Going from the abstract world of ideas to the concrete world of action : a double professional experience in the field of human rights

Abstract

A final report of the internship is a requirement to achieve a Bachelor’s Degree in Modern Languages. The present report offers a description and an assessment of all the tasks undertaken, activities carried out and experiences I lived during the time I spent working in the Venezuelan Program of Education-Action in Human Rights (Provea, by its Spanish acronym). Beyond accomplishing a formal requirement, the purpose of this report is to reflect on the application of the techniques and knowledge learned during my major. Taking into account my double professional option in Translation and International Organizations, I decided to do my internship in a place where I could use all the knowledge acquired in both options and put them into practice through a real experience in the working environment. Bearing this in mind, the best host institution was the Venezuelan Program of Education-Action in Human Rights (Provea), a renowned non-governmental organization (NGO) specialized in the defense, promotion and education on human rights and the respect for the exercise of the Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ESC Rights) (PROVEA, 2008). For twenty one uninterrupted years of hard work, Provea has fought for the dignity and the restoration of the integrity of Venezuelan people regardless of their ethnicity, sex, social class, creed or political affiliation; people who are ignored by the State and who turn to this NGO looking for legal advice and assistance as well as a place to make visible their situation in the eyes of the community (Uzcátegui, 2009). Provea is located in Caracas, but its sphere of action covers the whole country. It is also known all over the world for its work on human rights. Actually, it has strategic cooperation agreements with national and international allies. Due to this situation, Provea required a translator in order to maintain the recognition, the visibility and the support abroad. A Modern Languages student with training in Translation and International Organizations was the best option to fulfill the needs of Provea (M. Alvarado, personal interview. November 18, 2009). I earned my place in the Institutional Internship Project and among the members of the Monitoring, Investigation and Diffusion (MID) Program of this organization. During my internship, I supplied technical support in the field of languages and I was responsible for the translation of all the information that the MID Program and Provea needed such as press releases, articles and pieces of information, among others. The present report is structured in four main sections and all the information contained within is presented in a descriptive and reflective way. In the first section, a brief description of the Profile of the Host Institution is given including the history, mission, vision and structural organization of Provea. In the second section, the Nature of the Internship is described. This section contains all the tasks and activities I carried out during my internship period. The third section corresponds to the Reflection Essay which contains a critical analysis of my work experience in terms of my professional and personal growth. The last part of the present report is the Conclusion; where I give my critical assessment based on the work experience I had. In addition, I include some general recommendations and suggestions both to Provea, the Host Institution, and to the School of Modern Languages at the University of Los Andes in order to improve their work performance and their internship program.