Survivors Of Political Torture Move Forward In The U.S.

By Steve Bynum
This Dec. 13, 2018 photo shows a bathtub in which political prisoners were submerged as form of torture, exhibited in the Museum of Memory in Asuncion, Paraguay. On Saturday, Feb. 2, 2019, Paraguay marked 30 years since the Alfredo Stroessner’s 1954-1989 rule came to an end, but the nation still has yet to find out what happened to more than 500 political prisoners who disappeared during Latin America’s longest ruling dictator.
This Dec. 13, 2018 photo shows a bathtub in which political prisoners were submerged as form of torture, exhibited in the Museum of Memory in Asuncion, Paraguay. On Saturday, Feb. 2, 2019, Paraguay marked 30 years since the Alfredo Stroessner's 1954-1989 rule came to an end, but the nation still has yet to find out what happened to more than 500 political prisoners who disappeared during Latin America’s longest ruling dictator. Jorge Saenz / AP Photo
This Dec. 13, 2018 photo shows a bathtub in which political prisoners were submerged as form of torture, exhibited in the Museum of Memory in Asuncion, Paraguay. On Saturday, Feb. 2, 2019, Paraguay marked 30 years since the Alfredo Stroessner’s 1954-1989 rule came to an end, but the nation still has yet to find out what happened to more than 500 political prisoners who disappeared during Latin America’s longest ruling dictator.
This Dec. 13, 2018 photo shows a bathtub in which political prisoners were submerged as form of torture, exhibited in the Museum of Memory in Asuncion, Paraguay. On Saturday, Feb. 2, 2019, Paraguay marked 30 years since the Alfredo Stroessner's 1954-1989 rule came to an end, but the nation still has yet to find out what happened to more than 500 political prisoners who disappeared during Latin America’s longest ruling dictator. Jorge Saenz / AP Photo

Survivors Of Political Torture Move Forward In The U.S.

By Steve Bynum
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Research from the Center for Victims of Torture suggests that as many as 44% of refugees in the United States are torture survivors. A program of Heartland Alliance for Human Needs & Human Rights, the Marjorie Kovler Center supports many of these individuals — specifically those who endured politically-sanctioned torture. By connecting survivors from over 77 countries with medical and social services, the center aims to empower survivors to “regain independence and personal integrity.” Joining Worldview is Surita Sandosham, executive director of Heartland Alliance International, Mario Gonzalez, senior director of the Marjorie Kovler Center, and Maimot Kabwe, a torture survivor from Democratic Republic of the Congo. They explain how the center’s work has evolved in the over 30 years since its inception, as well as its impact on individuals’ lives.

Former U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton will give the Keynote Address at the Kovler Center’s Power of Healing Awards Celebration on Tuesday, May 18, 2019, 6 p.m., at The Palmer House, 17 East Monroe St.