to connect them with peers for social change to take place. I would like to thank i-genius CEO Mr. Tommy Hutchinson for his commitment and meaningful support.

Public Interest Law Institute (PILI)
Through its support to JusticeMakers, the Public Interest Law Institute (PILI) renews its commitment to advance human rights around the world by stimulating public interest advocacy. With JusticeMakers, PILI´s belief that the use of law is key to promote a peaceful and fair society is highlighted. Many thanks to Mr. David Caughlin and Ms. Christine Schmidt for their time, consideration and support.

Social Edge
Through its support to JusticeMakers, Social Edge strengthens its profile as a global leader in connecting and networking inspired and bold social entrepreneurs for social change to take place. A special thanks to Mr. Victor D’Allant for is excitement, goodwill and critical help.

WOUGNET
While helping to promote JusticeMakers, the Women of Uganda Network renews its dedication to make information and communication technologies a strong tool of social, legal, political and economic change. Many thanks to Dorothy Okello for her time, support and goodwill.

Please check out our JusticeMakers partners page to learn more about the commitment of our generous partner to systemic social change.

Finally, a special thanks to:

• Scott, a New York criminal defence lawyer and editor of the great Simple Justice blog (http://blog.simplejustice.us/)
• Lieutenant Raymond Foster for his kind support to JusticeMakers through the website Hi-Tech Criminal Justice Online (http://www.hitechcj.com/) which I invite you to consult.
• All the individuals who support us to speak out against the unspeakable.

From the bottom of our heart, thank you.

In many ways, I felt like a groupie… celebrating the efforts of extraordinary social entrepreneurs from around the world. I was in heaven. Jimmy Carter. Jeroo Billimoria. Bill Strickland. These were truly the rock stars of sector – their stories made famous by David Bornstein, Bill Drayton, and Jeff Skoll. The awards ceremony did little to diminish the festive, hopeful environment – with the Skoll Foundation naming their latest fellows – Kiva, Digital Divide Data, and Partners in Health among them.

And yet… among the smiles and endorsements, each social entrepreneur seemed to have an incredible intensity – a feeling that their efforts were only scratching the surface. Al Gore had a particularly strong tone when he talked about the mounting climate crisis – suggesting that, perhaps, we didn’t understand the urgency of the situation; being five years late to act could make a huge difference. Paul Farmer shared the sentiment, wrapping up his closing speech by mentioning that, tomorrow he would be “heading back to work in Rwanda.” A social entrepreneur’s job is never done.

Urgency was also a central theme of IBJ founder Karen Tse’s message during the opening plenary. While highlighting her experience working with Cambodian defenders to promote reform after the Khmer Rouge genocide… she was quick to point out the countless number of defenders who yearned for IBJ’s assistance in countries worldwide. She stressed the importance of helping those people ASAP.

As an observer and IBJ employee, I couldn’t help but agreeing with Karen. Having discovered an effective model for criminal justice transformation, we have an *obligation* to bring IBJ’s services to scale. And… at the same time… that’s what’s so challenging about the environment. A global defender support program necessitates the right systems, the right people, and the right ways to measure the impact of our work. But, given the demand for global justice, can we really afford to take our foot off the gas???

The good news is that IBJ realizes these challenges… and we’re crafting strategies that allow us to give more defenders more access to IBJ services, without the bulk and expense of formal country programs. It’s called the Global Defender Support Program… and it blends elements of the multi-stakeholder governance model pioneered the Marine Stewardship Council… with the social networking and collaboration platforms of igenius and Social Edge. The hope is that defenders will be able to share ideas, provide guidance, catalyze criminal justice stakeholders to affect change without the direct involvement of IBJ staff.

Can we ever live up to Karen’s expectations that IBJ will be global overnight? Probably not. Are we glad she pushes us? Absolutely. After all, if someone doesn’t dare to dream the impossible, nothing changes. Jimmy, Jeroo and Bill can attest to that…