The Foundation for Human Rights Initiative (FHRI) was established in 1991 with the aim of overcoming the various obstacles to democratic development and to ensure the meaningful enjoyment of the fundamental freedoms enumerated in the 1995 Uganda Constitution and other internationally recognized human rights instruments to which Uganda has acceded. This is to be achieved through enhancement of knowledge, respect and observance of human rights, promotion of exchange of information and best practices through training, education, research, advocacy, lobbying, and strategic partnerships.

FHRI's efforts to advance the Cause of Human Rights & Democracy in Uganda

During the nineteen years of human rights advocacy work, FHRI has grown from a small organisation with minimal capacity to one with great potential through a set of multi-faceted human rights programmes.

As a strong proponent of increased public awareness of the rights guaranteed in the 1995 Ugandan constitution and the international human rights instruments to which Uganda has acceded, FHRI continues to avail human rights information to the public especially through publication of action oriented research reports in a bid to educate the community and generate public debate on pertinent human rights issues.

Besides conducting human and legal rights training to community leaders, FHRI conducts capacity building programmes for community based human rights associations, police, prisons, upcoming human rights defenders and student communities, local government and the judiciary. FHRI engages in legislative analysis and reform; penal reform; advocacy and lobbying; treaty reporting to Regional and UN human rights bodies; programmes aimed at civic empowerment; and campaigns against torture, the abolition of the death penalty and impunity.

FHRI provides pro bono legal aid services to the rural and urban poor especially women and children in difficult situations. More still FHRI advocates for judicial independence; and undertake campaigns for better administration of justice and respect for the rights of vulnerable groups of people such as the internally displaced people, children, minority, PWDs and women. The organisation also engages in electoral democracy advocacy; and take part in election monitoring and observation activities with an aim of ensuring a free and fair process; free from violence, intimidation and corruption.

Since inception, FHRI has strived to engender tolerance across ethnic and regional cleavages and to promote the stability and efficacy of the Ugandan polity by mobilising citizens to become civically engaged to protect their individual freedoms and rights and those of others.

In its scope of work, FHRI covers the whole of Uganda and is also currently engaged in the promotion of the human rights agenda in the East African region, especially Kenya. The Foundation has registered considerable success in respect to ability to effect positive change in the human rights and democratisation arena.

With a professional and result orientated approach, FHRI has successfully implemented five strategic programmes in which the organisation scored highly in the field of lobbying and policy advocacy; research, monitoring, and documentation; human rights education; community and civic empowerment; national and international networking.

Until 2009 the organisation also engaged in a media messaging campaign through its sponsored weekly radio programme on human rights on Radio Uganda as well as a weekly phone in talk show programme called “Know your rights” (Manya Eddembe Lyo) on CBS 89.2 FM radio station that engaged listeners and created space for possible policy proposals for the larger public on pertinent human rights issues. It also sponsored a music festival on torture called “Don’t Torture!” (Tomutulugunya!); and a weekly human rights televised drama series known as “The Police Sergeant” (Kigenya Agenya) which exclusively focussed on challenges of promoting human rights.

FHRI convened regional workshops and conferences that aimed at discussing the 1995 Constitution and its guarantees of fundamental human rights. In addition, FHRI undertook steps towards improvement of the human rights situation in the war-torn regions of the country and the Great Lakes Region through open denunciation of human rights abuses and calling for dialogue.

Whereas the first FHRI Three Year Programme, TYP (1992-1994) marked the pioneer phase of the promotion and protection of human rights, the second TYP (1995-1997) underscored consolidation of FHRI activities. The third phase (1998 - 2000) ushered FHRI into the new millennium emphasizing innovation, advancement and sustainability. While the fourth plan (2001-2005) focused on strengthening human rights activism for genuine democracy and sustainable development in Uganda, the fifth plan (2006-2008) codenamed ‘High Performance Phase’ (HPP) titled “From Theory to Practice: Advancing the human rights agenda in Uganda” sought to deepen engagement of the “supply and demand” side of rights, to ensure that state practice is in tandem with the internationally accepted human rights standards.

The sixth and current strategic plan (2009-2011) titled ‘Put Our World to Rights: Deepening Democratic Practices in Uganda’ builds on the achievements registered during the last seventeen years. This plan is hinged on five operating divisions: Research Division, Legal Services Division, Capacity Development Division, Communication and Information Division and the Program Development Division.
The plan addresses the question of deepening human rights practices through building a democratic ethos across the political and social spectrum of Ugandan society. It seeks to enhance meaningful citizen participation in democratic governance in order to build sustainable structures that would contribute to eradication of poverty, promote stability and challenge practices of impunity, corruption, political intolerance and exclusion of vulnerable sections of Ugandan society.

This program ending 2011 includes activities to monitor and document human rights practices in order to enhance democratic development in five key areas (police accountability, juvenile justice, rights of disabled persons, labour rights and health rights); observe and monitor the electoral processes, treaty reporting; strengthen management and technical capacity of community based associations to monitor and report human rights violations; capacity building of Local Government to promote participatory decision making and respect for human rights in the conduct of public affairs; capacity building of judiciary to promote access to justice; legal assistance to victims of torture, vulnerable and poor women and children living in socially deprived situations, and Leadership Development for human rights defenders.

However like in previous programs, issues of gender equality, women and children, HIV and Aids, minority rights, internally displaced persons and refugee conditions are cross cutting considerations in all its projects.

FHRI takes both a proactive and an activist approach to rights advocacy by engaging in well-focussed and issue-oriented discussions on pressing national concerns to emphasize accountability, transparency and social justice as core values for growth of a vibrant and functioning democracy.

FHRI also takes advantage of the strategic partnerships formed to effectively and further advance the human rights agenda within and outside the boarders of Uganda.