Transcript Slide 1

War Child Holland
Peacebuilding in Sierra Leone
Understandings and Approaches
Peacebuilding
War Child works towards ‘positive peace’,
aiming to transform social relationships,
structures and culture in a direction
conducive to a reduction of root causes of
social conflicts, and enhancing the
capacities to manage emerging conflicts
non-violently and constructively.
Peacebuilding Framework:
‘Deficit approach’
Socio-economic
Military / Security
Intervention
Level: Track 1,2,3
Cultural
1
Political / Institutional
Educational
2
3
Psycho-social
War Child paper (2007)
Key understandings (1/3)
• Not all conflicts become violent; they
should be seen as potentially contributing
to positive change. Conflicts are complex
social, political, cultural and economic
phenomena, which warrant in depth and
continuous analysis and reflection.
• The most appropriate way of dealing with
conflict is therefore not to prevent or
resolve it altogether, but to try to
transform it and make it work for positive
change.
War Child paper (2007)
Key understandings (2/3)
• Peacebuilding is not only an activity or
series of activities, it is an impact. This
impact is twofold: 1) stopping violence and
destructive conflict; and 2) building a just
and sustainable peace.
• Humanitarian and development
interventions should consciously increase
positive and minimize negative effects on
peacebuilding potential.
War Child paper (2007)
Key understandings (3/3)
• Youth should not be seen as a homogenous
group, but rather as a heterogeneous group
with widely differing needs, interests and
ambitions.
• Young people have great, largely untapped
peacebuilding resources. They should be
regarded as active agents in their own lives
and capable participants in their
communities. Increasing their resilience and
socio-political engagement should be the main
foci of peacebuilding interventions for young
people.
Young People actively
involved in Violent Conflict
• Demography
– “They fight because there are too many of them”
• Coercion
– “They fight because they are forced to”
• Youth crisis
– “They fight because they are alienated and
disenfranchised”
Engaging Young people
• Active agents during armed struggle
• Primary producers of violence in the postviolent conflict period
• Victims of post conflict violence
• Crucial actors in grassroots community
development and peacebuilding
• Holders of the right to participation
Actors for Peace
Insider
Young People
Connector
Divider
WAR
CHILD
Outsider
War Child contexts explored
HIGH
Level of Violence /
Intensity
Context
typology
LOW
NO(N) VIOLENT
CRISIS
POST-VIOLENT
CONFLICTS
CONFLICT –PRONE
FRAGILE STATES
COMPLEX
EMERGENCY
WAR A DON DON
the war is over
WAR CHILD HOLLAND
IN SIERRA LEONE
QUOTE
“During the festive community celebration, a
person stood up from the crowd
unexpectedly.
In front of a large public he felt urged to
share how he had not been on speaking
terms with his neighbor for many years.
The neighbor was among the crowd. The two
then used the opportunity to settle their
differences on the very spot.”
Country facts 2007
 Land area of 71,740 sq km
 6,144,562 inhabitants
 36.6% live in urban areas, and 63.4% in rural areas
 Religion: 50% Sunni Muslim, 10% Christian, 40%
indigenous
 Ethnic groups: Mende (26%), Temne (24.6%),
Limba (7.1%), Kuranko (5.5%), Kono 4.2%), Fulani
(3.8%)
 Official language is English, limited to literate
minority.
Civil war from 1991 - 2002
• Port Loko
Death toll during the war: 75,000 (estimated);
Displaced at some point during war: 2,000,000
(estimated)
Mutilated: 20,000 (estimated);
Women & girls raped/sexually abused during war:
257,000 (estimated);
Child soldiers used during war: 10,000 – 15,000
(estimated)
Combatants demobilised (DDR) at end of war: 72,500
Child combatants demobilised (DDR) at end of war :
6,845 (92% boys);
Estimated 3000 girls eligible for DDR did not come
forward.
War Child Sierra Leone
vision
Young people growing up in a healthy,
stable and cohesive environment,
supported by protective factors that
help them grow into 'peace minded'
adult community members.
War Child Sierra Leone
mission
In the communities where WCH-SL works, adult, youth
and child community members will either be actively
participating in or attending activities organized and
implemented by the community structures set up for
that purpose.
Children and youth will participate in creative and life
skills workshops, fun days, recreational (sports and
games) and cultural events, community meetings, and
participatory assessments and evaluations.
Adults will participate in parent support groups,
recreational and cultural events, community meetings,
participatory assessments and evaluations.
All community members will be encouraged to attend
awareness-raising activities and events, such as drama
performances, panel discussions, rallies etc.
War Child Sierra Leone
programme approach
Contribute to the psychosocial recovery
of communities and foster community
cohesion through the development of
individual life skills and the facilitation
of social infrastructures
THE POWER WALK
Current situation in Sierra Leone
(2007 PNA outcomes)
1. Inadequate adult support for children
2. Lack of community cohesion / negative
interactions between community members
3. Negative peer interactions & influence
4. Lack of future prospects/livelihood
prospects
5. Migration from community to town or
mines
Community cohesion &
interaction (1/2)
1. There is a lack of harmony and positive dynamics amongst
community members.
This is to a large extent due to the disintegration of society and
community during the war. The chaos, anarchy and violence
of the war have led to the collapse of many communities and
the breakdown of the social fabric that traditionally holds a
community together.
Ten years of conflict have splintered homes and communities,
destroyed social structures, cultural norms and values, and
protective mechanisms that used to keep people together and
brought about unity in a community. This has an immense
impact on the wellbeing and the development of children and
youth. They are exposed to this lack of unity and negative
interactions between adult community members; who are
supposed to be their role models.
Community cohesion &
interaction (2/2)
2. Relations between adult community members are in many
cases not considered to be positive and constructive.
Conflicts between community members are frequent, leading to
aggressive and violent attitudes towards each other. There
appears to be a lack of support for one another and
insufficient collaboration in working towards the
development of the community. People do not work anymore
as one community towards a common goal.
Cultural activities, which used to play an important role in
bringing the community members together and in expressing a
sense of community identity, have largely disappeared as a
result of the war.
“In today’s world, we ought to ask children and young people for their opinions. By
involving the children, we prepare them for the world of tomorrow. By involving children
in activities, they learn skills such as how to speak before a group and express their
opinion, and how to solve problems by discussing them.”
Impact on children of Civil War
in Sierra Leone
Children were at the core of the brutal civil
war that ravaged Sierra Leone between 1991
and 2002.
Many children witnessed horrible violence,
were subjected to systematic abuse, lost
family members, saw their homes go up in
flames and had to flee to find refuge in
camps or with relatives in safer places.
Thousands of children, boys as well as girls,
were forced to become combatants
themselves. Senseless killings, mutilations,
rape and other inhuman treatment were
part of these children’s daily experiences.
War Child Sierra Leone
programme results
1. Sustainable community structures that
involve and support children and youth are
created and functional
2. Awareness of and support for child rights
and psychosocial development of children
and youth at the community, district and
national levels has increased
3. Positive dynamics/cohesion within the
community have increased
4. Children and youth have gained life skills
5. Educational opportunities for youth are
enlarged
War Child Sierra Leone
programming process
Assessment
•
General Needs Assessment to select communities
Year 1:
•
Participatory Needs Assessment in selected communities
•
Set up Children and Youth Support Structure
•
Form Community Action Groups
•
Action & Sustainability planning for 1st year
•
Implementation of 1st year Action and Sustainability Plan
•
Participatory Community Evaluation AND Action & Sustainability
planning for 2nd year
Year 2:
•
Implementation of 2nd year Action and Sustainability Plan
•
Participatory Community Evaluation AND Action & Sustainability
planning for 3rd year
•
Exit
Year 3:
•
Monitoring and follow up
Community structure
CYSS:
Children and
Youth Support
Structure
(4 Children, 4
Youths, 4 Adults)
Parents Club
Board of:
4 CYSS Adult
members
+ CAG reps
Cultural
Community
Action Group
1 Club rep +
Active
volunteers
Drama
Community
Action Group
1 Club rep +
Active
volunteers
Youth Club
Board of:
4 CYSS Youth
members
+ CAG reps
Sports
Community
Action Group
1 Club rep +
Active
volunteers
Children’s Club
Board of:
4 CYSS Child
members
+ CAG reps
+ 2 Adults
Arts Community
Action Group
1 Club rep +
Active
volunteers
… Community
Action Group
1 Club rep +
Active
volunteers
In times gone by, our parents did not protect us. If adults saw children going to
dangerous places, like into the jungle, they would only laugh. Their attitude was one of “I
don’t care”. Parents did not look out for their children, and certainly not for children
who where not their biological children. Things are different now, because parents are
showing that they care about us”.
“Adults now pass on their knowledge to us. They not only teach us how to play the BooBoo flute and how to drum, but also how to get a group together and then lead it.
Children and young people are now very much involved in planning and carrying out
community activities”
“The war has made our people violent. Children and young people stopped going to school
and started playing in the jungle instead, fighting each other with sticks and bottles. Noone had any control over them. Adults were not aware of the negative effects of the
situation. Parents also set a bad example by fighting each other on almost a daily basis
while their children were present.”
“If we act respectfully, the people in our community know that we are being properly
brought up. Our parents can then be proud of us, and we are asked to take part in
community activities. This generates peace and unity, not only in the family, but in the
community as well. We have a saying: ‘If children wash their hands, they can eat at the
village chief’s table’.”
“Now that there is more peace in the communities and adults are no longer each others
enemies, they are able to pay more attention to children, whether these are their own
biological children or not. Neighbors help children when they are ill by taking them to the
hospital, even if the parents are not around. And our parents no longer hit us now that
the message has been spread about maltreating children and children’s rights”.
“There is now more cohesion in our community because we have come together and have
started organizing cultural festivals. Nowadays, residents of nearby villages are friendly
towards us. In contrast to how things used to be, when such cultural dance activities
were characterized by violence, they now end peacefully.”
QUESTIONS
&
DISCUSSION