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Top 3: Who’s Working Towards Peace in the World?

By
Peace News Staff
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This year’s Nobel Peace Prize highlighted some leading peacebuilders:

3. The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) was nominated for enforcing peace in the political transition in The Gambia. Their success was hailed a victory for African democracy and bolstered hopes for long-term regional stability.

2. The United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) was recognized for standing up for refugees. Over 65 million people are now forcibly displaced, worldwide and the UNHCR has defended refugee rights, giving them a voice.

1. The International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN) won the 2017 Peace Prize for their ground-breaking efforts to prohibit nuclear weapons.

“They have also brought the debate forward by focusing so heavily on the humanitarian consequences of using nuclear arms,” said Berit Reiss-Andersen, chairman of the Norwegian Nobel Committee.

“We have a lot of organizations that are members but have worked with little resources, a lack of media attention and kind of ignored by mainstream media, so I think this will really – this will mean the world to us, this is going to change everything,” said Beatrice Fihn, executive director of ICAN.

From the Ground Up: The Lives of Afghan Mothers

By
Kathy Kelly
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Op-ed: Kathy Kelly co-coordinates Voices for Creative Nonviolence. In Kabul, she is the guest of the Afghan Peace Volunteers.

On a recent Friday at the Afghan Peace Volunteers’ (APV) Borderfree Center, here in Kabul, thirty mothers sat cross-legged along the walls of a large meeting room. Masoumah, who co-coordinates the Center’s “Street Kids School” project, had invited the mothers to a parents meeting. Burka-clad women who wore the veil over their faces looked identical to me, but Masoumah called each mother by name, inviting the mothers, one by one, to speak about difficulties they faced.

From inside the netted opening of a burka, we heard soft voices and, sometimes, sheer despair. Others who weren’t wearing burkas also spoke gravely. Their eyes expressed pain and misery, and some quietly wept. Often a woman’s voice would break, and she would have to pause before she could continue:

“I have debts that I cannot pay,” whispered the first woman.

“My children and I are always moving from place to place. I don’t know what will happen.”

“I am afraid we will die in an explosion.”

“My husband is paralyzed and cannot work. We have no money for food, for fuel.”

“My husband is old and sick. We have no medicine.”

“I cannot feed my children.”

“How will we live through the winter?”

“I have pains throughout my whole body.”

“I feel hopeless.”

“I feel depressed, and I am always worried.”

“I feel that I’m losing my mind.”

The mothers’ travails echo across Afghanistan, where “one-third of the population lives below the poverty line (earning less than $2 a day) and a further 50 percent are barely above this.” Much of the suffering voiced was common: most of the women had to support their families as they moved from house to house, not being able to come up with the rent for a more permanent space, and many women experienced severe body pains, often a result of chronic stress.

Last week, our friend Turpekai visited the Borderfree Center and spoke with dismay about her family’s well having gone dry. Later that morning, Inaam, one of the students in the “Street Kids School,” said that his family faces the same problem. Formerly, wells dug to depths of 20 to 30 meters were sufficient to reach the water table. But now, with the water table dropping an average of one meter a year, new wells must be dug to depths of 80 meters or more. Inflowing refugees create increased demands on the water table in times of drought and so do the extravagant water needs of an occupying military, and the world’s largest fortified embassy, that can dig as deep for water as it wants. Families living on less than $2 a day have little wherewithal to dig deep wells or begin paying for water. The water has been lost to war.

Sarah Ball, a nurse from Chicago, arrived in Kabul one week ago. Together we visited the Emergency Surgical Center for Victims of War, feeling acutely grateful for an opportunity to donate blood and hear an update from one of their logistical coordinators about new circumstances they encounter in Kabul.

In past visits to Kabul, staff at the Emergency Hospital would point happily to their volleyball court, the place where they could find diversion and release from tensions inherent in their life saving work. Now, as an average of two “mass casualties” happen each week, often involving many dozens of patients severely injured by war, a triage unit has replaced the volleyball court. Kabul, formerly one of the safest places in Afghanistan, has now become one of the most dangerous.

Masoumah asked each mother a second question: What are you thankful for? The atmosphere became a little less grim as many of the mothers said they were grateful for their children. Beholding the lively, bright and beautiful youngsters who fill the Borderfree Center each Friday, I could well understand their gratitude. The following day, we joined two dozen young girls living in a squalid refugee camp. Crowded into a small makeshift classroom with a mud floor, our friend Nematullah taught a two-hour class focused on forming peace circles. The little girls were radiant, exuberant and eager for better futures. Nematullah later told us that all their families are internally displaced, many because of war.

Zarghuna works full-time to coordinate projects at the Border Free Center. She and Masoumah feel passionately committed to social change which they believe will be organized “from the ground up”. “Small amounts that are given to the people can help change lives and make them a little better,” Zarghuna said.

I feel deeply moved by the commitment my young friends have made to reject wars and dominance, preferring instead to live simply, share resources, and help protect the environment.

Cover Photo: Courtesy of Afghan Peace Volunteers

Can Interfaith Peacebuilding Work? The case of Kaduna, Nigeria

By
admin
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Newsreader: Brandon Richardson

Nigeria is Africa’s most populous country with 185 million people. Its two leading religions are Christianity and Islam, and good relations between followers of these two religions are critical for peace in Nigeria. Communities in Kaduna State, Nigeria, however, have witnessed ethno-religious conflict in recent years, with Muslim-Christian relations severely damaged as a result. But one group is working to mend these divisions.

The Peaceful Revival Foundationof Nigeria has made strides in southern Kaduna, bringing different religious and ethnic factions together.

“Peace Revival, for the past 5 years – 6 years now, has been going to southern Kaduna, trying to talk to people, meeting with traditional rulers, meeting with community leaders, and meeting with ethnic groups and other NGOs, talking to them, trying to source our problem,” said Pastor Yohanna Buru, founder of the Peaceful Revival Foundation.

“The cause of [conflict] is that some feel they are marginalized in southern Kaduna,” Pastor Buru said.

“Mainly most of the Christians there, or the traditionalists there, or the people who claim to be the indigenes of that land,” he said.

“And possibly there’s no proper communication – or relationship – between the powerful in Kaduna and the government of today, or the people of northern Kaduna, so these are the contributing factors.”

Justice is a huge concern in the region, and acts of retaliation have sparked conflict.

“Between the government, society, Muslim or Christian – whatever – there is injustice there,” said Mohammed Abdullahi Gambo, a Fulani Muslim from the region.

“When we have justice, when we have justice there’s no more conflict,” Mr Gambo said.

Pastor Buru and his team encourage resolutions using dialogue and peaceful negotiation.

“We have been able to reach out to some of the traditional rulers in southern Kaduna, and discuss a lot with them, and try to negotiate for a better solution on how to be in peaceful co-existence with each other,” said Maryam Abubakar, a Fulani Muslim working with the foundation.

“To Muslim and Christians, they should sit down and talk, and they should bring in the traditionalists,” Pastor Buru said.

“The moment you sit with the communities there, it has helped in peacebuilding – they open up, they tell you their problems, and maybe they themselves proffer a solution.”

Participant Aliyu Mohammed said the Muslim community hold Pastor Yohanna Buru in high esteem because of his peacebuilding work in the area.

“We believe there is the need for other interfaith groups to emulate him in promoting peaceful co-existence in the area,” Mr Mohammed said.

“He actually understood the terrain very well because he is also from the area and that has helped him in bringing all aggrieved parties on same table to dialogue,” he said.

“Without peace in [this] environment, we can’t go forward, we can’t forge ahead,” said Pastor Joel Vigo, a Christian leader in the area.

“Without peace, you can’t work, or look for something to eat. But when there is peace, life will be ok,” said Pastor Vigo.

“Let us understand one another, so that there will be peaceful co-existence between the traditionalists, the Christian, the Muslim, the youths, and the old,” said Reverend Ishaku, a Christian leader.

People Choosing Peace: Muhammad (Nigeria)

By
Peace News Staff
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Muhammad Kabir was 19 years old when the Boko Haram insurgency started surfacing in his home city of Maiduguri in North-Eastern Nigeria. In a movement born from poverty, unemployment, and government oppression, the insurgents only attacked government buildings and the military at first. Most people celebrated their acts and even gave them cover. “I began to think,” Muhammad told Peacemaker 360, “that one day these same people who are celebrating will be hunted and become victims as well.”

It turns out, he was right.

“The Boku Haram insurgency has not only dislocated social and economic activities in these states, but also has resulted in at least 20,000 deaths, the enslavement of thousands of girls and women, the forced conscription of thousands of boys and young men into the insurgency, and at least 2.2 million internally displaced persons (IDPs),” Muhammad said.

To combat this situation, Muhammad focuses on changing the narrative around violence. The prevailing story used by Boko Haram and circulated among Nigerian youth is that violence is justified because violence is the only language government leaders will understand. Muhammad works with local, national, and international organizations (including the United Nations Population Fund, the UN Human Rights Commission, Nigerian Youth Network on Countering Violent Extremism, Young Leadership Association of Nigeria, Bulunkutu Abuja Youth Development Association, and Search for Common Ground) to change that narrative. “The new story,” he said, “is that violence cannot be justified, and it has changed the perception of the youth in their various communities and given them the opportunity to be considered and be heard by leaders and other stakeholders.”

The biggest challenge, he says, is reaching fellow youth in remote areas. He does this by partnering with local youth organizations.

“I firmly believe that there is no alternative to peace,” Muhammad said, “and violence can NEVER be justified. We can only have meaningful development when peace and social justice are allowed to reign in our societies.”

Muhammad Kabir is willing to serve as a resource for other activists countering violent extremism, and may be reached by email at mkabir13@gmail.com, on twitter @mkabir13_k, and on Facebook as Muhammad Kabir.

Source: Peacemaker360 /Maija Jespersen.

Lessons from Iraq: Preventing conflict after Kirkuk

By
Ami Carpenter
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Op-ed: Ami Carpenter, PhD, is an associate professor at the Joan B. Kroc School of Peace Studies at the University of San Diego, and teaches courses in conflict resolution, conflict analysis, and negotiation.

Since January 2017, I have traveled twice to the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, to learn about how the region has coped so successfully with the refugee and IDP crisis. I’ve met with ministry officials, University leaders, United Nations aid workers; visited refugee camps, and held many conversations over sweet tea about the region’s post-ISIS future. With uncertainty following the Iraqi Army and Iranian-backed Popular Mobilization Forces (PMFs) reclaimed sovereignty over Kirkuk in recent days, I’ve reflected on the region’s local and regional peace infrastructure and wondered what contribution towards political dialogue between Baghdad and Irbil it might make.

What Hope for Negotiation? Plenty.

Sectarian tension in Iraq is very real, but so is the history of mediation and complex negotiations that have saved lives and reinstated governance in ISIS-cleared areas. Following the June 2014 massacre of Iraqi cadets at the Camp Speicher military base near Tikrit, local NGOs convened a dialogue between Sunni and Shia tribes in 2015 to prevent a violent escalation of tensions and revenge killings. The negotiations were led by two local NGOs: SANAD for Peacebuilding and the Network of Iraqi Facilitators (and supported by U.S. Institute of Peace). This dialogue is impressive because it was designed in line with one of the best practices in peacebuilding: vertical and horizontal integration. It provided linkages vertically by including the National Reconciliation Committee as well as the office of Iraq’s National Security Advisor, and horizontally across the lines of conflict by bringing over 30 tribes together.

It led to a formal inter-tribal agreement, and established a mechanism for vetting residents wishing to return to their homes in Tikrit to ensure those implicated in the massacre were excluded. After the agreement, about 400 families returned to Tikrit initially, and thousands more followed under the same mechanism. Today, almost all residents now have come back. Such a model could work in Kirkuk, to help resettle the Kurdish families that fled ahead of the Iraqi Army.

Despite the very public tension between Baghdad and Irbil, complex, negotiated agreements between these two centers of power have resulted in a variety of critical efforts. The military agreement among Erbil, Baghdad, and the US-led Coalition resulted in Combined Joint Task Force – Operation Inherent Resolve (CJTF-OIR). The UN’s complex humanitarian aid operation was made possible by close cooperation between Baghdad’s Joint Coordination and Monitoring Centre (JCMC) and the Joint Crisis Coordination Centre (JCC) in Irbil. And although imperfect, Hoshem Mohammad, Director of the JCC, believes that both the military and humanitarian cooperation “can be used as a foundation for ensuring cooperation and working together. And the international community can support this.”

The history of dialogue and cooperation is important to highlight, because it reminds us all that a political process is feasible and – especially after the wrenching intensity of the war against ISIS – desirable. What is required now is a political process for doing so, including one that invites women to the negotiating table (peace agreements are more comprehensive and durable when women are involved). The US must stay in Iraq to assist a political process for the disputed territories, including perhaps a special status for Kirkuk.

Cover Photo: Steve Cline USAF

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