About Us

Introduction

Terrorism is a global plight. It is a destructive threat against national and international order and security. Nowadays the world suffers from terrorist groups and terrorist attacks more than ever before. Terrorist organizations resort to violent acts without even considering the safety of civilians; they apply various ways for committing crimes. Terrorist acts leads to severe violation of human rights and violence against women, children, and civilians.

The victims of such groups are guiltless people who are assassinated, being kidnapped or taken as hostage. Accordingly, it can be concluded that all the people of a community could be regarded as victims. Thus, fighting terrorism needs a firm global stance; a stance in which, regardless of political, ideological, ethnic and religious considerations, the inherent value of the right to life should be considered. Therefore, countering terrorism requires a global solidarity. International unified solidarity for suppressing terrorism can be achieved through such an approach.

Looking at terrorism from the viewpoint of families of victims of terrorism can provide a humanitarian criterion for evaluating the crimes of terrorists. Having such criteria in the fight against terrorism, on one hand we would not limit ourselves to the definitions of ‘Good’ and ‘Evil’ terrorism and on the other hand, based on our common suffering, we would try to come to a global consensus for countering terrorism.

Association for Defending Victims of Terrorism

Association for Defending Victims of Terrorism (ADVT) is a non-governmental, cultural and human rights defender organization, established by the families and children of victims of terrorism in 2007. ADVT was granted special consultative status with ECOSOC in 2014. In fact, Iran has been exposed to the loss resulted from terrorist acts. More than 17 thousand people have been victimized in Iran and 12 thousand of them were assassinated by the terrorist cult of Mujahedin-e Khalq Organization (MKO). Most of the victims were civilians with ordinary jobs. ADVT has defined aims in national and international levels in order to counter terrorist violence and terrorist acts and to share their sympathies and experiences and sooth their pains.

To achieve “A World without Terror”, ADVT aims to fight against the “heinous Phenomenon of terrorism” by cultural methods, raising awareness, and showing the devastating consequences of terrorism narrated by those who have lost their dearest ones in terrorist attacks.

ADVT believes that fighting against terrorism requires a global solidarity. Beyond any political, doctrinal, ethnic or religious considerations, this criterion can give voice to the victims of terrorism and pave the way for a real fight against terrorism.

Demands and Concerns of the Association

The main aim of Association for Defending Victims of Terrorism is a world without terrorism. Wishes and concerns of the victims of terrorism is evidence of the human view of ADVT on the heinous phenomenon of terrorism. According to this approach members of association try to void the word of “terrorism” in human societies and take measure to decrease the number of the victims of terrorism all over the world and define common goals with other human rights defenders in the international levels. ADVT hopes to replace peace with violence and cruelty and define a world without cruelty in the mind of the children all over the world.

Objectives of the Association

The Association tries to establish a close and intimate connection between victims of terrorist acts and the global community. For this purpose, the objectives are followed:

-Recognizing and respecting the dignity and status of the victims of terrorism through providing the opportunity for meeting terror victims of other countries and sharing common sympathies and experiences

-Reaching to a common definition of terrorism and terrorist threats which are beyond geographical borders

-Helping victims of terrorism to express their demands and opinions before the society, public authorities and institutions as well as media

-Raising awareness of terrorist threats and dangers in the society and making attempts to prevent their reoccurrence through finding their origins and countering them

-Expanding national and international networks in order to make connections with other associations of victims of terrorism

-Raising public awareness of the inhuman phenomenon of terrorism through the voices of victims of terrorism

-Designing a strategy to require the governments and international organizations to cooperate in  countering terrorist groups.

-Providing medical and consultative services for survivors of victims of terrorism and legal advice in order to defend the right of the victims of terrorism

-Trying to link the families of the victims of terrorism to legal and political entities, experts and international journalists

Demands and Concerns of the Families of the Victims of Terrorism

Concerns and questions of the families of the victims of terrorism are resulted from the human view on the phenomenon of terrorism are:

• How we can prevent terrorism from spreading?
• How we can reduce the number of the victims of terrorism as much as possible?
• How we can prevent terrorist groups from recruiting new members?
• How we can request states and international organizations to counter terrorism in the best way?
• How we can create an atmosphere where the victims of terrorism feel the society respects them and so they feel they are supported?
• And finally, how we can reach to a world without terror?

Activities of the Association regarding with Victims of Terrorism:

In this association, specialists work under specific medical, legal and psychological support committees and present their services to the victims of terrorism. Association staffs have also made an intimate relationship with families of victims in order to support them. Regular meetings with families are being held in order to get familiar with their problems and trying to solve them. A number of other services provided for families include:

• Providing medical services and clinical consultation for the victims of terrorism
• Providing legal counseling in order to protect the rights of victims through hiring lawyers and jurists
• Creating an international solidarity among victims of terrorism of Iran and other associations for defending victims of terrorism
• Respecting the status and dignity of the victims of terrorism who have often been ignored
• Holding gatherings and conferences for victims of terrorism

Association’s Attitude towards Countering Terrorist Groups:

1- Collecting and analyzing the information related to the issue of terrorism; ADVT is considered as a national and international source for compiling and publishing documents about terrorism victims.

2- Signing MOU with other associations of victims of terrorism in order to help victims and unite for a world without terrorism.

3- Evaluating the heinous phenomenon of terrorism according to its destructive and inhuman effects, regardless of dividing it into good and evil. The association also intends to evaluate the ominous and inhuman phenomenon of terrorism far from classifications of ‘Good’ or ‘Evil’ and merely through focusing on its destructive impacts and outcomes. Such evaluation would be beyond political biases, religious opinions or geographical limitations.

4- Increasing public awareness about the effects and outcomes of terrorism with direct reference to the victims of terrorism

ADVT Activities:

Today we as the victims of terrorism have allied and made this Association a place in which victims can present their ideas and suggestions for fighting against terrorism in an international level. ADVT has conducted some measures in this regard including:

-Holding more than 200 meetings with legal figures from different countries across the world and also with officials from international organizations and institutions.

-Meeting more than 50 European journalists and representatives of human rights NGO.

-Attending in several human rights conferences: Durban Review Conference in Geneva and 15^th, 22^nd, 24^th, 25^th, 27^th, and 28^th sessions of Human Rights Council, and 7^th International Congress for Victims of Terrorism.

-Producing 20 TV programs with the cooperation of Press TV, France 24, RAI, TRT, Russia Today, Sahar TV and Channel 1 of IRIB.

-Holding a number of conferences with the attendance of families of victims of terrorism (Children Victims of Terrorism, International Day of Remembrance of and Tribute to the Victims of Terrorism, etc.).

-Submitting written statements on terrorism and the victims of terrorism to Human Rights Council

-Corresponding with more than 270 human rights NGOs holding UN Consultative status and corresponding with domestic officials.

-Sending letters to the officials, politicians, speakers and parliamentarians of various countries.

-Publishing 7 volumes of Terror Victims Periodical.

-Compiling, publishing and distributing the booklet of “The Voice of the Women Victims of Terrorism” and “Facts about a terrorist group revealed by victims.”

-Holding sessions with an Iraqi documentary maker, officials of the International Committee of Red Cross, representatives from various media (ABC Channel, American legal advisor, Associated Press, German journalists from Spiegel, Frankfurter Zeitung, Norwegian delegation, British delegation, Bulgarian parliamentary committee chairman, French lawyers, Parliamentary delegations from Italy, Spain and UK.

-Attending in the International Conference of “Global Alliance against Terrorism for a Just Peace” and international Conference on “Peace, Women and Divine Religions.”

-Publishing several volumes of the Encyclopedia of Iranian Victims of Terrorism.

-New projects: Establishing the global organization of the victims of terrorism, proposal for an international terrorism court, holding exhibition of terrorists’ crimes in different countries, proposal of collecting documents of terrorist acts, opening provincial bureau (we have already established ten provincial offices), opening an office in another country, collaborating with other NGOs etc.

In conclusion, we, the families of victims of terrorism demand for a world without terror and terrorism for our children. This is not going to be achieved unless by the cooperation of national and international organizations, governments, anti-terrorism associations and human rights institutions.