Key to Peace Lies in the Grass Roots |TODAY|
Submitted by dan.
on 2007-06-16 00:42.
All week the Institute of Criminology and Criminal Justice at Queen's University, Belfast, has been hosting a major international conference. Speakers from Rwanda, Sierra Leone, South Africa and Colombia are addressing ways in which 'bottom up' peacemaking is needed to make peace processes endure... . A number of common themes emerged.
First, and most obviously, 'top down' settlements require a concurrent
'bottom up' focus in communities most affected by violence. Unless the needs
of victims, ex-combatants and often poor local communities are addressed,
there is always space for grievances to fester and become a threat to future
peace... . A second theme is that efforts to deal with the past must focus on communities most affected by violence... . Finally, peacemaking requires grass roots 'leadership by
example'... . It is frequently victims who have
suffered most appallingly who demonstrate the greatest generosity towards
those who have harmed them. |
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