Thousands of protestors will travel to Ft. Benning, Ga. this weekend to protest outside the gates of the Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation. While WHINSEC provides Latin American military, police and civilians with job related instruction, protestors say the school produces human rights abusers armed with torture training.

WHINSEC's purpose is to provide professional education and training to representatives from the Western Hemisphere in the context of democratic principles, according to WHINSEC's Web site.

The institute opened in 2001 after the closing of the U.S. Army School of the Americas, said Lee Rials, public affairs officer of WHINSEC. The SOA dedicated courses to material relevant to the Cold War, concentrating on military education and training. With the genesis of WHINSEC, classes constituted a human rights component: all graduates must obtain a minimum of eight hours of human rights practice, he said.

WHINSEC focuses on problems spreading beyond borders, Rials said. It encourages international interdependence to combat issues such as drug trafficking, money laundering and immigration. The organization focuses on countries' interdependence.

Protestors would argue against WHINSEC's claims, Hendrik Voss, School of Americas Watch networking coordinator who helped organize this weekend's protest.

The SOA Watch was founded in 1990 in response to the 1989 massacre of six Jesuits their housekeeper and her daughter in El Salvador, Voss said. A U.S. Congressional Task Force reported that those responsible were trained at the SOA. The group advocates for the closure of WHINSEC through demonstrations, legislative work and vigils.

Sharon Chubbuck, assistant professor in the College of Education and expert on social justice and teaching, said she sees the SOA protest as a group of people taking a stand for their beliefs. SOA Watch protestors shin a spotlight on what they think is wrong and draw attention to it, she said. But the ideal scenario would be people with different opinions sitting together and having civil discourse to reach common ground.

"Sometimes we think of peace and nonviolence as how you stop nonviolence," Chubbuck said. "But peacemakers can change the circumstances that can lead to violence, and unjust circumstances can lead to violence. "

The SOA became associated with human rights violations when the organization's opponents linked crimes later committed by its graduates to the school, Rials said. But not one graduate used the school's teachings to commit a crime, he said.

However, in 1996, the SOA was forced to admit it used manuals that advocated torture, blackmail and extortion while targeting civilian populations, Voss said.

Voss said, when the manuals were released the military acknowledged its mistake and withdrew the guidebook from SOA curricula. However, the school's ideals remained the same. It continued to use military means to solve problems, Voss said.

And SOA graduates have been found to commit human rights crimes, Voss said. The SOA Watch has identified at least 12 graduates that became military dictators, he said.

Despite the change in name, Voss said WHINSEC is the same institution as the SOA.

"It's the same building, same instructors and same mission," Voss said.

Since 2002, five countries have denounced WHINSEC and refuse to send representatives to its classes, Voss said.

Rials said WHINSEC employees are passionate about their work and "feel a sense of injustice of being accused of teaching terror and torture."

When asked about the negative aspects of WHINSEC, Rials said, "I don't believe there are any negatives."

WHINSEC brings countries together and cultivates relationships, openness and transparency, Rials said.

Chubbuck said,"Most people have the same desires to have a peaceful world. They just have very different ideas about how to reach that world. I don't know if people can get past how different means are."

Although WHINSEC has no problem with protestors exercising their freedom of speech, Rials said they are wasting their efforts. The institution has hosted an open house the weekend of the protest for the past eight years and encourages protestors to learn more about its teachings.

"The peace and justice groups are wasting their time and resources on a false idea," Rials said. "We are considered valuable to our government. We are considered valuable to other countries. We are considered valuable to our students."