CIVIC: Campaign for Innocent Victims in Conflict

A BETTER, SMARTER, MORE COMPASSIONATE RESPONSE FOR WAR VICTIMS… ALL OVER THE WORLD

 

CIVIC urges warring parties help the civilians they’ve harmed in conflicts around the world. That means recognizing the suffering of war victims and making amends for their losses, whether through compensation, funding humanitarian programs, or other dignifying efforts. For warring parties to recognize and dignify civilian suffering in war is the right thing to do. It’s also a smart strategy to foster healing, stability, and, often, goodwill. CIVIC is the only organization with this goal as its sole focus and is successfully shifting the policies of warring parties toward war victims.

Real help for war victims…

CIVIC, with U.S. Senator Patrick Leahy (D–VT), helped create U.S.-funded programs to aid war victims. The Afghan Civilian Assistance Program and the Marla Ruzicka Iraqi War Victims Fund have been remarkable successes, helping families harmed by U.S. combat forces rebuild their lives, homes, and businesses. In 2009, CIVIC successfully pressed for the creation of a similar program in Pakistan. CIVIC makes sure these programs have the funding they need to assist as many war victims as possible. In this way, we help not just one war victim, but many thousands. We’ve also helped train Marla Fund staff, improved guidelines for the programs, and use them as a model for dignifying civilian harm in other places of conflict.

Calling on NATO to take responsibility for civilian harm…

CIVIC is working with NATO and allied nations to develop a way for member states to make appropriate amends to Afghans inadvertently harmed by ISAF (NATO’s International Security Assistance Force). NATO responded to the call with a humanitarian assistance fund and is now considering a uniform policy on addressing civilian harm. Many NATO countries are consulting with CIVIC about ways to better support the Afghan population, particularly those suffering losses. CIVIC is also developing a training on civilian casualties for the COIN Academy in Kabul, which trains both international and Afghan forces.  

Dignifying suffering with tangible assistance…

CIVIC is leading the charge to improve the "compensation" systems of individual countries for civilians unintentionally harmed, particularly the United States. For example, CIVIC conducts trainings on civilian protection and harm for U.S. military officers and enlisted personnel at U.S. military bases. CIVIC also urges Congress and the Department of Defense to improve the way it addresses civilian harm based on its research in conflict theaters.

Conflicts around the world…

CIVIC presses warring parties to recognize civilians harmed, to make amends for their suffering and to never forget that "casualties" are human lives. For example, in places like Nepal, where a peace-building process is under way, CIVIC is working to ensure the needs of war victims are made a top priority. We work with civil society leaders, non-profit organizations, humanitarians, government officials, the warring parties, and survivors themselves to assess what we can do to ensure a better outcome for ordinary people devastated in war. Our work is ongoing in Nepal, Georgia, Somalia, Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan, among others.