By Tanya Castle
If there is one phrase I hear more than any other in Congo when I ask why something isn’t done it’s: “manque de moyens,” in English: “lack of means.” Time and time again this is cited as the reason why problems continue in Congo.
The military trial of a colonel accused of rape that can’t continue because there is no judge with a higher rank than him in Bukavu and the government can’t pay for one to be flown in from Kinshasa…The doctor who tries his best to take care of up to five rape victims a day but can’t heal them properly because his clinic’s shelves are empty…The police who are called to a crime scene, who would like to do their job, but can’t get there because there’s no gas in the car. All of these stories I have heard while here, and each one has been summed up with the phrase, manque de moyens. read more…
By Viviane Konan and Koné Gnangadjomon
With support from USAID’s Office for Conflict Management and Mitigation (USAID-CMM), SFCG has been conducting an 18-month project entitled “Reconciliation of Conflict in Divided Communities in Cote d’Ivoire.” The project’s main goal is to facilitate reconciliation between divided ethnic and religious groups in targeted areas in Côte d’Ivoire.
Much of the conflict in Cote d’Ivoire revolves around land and occurs between native Ivorians and immigrants to the country, especially those from Burkina Faso and Mali.
The following stories were collected in Soubré (Western Cote d’Ivoire); one of the areas where this project was implemented. They show how participants in SFCG’s training sessions understand conflict management fundamental concepts apply them in their daily life in order to manage conflicts and bring peace to their communities. read more…
Take me out of your box, for humanity’s sake
By Sara Khan
Islamabad – Travelling alone as a Muslim Pakistani female hasn’t been all that easy in a post-9/11 world. In fact, being ”Muslim”, “Pakistani” and a “woman” simultaneously can be too many red flags attached to one identity.
While pursuing my education abroad I had many experiences dealing with airport security and immigration staff – particularly during my travels between Costa Rica, the United States and Pakistan. But I also learned through these experiences that sometimes a little act of kindness can go a long way in transforming our view of the ”other”, helping us to realise and appreciate the inherent good in people.
In my mind I had put airport authorities everywhere in a box labelled “Ruthless-officials-securing-their-country”. And the box they might have had for me was, well, “She-must-be-up-to-something”. My interaction at the airport served as a microcosm of the larger Muslim-Western relationship, rife with stereotyped ideas and deeply held, hardly questioned beliefs about the other, further polarising the two groups. read more…
Tanya is currently interning with SFCG in the DRC.
Congolese mother in eastern DRC (Monuc/Marie Frechon from www.unhcr.org)
By Tanya Castle
In Congo the average family has 6.4 children. The average income is less than $100 per month. With so many mouths to feed children are often left to fend for themselves at a very early age and more often than not bear the burden of providing for their younger siblings as well. These children are robbed of their childhood and their rights.
Very few children are able to attend school, which ultimately perpetuates the cycle of poverty. And even those who do have a chance to study will likely not find work. The population growth rate far exceeds the economic growth rate in Congo and much of sub-Saharan Africa. More than half of youth are unemployed or severely underemployed—a recipe for conflict.
It puzzled me why these parents have so many children when they simply can’t appropriately support their growth—food, clothes, appropriate shelter, school fees etc.
I have since heard one reason. read more…
Traditional Religion for Peace and Healing
The road to Kailahun (By Caroline Thomas from www.africanlens.com)
We’ve been talking a lot about radio for peacebuilding lately and it’s a tool that works all over the world. In Sierra Leone, SFCG, working with the Foundation for West Africa, helped establish Radio Moa. The station’s aim was to provide information, counter rumors, and support reconciliation in the fragile border area of Kailahun, Sierra Leone. Kailahun is notable for being the district where the civil war began.
Radio Moa and other stations are now the subject of the documentary Leh Wi Tok, which premiers this Fall. Former SFCG staffer, Foday Saijuma, is now the Radio Moa Station Manager. Well-versed in the benefits of radio, he writes on the Leh Wi Tok blog about how traditional religion can also be used to forward a peacebuilding agenda.
“At the community level, the execution of traditional rituals is very important in enhancing reconciliation and peace building. Victims and perpetrators involved in the process have commonalities through their traditions and customs in which they share the same views, beliefs, and vision and therefore it becomes easier for them to interact, and stay together.
Throughout the District of Kailahun communities are now fully engaged in reconciliation using the traditional conflict resolution process referred to as “Fambul Tok” or “Family Talk.” The program starts with confession and remorse by those who committed crimes and the pronouncement of forgiveness by victims around a burning fire. During this time perpetrators openly confess to the amazement of onlookers. In Bomaru an ex- RUF fighter Bockarie Kamara (alias Pupugowei) said, ‘I was forced to join the movement to avenge the killing of my two brothers …’
After the night of confession and forgiveness both perpetrators and victims converged at the worship ground at Nyadejobu where oaths were taken, and also performed rituals to honor the dead, asked for forgiveness, registered thanks to their gods and made requests for their subsistence, long life and reconciliation…”
Read the rest of Foday’s essay here.
This PSA attempts to counter some of the virulent voices that have taken hold of reason and dialog.
