Charity Report: The Center for Victims of Torture
By Administrator
Second-quarter beneficiary The Center for Victims of Torture gave us this report on how they’re using the funds they received from Foundation Beyond Belief. Foundation members donated $2,310 to The Center for Victims of Torture last quarter.
The Center for Victims of Torture will use the funds from Foundation Beyond Belief’s generous donors to continue to work on four main areas.
First, we help people heal from the deep wounds of torture. We will continue our work in Minneapolis/St. Paul, Jordan, and the Democratic Republic of Congo. In 2009, we served more than 2,500 torture survivors worldwide.
Second, we strengthen our torture treatment center colleagues in the U.S. and abroad. We organize technical assistance and training to 38 groups in the U.S. and 15 in other countries.
Third, we work to create new resources to support the healing of torture survivors. Because of our work, the U.S. is the largest international donor to torture survivor centers. At $25 million annually, it’s not nearly enough, but it’s helping tens of thousands of torture survivors get the care they so desperately need.
And fourth, we work for an end to torture—regardless of who is perpetrating it. We were the first human rights organization to call for a Presidential Executive Order banning the use of torture and cruelty, and we were so pleased that President Obama issued just such an executive order on only his second full day in office. Our campaign was endorsed by three former Secretaries of Defense, three former Secretaries of State, three former National Security Advisors, and four former members of the Joint Chiefs of Staff—including General James Jones, President Obama’s National Security Advisor.
Peter Dross
Director of Policy and Development
The Center for Victims of Torture