Counselling Psychology Quarterly

Vol. 22, No. 1, March 2009, 3–6

CONFERENCE REPORTS

An overview of ‘‘Grassroots & Professional Community MentalHealth Education Models of Human Rights’’

Janice Wood Wetzel*

Main Representative, International Association of Schools of Social Work and Chair,NGO Committee on Mental Health, United Nations – New York

A conference entitled Reaffirming Human Rights for All: the Universal Declaration

of Human Rights at 60, was held in Paris, France, where the Universal Declaration

of Human Rights was initially ratified. It was sponsored by DPI (the Department of

Public Information at the UN in New York) and housed at UNESCO (the United

Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization).The conference covered many issues regarding human rights, from theoretical to

legal to service-oriented projects, given in plenaries, panels and midday workshops.

A specific workshop was organized about issues of mental health, by members of the

United Nations’ NGO Committee on Mental Health (headquartered in New York),

that also co-sponsored the event. The program was entitled International Community

Mental Health Education: Human Rights Based Grassroots & Professional Models.The UN NGO Committee on Mental Health (CMH) was established in 1996

under the auspices of the Conference of Non-Governmental Organizations

(CONGO) in Consultative Status with the United Nations’ Economic and Social

Council. Its members are comprised of representatives of NGOs accredited to UN

DPI and ECOSOC, and interested individuals from the private and public sector and

governments, and other representatives of the UN and its various agencies (see

www.mentalhealthngo.org). Its goals are to:

. Broaden the perspective of ‘‘mental health’’.

. Promote psychosocial ‘‘well-being’’.

. Integrate mental health into the agenda of economic and social

development.. Improve mental health services.. Do advocacy and education in prevention of mental illness.. Foster collaboration between NGOs and UN agencies – that has

strengthened efforts to bring understanding and appreciation of mental

health issues to the global agenda at the UN.. Establish strategic relationships with several key UN bodies and

Commissions: World Health Organization (WHO), Pan American Health

Organization (PAHO), the Department of Economic and Social Affairs,

UN High Commission for Refugees, the International Labour Organization,

UNICEF, the Commission on the Status of Women, Commission on

Human Rights and the Commission on Social Development.

*Email: jwwetzel@att.net

ISSN 0951–5070 print/ISSN 1469–3674 online

� 2009 Taylor & Francis

DOI: 10.1080/09515070902853938

http://www.informaworld.com

The CMH is further committed to: raising public consciousness about theimportance of recognizing mental health as a priority issue; advocate for allindividuals to have the right to realize their full potential for optimal functioningboth physically and mentally; publicly address societal stigma about mentalhealth and mental disorders; move to effectively address attitudes and policiestowards positive change; social development; human rights; rights of persons withpsychiatric disabilities; gender perspectives; peacebuilding and social rehabilitation(well-being).

This workshop was co-sponsored by a number of non-governmental organiza-tions focused on mental health, and that advocate for inclusion of mental healthin the agenda of the United Nations, its allied agencies and other public and privatesectors. The lead co-sponsor was the International Association of Schools of SocialWork. Other organizations that signed on to co-sponsor the workshop includedthe International Association of Applied Psychology; the Brothers of Charity, Romeand Belgium; International Council of Women; International Federation of SocialWorkers; International Federation on Ageing; International PsychoanalyticAssociation; Soroptimist International; World Association for PsychosocialRehabilitation; World Council of Psychotherapy; the American PsychologicalAssociation; the World Federation for Mental Health; and Zonta International.

The panel was moderated by Janice Wood Wetzel, PhD, Main UNRepresentative for the International Association of Schools of Social Work andChair of the NGO Committee on Mental Health.

The first presentation was by Dr Rene Stockman, who spoke about hisorganizations’ Experiences in the Development of Mental Health Care Programs.Dr Stockman is the President and Superior General of Caraes Brothers of Charity,Rome and Belgium. He spoke about their work with marginalized anddisadvantaged people in North and South America, Africa, Asia, Europe andOceania since 1807. They have focused on mental health services and support sincethat time. Services and support are provided to people regardless of religious beliefs,gender, sexual orientation or race. Their methods are consistently based on thefollowing principles on an international level:

(1) Enculturation: mental health care programs and services must be planted inthe local culture;

(2) Training: priority has to be given to reinforcing the abilities of the localpopulation through training and sharing responsibility so that they canultimately assume their own responsibility;

(3) Option: their priority is the poor, those who have been abandoned bysociety and with the least chance of being integrated into it. Focus is onchronically ill.

(4) Total Care: Combination between concrete help for the person in need andstriving to look for more structural help (i.e., micro and macro).

(5) Equality: All signs and attitudes linked to paternalism, colonialism andsuperiority from the side of northern countries must be abandoned, and localstructures and partnerships must be developed.

Brother Stockman provided a template for how to do this work. His message wasreiterated to the larger conference on the dais on the next morning. The main pointthat he made, the critical need for professional education and training at the locallevel, set the stage for the other speakers who by chance voiced the same concern.

4 J.W. Wetzel

Dr Janel Gauthier, PhD, followed. He is a Professor at Universite Laval, Ecolede Psychologie, Quebec Canada and Secretary General, International Associationof Applied Psychology. Dr Gauthier spoke about an international Code of Ethicsfor psychology that he was instrumental in developing with colleagues in theInternational Union of Psychological Science and the International Association ofApplied Psychology. He researched the international codes of ethics in otherprofessions, including social work, and used the Universal Declaration of HumanRights as a template. However, he never used the words, human rights, in thedocument or in his deliberations because he said they would not have approved it.By using synonyms to human rights, he reached consensual agreement.

His human rights history was particularly impressive. He was President of theworking group for the release of Tran Trieu Quan, a group that was created in themid-1990s specifically to represent the Tran family. Mr Tran had been unjustlyarrested and condemned to life imprisonment in Vietnam. Against all odds, after 3½years of intense work, the group was successful in obtaining Mr Tran’s release fromprison and his safe return from Vietnam to Canada on humanitarian grounds.

The third presenter, Dr Tara Pir, is Founder and Executive Director of theMulticultural Counseling & Educational Services in Los Angeles, California USA.Dr Pir is of Iranian descent and was awarded an honors scholarship and medal fromthe University of Tehran by the Shah of Iran, achieving the highest rank in agraduate degree nationwide. She also was elected President of the Iranian AmericanPsychological Association. Dr Pir founded her non-profit community-basedorganization in 1989, and it has become one of the few agencies designed to treatthe varied needs of the culturally and linguistically diverse communities in LosAngeles. Her organization is grounded in an ethic of prevention and earlyintervention programs. The staff works with individuals and families, helping themto understand the stress warning signs before problematic events occur. The staffis fluent in many languages and cultures from around the world. They work, too, toeliminate the stigma and disparity in mental health service delivery within thecommunities they serve. Dr Pir’s program was included in our program because it isone that can be generalized across the world.

Dr Waseem Alladin is Editor-in-Chief of Counselling Psychology Quarterly: AnInternational Journal of Theory Research and Practice. Originally from Malaysia, heis also a British National Health Service consultant and clinical psychologist. Hispresentation focused on an Ethno-Bio-Psychosocial-Spiritual Human Rights Modelfor Educating Community Counselors Globally. The model serves children, adults andfamilies from diverse ethnic groups. His 9-dimensional model is based on an ethno-medical model which has been empirically validated in community settings. The newmodel is a two-tiered human rights approach. Tier 1 places human rights within theclient-centered counselling approach and humanistic values of (1) unconditionalpositive self-regard, (2) compassion, and (3) empathy. Tier 2 honors human rights inthe context of common spiritual values drawn from major world religions, pledgingto do no harm in dealing with others and respecting the dignity of others and theirway of being and relating in a global world.

Judith Heistein, an advocate for human rights in New York, in her role asInternational Affairs Analyst presented the work on behalf of Global YouthConnect. Their vast variety of programs provide youth (ages 14–30) from a widerange of ethnic, national, economic and religious backgrounds with opportunitiesto take action on pressing human rights issues. The programs combine experiential

Counselling Psychology Quarterly 5

training and workshops; skills development in grassroots organizing, conflict

transformation, human rights activism and leadership; mentoring and technical

support for on-going organizing efforts; on-the-ground experience in human rights

organizations and doing human rights work; and connection to a global community

of youth activists. Heistein spoke on Empowering the Next Generation of Human

Rights Activists: Healing Models from Experiences of Global Youth Connect around

from the World. Her presentation was well-received, focusing as she did on the

participative model of Global Youth Connect and its success. She provided examples

of youth participants’ experiences in a moving description of the experiential process

intrinsic to their experience.Closing remarks were provided by the NGO Committee on Mental Health’s

Executive Committee member, Dr Judy Kuriansky, PhD, who is the Main UN

Representative for the International Association of Applied Psychology and the

World Council for Psychotherapy. Dr Kuriansky highlighted the contribution made

by each of the speakers and the consistency of their message.There was a lively Q & A period when the audience was engaged in discussion of

what they heard. Among them was Sociology Professor from the Yale Department

of Psychiatry in the US, Dr Judy Gordon who is the Co-Convener of the Racism,

Related Intolerances and Mental Health working group for the NGO Committee on

Mental Health.

Conference highlights

There were many moving moments during the conference, but of particular note

was a tribute to Eleanor Roosevelt who spearheaded the crafting of the Universal

Declaration of Human Rights. Stephan Hessel, a 90-year old gentleman who was

30 years old when he worked with the signers, spoke inspirationally about the need

to continue fighting for the principles imbedded in the document. At the closing

ceremony, a video-cast was shown from New York where Ingrid Betancourt, a

former Senator of Colombia spoke to the attendees. The technology allowed the

presenter and the audience to see one another across the world – which was a moving

experience for all. Senator Betancourt was released 2½ months prior from prison in

Colombia, after 6½ years of captivity, from the time she was captured while running

for President of Colombia. Her presentation was heartfelt, making the point that

there were still many others out there in prison who needed to be freed. ‘‘We must

not forget them’’, she said.Since the purpose of the conference was encapsulated in the title Reaffirming

Human Rights for All: the Universal Declaration of Human Rights at 60, it can be

concluded that the event was a great success. The audience, including those who

attended midday panels, were empowered to increase their work advocating and

practicing the affirmation of human rights in all its venues.

6 J.W. Wetzel