__NOTOC__ The Christian Initiative Romero (CIR) is an incorporated association based in

Münster Münster (; nds, Mönster) is an independent city (''Kreisfreie Stadt'') in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is in the northern part of the state and is considered to be the cultural centre of the Westphalia region. It is also a state distr ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

. supporting labour law and human rights in

Central America Central America ( es, América Central or ) is a subregion of the Americas. Its boundaries are defined as bordering the United States to the north, Colombia to the south, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. ...

n countries. Its core area of responsibility consists in the support of grassroots organizations in Central America. The CIR also runs campaigns in Germany and promotes education on developmental topics with the aim of building bridges between these developing countries and Germany. It is named after the

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...

Óscar Romero Óscar Arnulfo Romero y Galdámez (15 August 1917 – 24 March 1980) was a prelate of the Catholic Church in El Salvador. He served as Auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese of San Salvador, the Titular Bishop of Tambeae, as Bishop of Santiago d ...

, and commits to his fight against injustice and his support for the poor, the marginalised and the persecuted.

Campaigns

The CIR has been involved with a number of initiatives and campaigns, including: *the

Clean Clothes Campaign The Clean Clothes Campaign (CCC) is the garment industry's largest alliance of labour unions and non-governmental organizations. The civil society campaign focuses on the improvement of working conditions in the garment and sportswear industries. ...

(CCC), dedicated to improving the working conditions in the garment industry and calls for minimum standards and independent monitoring systems *Corporate Accountability (CorA), a network of organisations in Germany that demand companies respect human rights and fulfil internationally accepted social and environmental standards *ProNATs, ''Pro los Niños y Adolescentes Trabajadores'' (For Working Children and Adolescents), a network of organisations and individuals that fight against the exploitation of working children *Common Code for the Coffee Community (4C), founded in 2004 by NGOs, syndicates, public institutions and the German Coffee Union, aims to set social and ecological standards for a globally responsible coffee production

Activities

The CIR supports about 90 projects in Central America every year. These projects focus on women's self-determination, respect for human rights, promoting social rights of the native population, dignified working conditions, respect for and support of working children, ecology, and a political strengthening of the civil society. The CIR also provides emergency help when natural disasters strike. It organizes protest activities if human rights are violated, and cooperates with other networks and organisations to achieve its goals. The CIR investigates areas like the garment industry or human and children's rights in Central America. The results of the research projects are published in brochures and leaflets, and the CIR also publishes a free quarterly bulletin about current political and social issues in Central America. The work of the CIR is financed by membership fees and donations, financial contributions from churches and private foundations, public grants and contributions from the Romero Foundation.

References

External links

Website of the CIR
{{Authority control Development charities based in Germany Fair trade organizations Liberation theology Companies established in 1981 Non-profit organisations based in North Rhine-Westphalia 1981 establishments in Germany Óscar Arnulfo Romero