CIIAN's NEWSLETTER: FALL 2003

INSIDE THIS ISSUE:

Editorial: The Shifting Sands of International Development and Peacebuilding Funding
Pierre LeBlanc
Gacaca: Truth and Healing in Post-Genocide Rwanda
Calvin McKnight
Workplace Conflict Resolution Trends and Insights
Rena Ramkay
Community Mediation: Social Transformation or Social Control?
Heather Pincock
Beyond Peace Education
Flaurie Storie
Game Theory and Public Choice: The View From Here
Victoria Edwards
International Program Highlights
Flaurie Storie &
Rena Ramkay
CIIAN's Domestic Program Update
Heidi Ruppert
RPDR List

 

The Shifting Sands of International Development and Peacebuilding Funding Top

by Pierre LeBlanc

Organizations and NGOs involved in conflict resolution, peacebuilding and international development are becoming increasingly concerned with an accelerating trend towards the shifting of aid funds from peacebuilding and development to the security agenda. InterAction, the largest U.S.-based alliance of international development humanitarian NGOs operating in developing countries, "is concerned about a number of intended and unintended consequences of the U.S. Administration's goals and methods, especially the post-September 11, 2001 inclination to view foreign aid primarily through a new national security lens"i. British international development organizations are deeply concerned about the British Department of International Development's decision to "scale back cash for its aids projects to the Amazon", among other areas, in order to "meet the soaring cost of rebuilding Iraq"ii .

This trend is gaining ground in Canada as well, as more and more consideration is being given to linking peacebuilding and development aid, or official development assistance (ODA), to security considerations. The Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade (DFAIT) is setting the tone in exploring the amalgamation or pooling of peacebuilding and security funds and linking them to national defense in Afghanistan and elsewhere. Indeed, time will tell whether Canada will channel some of its precious resources in provincial reconstruction teams (PRTs) such as those being set up by the U.S.-led antiterrorism coalition.

Composed of U.S. military and special forces operatives, PRTs also feature civil affairs officers and aid workers who run reconstruction projects ranging from the building of schools and the repair of damaged bridges to helping start fledgling medical clinics or digging water wells. Many foreign aid workers question whether the PRTs will really make Afghanistan's provinces more secure for humanitarian organizations. Denis McClean, a spokesman for the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Society, says the safety of civilian aid workers could be threatened by the trend of military forces taking on a greater humanitarian role. "We don't believe that military forces should have any part in the delivery of humanitarian aid, or be involved in it -- unless in very extreme and difficult circumstances. And we feel that when people see soldiers throwing aid out the back of a truck and providing humanitarian assistance, it blurs the lines of distinction between humanitarian aid workers and the military."iii

The shifting of aid to the security agenda is of great concern to people involved in peacebuilding and international development as it threatens to undercut new initiatives and reduce, rather than strengthen, support for on-ongoing development and peacebuilding programs around the world. As development is an essential building block towards peacebuilding, and underdevelopment a generator of wars and terrorism and thus a primary threat to security, the perceived benefits of this shift could prove to be as short-lived as they are ill-advised. Many feel that this drying up of development and peacebuilding funds, or redirection to security activities and military delivery systems and structures, could have disastrous effects and lead to preventable human and environmental catastrophes.

Prime Minister Paul Martin's accession to power, the mixed messages flowing from the structure of his new cabinet and his budding "rapprochement" with President Bush suggest that the peacebuilding and development communities have their work cut out to reverse this trend on the Canadian stage. In his quest to participate in the rebuilding Iraq, there is a danger that Mr. Martin will further divert Canadian aid funding from development and peacebuilding towards security. Will Mr. Martin's aid policies mimic USAID's policy that aid workers must act as "arm of government policy", as Naomi Klein suggests in a recent Guardian article iv. Will security considerations override development, conflict prevention and peacebuilding principles in the Canadian government's aid policy and funding decisions?

At the recent Liberal Party leadership convention, Bono made it clear that he expected Paul Martin to build on the legacy of his predecessors in the fight against global poverty. He said that he would be a "pain in the ass" and that "a year from now, he's (Martin) going to regret tonight". If Prime Minister Martin allows aid to drift further towards the security agenda in lockstep with Britain and the US, will the Canadian peacebuilding and development NGO's take up Bono's call to action? Their continued ability to act effectively around the world and indeed their capacity to greatly increase their action in response to ever-increasing urgency depend on it.

The present changing of the Liberal guard offers a strategic opportunity to the NGO community to articulate alternatives to the fusion of development and security policies. The foreign policy review and the defense policy review, among other processes, could serve as venues for them to convince the Martin government that Canada preserve the integrity of its peacebuilding and international development funding programs.
----------------------------------------------------------

i Interaction. Emerging Trends: An InterAction Policy Paper; Washington, November 2003.

ii Woolf, Marie. UK Cuts Rainforest Funding to Meet Iraq Costs; The Independant, London, November 12 2003.

iii Synowitz, Ron. Afghanistan: U.S.-Led Coalition Expands 'Provincial Reconstruction Teams'; Radio Liberty, Radio Free Europe, 2003.

iv Klein, Naomi. Now Bush wants to buy the complicity of aid workers: Relief groups have been told they must be an "arm of the US government"; The Guardian, London, June 23, 2003.

 

Gacaca: Truth and Healing in Post-Genocide Rwanda Top

by Calvin McKnight

Making sense of the Rwandan genocide of 1994, when more than 500,000 Tutsis and moderate Hutus were murdered over a period of 100 days, has taken a range of forms in the intervening years. Recent first person accounts from a Canadian perspective (including Shake Hands With The Devil by Romeo Dallaire and A Sunday At The Pool in Kigali by Quebec writer Gil Courtemanche) have focused on what it was like to bear witness in an often gruesome and unsparing fashion. Several years ago, Philip Gourevitch's We Wish To Inform You That Tomorrow We Will Be Killed With Our Families dealt with the same events through the eyes of Hutus and Tutsis who found themselves in the middle of the terror. Innovative efforts inside Rwanda to reconcile and heal have also received a measure of international attention in recent years, and are the subject of a documentary film that was released in 2002 entitled "Gacaca, Living Together Again in Rwanda?". As a unique movement for citizen-based justice, gacaca (pronounced ga-CHA-cha, the word means 'grass' in the Kinyaranda language) deserves to be examined in some detail and put in the broader context of similar efforts towards reconciliation that have occurred around the globe.

Since the end of the genocide in 1994, in excess of 100,000 suspects have been in jail - many of who may never have the opportunity for a proper trial. In place of a formal judicial process, gacaca courts have been set up by the Rwandan government to provide a means of healing the scars of the genocide at the local level. Based on a pre-colonial practice of resolving disputes between neighbors, gacaca targets perpetrators accused of lesser crimes during the period of the genocide. Across the country, gacaca activities have been organized by judges elected by the people (over 90% of the population participated in their election) in each of the country's administrative units. Designed to more than just allow people to give testimony to what they have witnessed, the Gacaca strategy has several additional objectives:

  1. To increase knowledge of the Gacaca law and jurisdiction;
  2. To increase acceptance of the Gacaca process to encourage justice and reconciliation;
  3. To increase the number of prisoners and perpetrators of crimes during the genocide who confess, and;
  4. To bring about widespread participation in the Gacaca process (including the training judges, through public education at soccer matches and on radio, as well as through a national song competition).

To date, the Gacaca program has had some significant successes, particularly in terms of education and awareness. However, it is clearly a small step in a process of reconciliation between Tutsis and Hutus that will take generations. Widespread poverty, political instability, and a lack of developed infrastructure have also impacted the efforts of citizen-based justice. Earlier this year, a decision taken by Rwandan President Paul Kagame to release 40,000 prisoners on bail who had confessed to crimes related to the genocide and had served time appropriate to their alleged crimes, further undermined the sense of justice that many Rwandans felt was deserved.

As the subject of the 2002 documentary "Gacaca, Living Together In Rwanda?", directed by Anne Aghion, gacaca becomes a very personal and local effort. In the film, Aghion follows one of the elected prosecutors through the proceedings in a rural Rwandan community. The process is explained and prisoners are presented to those who are gathered, at which point individuals with an accusation of an atrocity against the prisoner are then invited to speak. Often incredibly painful, the willingness of witnesses and victims to share their experiences feels very unique, particularly when viewed through the lens of everyday life years after the genocide has taken place. The movie allows time for many different stories to be told and leaves open the question as to the ultimate effectiveness of the proceedings themselves. It offers rare insight into how an experiment in reconciliation hopes to transform a troubled society. The director also makes a significant effort to avoid judging right from wrong, a tendency that is difficult to resist in light of what has happened, and focuses on everyday life for Rwandans.

Although it is much too early to determine the effectiveness of the gacaca experiment, it is clearly a process without many precedents. In her book Unspeakable Truths: Confronting State Terror and Atrocity, Priscilla Hayner evaluates the work of twenty-one Truth Commissions around the globe since the early 1970s (including South Africa, Guatemala, and Sierra Leone). Not surprisingly, many of these commissions were in large part unsuccessful in their stated objectives, for a variety of reasons. Hayner evaluates the work of these truth commissions based on three criteria: their process, their product, and their impact after the work of the commission is completed. In the case of Rwanda, it will be interesting to see how the outcome compares to those of the most successful of the truth commissions in Hayner's analysis - post-Apartheid South Africa.

Gacaca in Rwanda is a unique effort to make sense of the past in a way that respects the experiences of the victims and recognizes the challenges in rebuilding a society riven by ethnic division, poverty, and a relative instability. Much continues to be written about the period of genocide in Rwanda in all of its horror. Hopefully, a similar amount of attention needs to be paid to innovative rebuilding efforts now that the world has moved on to other more high profile regions of conflict and strife.

 

WORKPLACE CONFLICT RESOLUTION TRENDS AND INSIGHTS Top

by Rena Ramkay, Director, Special Programs

Over the past ten years or so, conflict resolution in workplaces has come a long way. Many government departments and a significant number of private sector firms have developed in-house mediation and conflict management services for their employees. As a result of the recently passed Bill-C25: The Public Sector Modernization Act, which directs that mediation services be provided for labour relations and that every federal department establish informal conflict management systems, workplace mediation programs are likely to be further consolidated or expanded. Those who work as internal mediators in government programs can expect to encounter a number of challenges. A few of these have been outlined below.

  • Timing of Service Request

Because mediation and conflict management programs are developed within institutions that have already established human resources departments, unions, and other dispute resolution units, conflicts will have often been processed through at least one of these offices before coming to mediation. As a result, conflict positions become hardened and parties become cynical about their options, given prior interventions and time delays. The longer a conflict festers and the more attempts at resolution that are tried and rejected, the more difficult the situation will be to resolve.

One of the most important lessons for internal mediators is to get involved in conflict situations as early as possible. Strong relationships must be nurtured with staff who are from offices likely to be involved in conflict resolution, such as those noted above. Through ongoing contacts and workshops in conflict management, other internal staff can become aware of and knowledgeable about mediation services. Ideally, this will result in faster referrals to your services.

  • Nature of the Conflicts

Organizational conflicts, even when they seem to involve only interpersonal issues, tend to share similar characteristics. Working relationships are essential to people's identity, largely due to the fact that they spend so much time at work - sometimes more than they spend at home. As a result, there are strong psychological and relational interests in workplace conflicts. It is not unusual to find a great deal of emotion invested in these situations. Mediators should expect and be capable of handling high emotion effectively.

In addition, since workplace units are now composed of teams (people rely on the work of others and need to collaborate to complete their own work), a conflict that appears to be between two people in a unit, likely affects the entire unit. Often, dysfunctional reporting lines and relationships develop within units that house interpersonal conflicts. Even if they are not directly involved in the conflict, all members of the unit are affected by conflicts among others.

It is thus essential that internal mediators consider the system as a whole when they enter a workplace conflict. If the two parties with the initial conflict are able to resolve their issues through mediation, that is great - but it is not over. If those two people return to a work unit that has not adapted to their new relations, any agreement they have made could be undermined. Some knowledge of systems theory and group dynamics is important to understand the diffuse effects of conflict on the work environment.

  • Getting Parties to the Table

Given the above, successfully convening a mediation requires a good deal of skill. For many of the reasons noted earlier, parties are not likely to have much trust in the person with whom they have the conflict, nor are they likely to be optimistic about resolving the conflict. Mediation is still a very new process for many people and there are many fears and misconceptions about it. People arrive at mediation offices discouraged and anxious. Mediation officers must be skilled listeners, who are able to build rapport and trust with the parties through the use of empathy and the demonstration of understanding.

One of the keys to encouraging parties to try mediation is having them reflect on their BATNAs - Best Alternatives To a Negotiated Agreement or options to resolve the conflict if there is no negotiation. Many of the other offices that handle conflicts do not explore BATNAs effectively. In fact, parties frequently state, "Joe from the union (or Human Resources or the Equity Office) thinks that I have a strong case for a grievance and that there is no need for me to go through mediation." "Joe" may indeed have believed that the case was strong, but that was usually because he had not heard the other side's perspective. If he had, he would not have advised the party the way he did. I call this, "over-inflated BATNA syndrome", and its results are detrimental to resolving conflicts in a non-adversarial way.

Again, this example stresses the importance of having good working relationships with colleagues from other offices who deal with staff conflicts. All conflict officers should understand the importance of having a measured and objective approach to institutional conflict.

  • Responsibility to the Institution

Finally, as an employee of an institution, mediation program staff do need to be aware of their fiduciary responsibilities to that institution. It is very rare that a conflict not include elements of systemic or structural problems. For example, a supervisor and employee in conflict about workloads, communication and management styles might have started their conflict after restructuring and staff reduction in their work unit. This means that there is an external contributor to their conflict, if not its cause. This is a structural problem - under resourcing - that cannot be directly addressed by resolving interpersonal problems between the supervisor and the employee. The interpersonal conflict issues can certainly be mediated. However, the structural problems will require a different approach.

If it is possible to involve other offices of the institution in addressing systemic problems, without divulging confidences, the mediation service should do so out of its larger responsibility to the institution. Parties in conflict can be encouraged to approach an appropriate dispute resolution office in order to lobby for some action. Mediation and conflict management offices should track trends in this area - for example, are the institution's managers feeling ill equipped to handle staff conflict? If so, human resources trainers could put on some workshops. In those cases where mediation is not suitable, mediators should be screening cases out if they are better dealt with by rights or power based means. For internal mediation program staff, good working relationships with other dispute resolution offices are essential. Workplaces need to develop timely and appropriate processes for dealing with conflict. Offices handling different types of conflict will frequently need to work together.

 

Community Mediation: Social Transformation or Social Control? Top

by Heather Pincock

Over the 30 years since the community mediation movement emerged in North America, much debate has revolved around its capacity to meet its goals. In particular, early founders of community mediation or neighbourhood justice centres proclaimed the potential for positive social transformation to be realized through their organizations. The goal of social transformation, it is claimed, is partly achieved through the personal growth of the participants. In this discussion, personal growth will be identified as individual empowerment. Individual empowerment can occur through community mediation at two levels, in the volunteer mediators and in the disputants. Stemming from this, group or community empowerment is made possible. This involves the process of community-building or a progressive formulation of a common group identity. A subsequent effect of this is social transformation as the community is empowered throughout the process of mediating internal disputes to identify and mobilize towards shared interests. It is in this way that the apparently distinct goals of individual empowerment (both of mediators and disputants) and community empowerment (community-building and social transformation) are interdependent and simultaneously realizable.

To empower a person or a group is to provide them with means to achieve some type of end. The end of empowerment in community mediation is change. Edward Schwerin points out it "is associated with the positive transformation of individuals, groups and structures."i The individuals who encounter community mediation are the volunteer mediators and disputants. The group that is formed by their common experience of conflict resolution, as well as their common placement in a specific geographic location, is the community. The structures that the community can identify, criticize and change through this process are its economic and social structures.

Schwerin discusses empowerment from the mediator perspective in terms of three variables. The training and practice opportunities afforded to them through involvement with a community mediation organization foster psychological, social and political empowerment. Psychological empowerment is the increase in self-esteem and self-efficacy that results from the acquisition of conflict resolution skills and knowledge. Social empowerment results from the broader application of such skills beyond the mediation process. Political empowerment results when mediators, through experience, become aware of underlying patterns and causes of conflict.

The voluntary nature of mediation links the empowerment of mediators to the empowerment of disputants. Mediators participate voluntarily. This makes repeated encounter with conflict, which can be intimidating and uncomfortable, a bearable and even rewarding experience. For the disputant, mediation is also voluntary and this provides a means for expressing their concerns and taking ownership of their conflict. The process therefore empowers disputants by providing them with an environment to exercise their autonomy and self-reliance and in which they are able to have control over outcomes. In this way, mediation helps disputants attain psychological empowerment.

The central question remains: can mediation secure social and political empowerment for disputants? If so, how would this take place? If disputants leave the mediation having acquired skills or knowledge that will aid them in future social encounters, they have been socially empowered to some extent. Evaluating to what extent this transfer of skills takes place is a definite challenge for assessing the claims of community mediation. Secondly, can mediation bring underlying or structural causes of their conflicts to the attention of disputants, resulting in their political empowerment? If this were acknowledged as a goal of the mediation process, how would it affect the role of the mediator? How would one assess whether this political empowerment was in fact taking place through the mediation process?

At the group level, community mediation hopes to achieve empowerment through community-building. It is hoped that the process of mediation assists members of communities to articulate shared values and interests. This articulation supports a process of social cohesion, which is seriously lacking in western urban neighbourhoods. The community also becomes able to address problems internally without depending on the courts or police. This fosters autonomy and strength within the community that can further contribute to social cohesion. The expression of independence and autonomy via the internal satisfaction of conflict resolution needs empowers the community to oppose state structures of economic and social inequality. The identification and dismantling of conflict promoting systems is made possible by the empowerment caused by community mediation. Although this is clearly not the primary goal of community mediation, it is quite possibly the most significant and important potential effect expressed but he empowerment aims of the movement.

A brief example might help to illustrate this process. The Mediation Centre at Carleton University offered services to the university and neighbouring community. During a period of financial stress at the University, the Mediation Centre (MC) saw an increasing number of employment related conflicts as the stress of downsizing and decreased job security had adverse effects on working relationships. While mediation's primary focus must be to restore these working relationships to a healthy status, the MC is also in a position to relate these conflicts back to funding cuts. It is beneficial to take as part of the resolution process the identification of such root causes of conflict. The disputants, having resolved their day to day issue, will hopefully be motivated and empowered to pressure governments for more university investment and thus mobilize with other community members toward social change. It is in this manner that the individual and group empowerment initiatives undertaken by community mediation could successfully promote social transformation.

Community mediation faces two major challenges in advancing its claims.

First, there are several critiques of community mediation. They have largely consisted of the questioning of community mediation's ability to achieve these goals. In particular, Richard Abel and Laura Nader have expressed skepticism about these claims. Although their arguments are too complex to be described here, any proponent of community mediation's potential must engage with their concerns. Simply, their critique depicts community mediation as a form of social control that serves to distract individuals from structural inequalities, favouring harmony instead of justice. Addressing these concerns convincingly presents a clear challenge to the claims of community mediation.

The second major challenge is the need for a strategy to evaluate these claims. Empowerment and social transformation are not easily measured quantities. Determining to what extent they take place and through what mechanisms is no easy task. A commitment to developing evaluation strategies to better address these issues is needed. Knowing how and when social transformation occurs can only help to build a necessary bridge between theory and practice.

Heather Pincock is carrying out a Master's program in conflict and peace studies at Syracuse University.
-----------------------------

i Schwerin, Edward, Mediation, Citizen Empowerment, and Transformational Politics. (Westport, CT: Praeger, 1995)p. 7/

 

BEYOND PEACE EDUCATION Top

by Flaurie Storie

As in the past, there continue to be calls for educational systems to adopt and/or integrate peace education. Given the changing nature of violence in our world, "peace education is ever more imperative", goes the rallying cry. Further, peace activists put their faith in a culture of peace resting within the next generation and thus call upon schools to fulfill their responsibilities.

This article argues that until the power structures of the hierarchal systems of the educational enterprise undergo a significant shift, educational institutions in their present mindset carry little hope of leading communities in the transformation required to shift our society from a culture of violence to a culture of peace.

In schools, the authority of adults is paramount and is still too often exercised in an authoritarian fashion. As one educational official in Pakistan recently remarked: "It is the duty of the students to obey the teacher". Simply stated, principals and teachers exercise power over students. This is true in countries of the North as it is in those of the South, the difference being in degrees. Power-over approaches continue to create resistance and resentment with the inevitable strategy of revenge employed by students, thereby actually contributing to conflict. As one young student offered: "When my teacher says I must, I feel "won't" all over".

One recent study on conflict resolution education and moral reasoning found that moral reasoning is stymied when punishment is the course of action for dealing with problematic student behaviour i. As A. Kohn, an authority on moral reasoning contends, "the more we manage students' behaviour and try to make them do what we say, the more difficult it is for them to become morally sophisticated people who think for themselves and care about others" ii. What could be more crucial to violence prevention than opportunity to develop moral reasoning?

Further, research in conflict resolution education has demonstrated that unless the basic principles and values (justice, cooperation, power-with, connectedness) underlying such education is infused into the fabric of school life, there is limited long-term positive impact from schools that would move our society toward positive peace. Worse, negative impacts occur. One such example is the co-opting of conflict resolution programs such as peer mediation into the administrative structure for controlling student behaviour.

Structural root causes in schools that inhibit our progress toward a caring and just society must be addressed, the most significant of these being the manner in which power is exercised. If not, peace education continues to run the risk of contributing to a false sense of harmony to the detriment of justice. And as has been demonstrated time and time again, there can be no peace without justice. It is more than high time that issues of power in schools be seriously addressed with a view to facilitating power transformation.

---------------------------------------------

i Heydenberk, W. etc al, Conflict Resolution and Moral Reasoning, Conflict Resolution Quarterly, Vol. 1, no. 1, Fall 2003, Wiley Periodicals, Hoboken, NJ.
ii Kohn, A., No Contest: The Case Against Competition, Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1986.

 

Game Theory and Public Choice: The View From Here Top

by Victoria Edwards

Since my family argues endlessly over card games and politics on cool fall evenings, I thought an article on game theory and public choice would be timely. In "The Art of Negotiation", Zack Taylor argues that game theory is significant to political negotiations because the regime may not survive if its politically unsustainable agreements make too many concessions i. For example, although Quebec's Premier Robert Bourassa initially signed the Victoria Charter in 1971 his electorate felt that it did not meet their core demands. Premier Bourassa's agreement was neither stable nor lasting, and he ultimately bowed to intense public and media pressure to reject the Charter.

Game theory, which stems from mathematics, emphasizes the role of competition and cooperation to explain public sector behavior. Game theorists attempt to analyze the strategies that rational actors use to achieve their goals. Game theory predicts that the side with the most options has the ability to win the game. Taylor invites negotiators, who are resolving conflicts in federal states, to consider the following pairs of concepts:

Zero-sum

<->

Positive-sum

Win/lose

<->

Win/win

Majority rule

<->

Unanimity

Short-term gain

<->

Long-term stability

Conflict

<->

Consensus

Although the primary goal is to meet one's demands, confrontation will escalate if the parties expect that "another's win is your loss". A zero sum game may lead to resentment, poisoned relations, or a deadlock in which neither player achieves his or her goals. Game theory predicts that conflict-seeking processes, in which short-term gain and majority rule lead to victory of one party over another are relatively easy to accomplish, but they may result in inequitable and unstable results. In contrast, consensus seeking processes, in which long-term stability and unanimity may lead to a more equitable and stable result as players exchange wins for other wins.

The theory of public or rational choice, which stems from economics and game theory, emphasizes the role of rational self-interest in influencing beliefs and actions in the public sector. Relying on three parallels between economics and politics, choice theorists attempt to explain voter outcomes. First, both the private and public sectors provide goods and services for money, yet customers spend money and citizens vote with their ballots. Second, individuals are rational and calculating since the public and private sectors seek the best goods and services for the least money. Finally, companies that perform poorly well go bankrupt, while citizens vote under-performing politicians out of office. Consequently, public or rational choice theory predicts that individual decision-makers and voters will pursue their own agendas in the development of public policy. Since government officials or bureaucrats are as utility maximizing or selfish as other members of society, they will behave in ways that maximize their own benefits and minimize their costs.

Unfortunately, the rational choice theory has fundamental problems because voting models based on rational choice theory do not accurately explain why people vote in real life situations. Critics point out that a rational individual should let others decide the election for him if the costs of voting outweigh the potential rewards of casting the deciding vote. Although driving to the polls, presenting for jury duty and missing work are potential costs of voting, people do not necessarily think or act this rationally.

--------------------------------------

i Zack Taylor "The Art of Negotiation: A Simulation for Resolving Conflict in federal States" (Ottawa, Forum of Federations, 2003) at www.forumfed.org.

 

INTERNATIONAL PROGRAM HIGHLIGHTS Top

by Flaurie Storie & Rena Ramkay

CIIAN has revamped its Website in order to better reflect its interventions on the international scene. Friends of CIIAN are encouraged to check out our updated website at www.ciian.org and tour our photo gallery via the International Program page.

CIIAN has been involved in a global initiative focusing on conflict prevention for the last year. The European Centre for Conflict Prevention initiated the Global Partnership for the Prevention of Armed Conflict in response to the U.N. Secretary-General's report on the Prevention of Armed Conflict (2001). The Global Partnership's overarching objective is "to develop a common platform for effective action on conflict prevention from the community to the global level". Over three years, the program hopes to involve civil society groups, NGOs, the UN, regional organizations and governments in a coordinated plan of networking, research and interaction on conflict prevention. Ultimately, regional experiences will feed into an International Agenda for Conflict Prevention. The Canadian Peacebuilding Coordinating Committee is leading activities in Canada. Staff is involved on the Task Force created to develop the Canadian program. It has been a very busy year - developing plans and priorities, consulting those working in the field and submitting funding proposals. We completed survey research on conflict prevention activities and actors in Canada and have recently begun coordinating with our U.S. and Mexican colleagues.

The Citizenship Rights and Responsibilities (CRRP) Project in Pakistan is demonstrating remarkable progress, especially in light of the current political situation in the region as well as within the country itself. The implementing partner in Karachi, Aga Khan University's Institute for Education Development (IED), conducted a five-city, countrywide research study on Pakistani's conceptualization of citizenship. The study revealed six concepts of citizenship:

  • 67.2% of respondents housed their concept of citizenship within that of identity; that is, citizenship is identification with Pakistan - the place of birth
  • 18.1% felt that to be a Pakistani citizen is to be a patriotic citizen. This was expressed as, "Pakistanis are those who love Pakistan" or "Those who are faithful to Pakistan".
  • For 10% percent of the survey population, being a Pakistani citizen was synonymous with being a Muslim.
  • 7.1% conceptualized citizenship to be responsibilities without rights. "Those who obey the law and do their duties" or a similar response was one way of expressing this.

The other two conceptualizations centered on citizenship rights and ethnic identity; the latter being a very small percentage of the citizens surveyed.

As the author of the study, Dr Bernadette Dean concluded, "The research reveals that the present conceptions of citizenship are not conducive to creating and sustaining a democratic society. Citizenship education, media presentations and the political culture will have to help citizens re-conceptualize citizenship to facilitate the development of a democratic society." For example, citizens of Pakistan will need to learn that the state has responsibilities to its people and that a democracy requires active citizens beyond that of voting in elections. These findings suggest that the CRRP Project is very timely, indeed.

CIIAN is working with International Alert (IA), a UK NGO, in the area of conflict sensitivity. IA and their partners (two UK NGO's and three southern NGO's) have done extensive work in mapping the extent to which conflict sensitive approaches are being used in development, in humanitarian assistance, and in peacebuilding in the three partner countries: Sri Lanka, Uganda and Kenya. CIIAN's added value came in the form of leading a design and development process for the construction of a four-day training programme. The work took place in Sri Lanka in November involving a five-member cross-cultural, cross-ethnic work team.

Various projects with African partners are in development. We are in discussions with colleagues in Somalia, Sudan and Ethiopia to initiate programs in the region. Pending funding sources, we hope to begin carrying out work with our partners in this area.

On the international intervention training front, CIIAN is offering its two-week Peacebuilding & Conflict Resolution Certificate Program in March 2004. Keep tuned to the website for further information.


CIIAN's Domestic Program Update Top

by Heidi Ruppert

We have had a very productive and exciting year in our Domestic Training Program. In October 2003, we launched Module III - Advanced Negotiation and Mediation and Module IV - Dispute Resolution in the Workplace. The focus of each module remains theory informed practice - with a heavy emphasis on practice. Each module is four days in length.

In Module III - Advanced Negotiation and Mediation, we consider issues at an advanced level such as Reflective Practice, Advanced Negotiation and Mediation Skills, including communication skills, opening statements, agenda formation, power, trust, and the role of apology.

In Module IV - Dispute Resolution in the Workplace, we examine such topics as the workplace system, group dynamics, convening, mediation in the workplace, conflict coaching, harassment in the workplace, workplace assessments and manager as conflict facilitator. Peter Bishop, an early CIIAN RPDR, was one of the trainers in this module and was also instrumental in its development. We were also pleased that Rena Ramkay of CIIAN's International Program was able to join us to deliver an excellent piece on convening. Rena is a recognized expert on convening and her insights were much appreciated by the participants.

Participants gave each of these modules rave reviews. One participant had this to say: "I thoroughly enjoyed the practical nature of this module. Everything we covered is directly applicable to my work". In order to ensure continued participant satisfaction, we maintain our commitment to keeping class sizes small in order that each practitioner may have extensive opportunity to practice and have considerable one-on-one interaction with the trainer.

ADR module participants came from varied backgrounds, including the Department of Justice, Treasury Board, the Military Police Complaints Commission, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, the South Sudanese Community, the National Capital Region YMCA-YWCA, CSIS, the Canadian Transportation Agency and private consultants.

We have also developed a two-day Negotiation Workshop, which was recently delivered to employees at the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation. This program had excellent reviews; we are considering instituting it as a continuing CIIAN program. Also in the works is a workshop in Conflict Coaching that we anticipate launching in early 2004. Indeed another participant said: "A great course. I love participating in your courses; they gave me lots of confidence and comfort in my day-to-day life at work and at home".

We have had excellent feedback from our 2003 Ben Hoffman Scholarship recipients: Eldon Holder from the YMCA/YWCA and Matthias Jongkor from the South Sudanese Community Association. Both recipients completed Module I - Conflict Theory and Introduction to Negotiation and Module II - Negotiation and Mediation in 2003. Both Eldon and Matthias have reported back that they have had ample opportunity to use the skills they learned from the training in both their work and everyday lives.

Please remember that the Ben Hoffman Scholarship is awarded annually and is open to applicants from the Canadian not-for-profit sector. Applicants must show interest and promise in the field of Alternative Dispute Resolution and use ADR skills in the course of their normal employment duties.

For more information on the Practitioner Program, Specialized Workshops or the Ben Hoffman Scholarship, please contact Heidi Ruppert at 237-9050 or 230-8671 or check out our website at www.ciian.org.

 

R
P
D
Registered Practitioners in Dispute Resolution
Top

1. Peter Bishop (613) 567-5537
2. Enid Blackwell (613) 623-3053
3. Norman Ross (416) 964-8389
4. Herve Depow (613) 592-0807
5. Francine Titley (613) 748-1243
6. Doreen Hartley (613) 547-2920
7. Mel Mapp (519) 679-6642
8. Mike Hart (613) 258-8024
9. Gilles Boudreau (819) 994-7360
10. Michelle Plouffe (613) 996-0431
11. Cynthia Leber (416) 486-2363
12. Laura Deeks (King) (416) 954-7166
13. Margaret Kish (905) 509-4861
14. Marion Rivers (613) 837-9761
15. Genevieve O Sullivan (613) 230-6103
16. Michel Laurin (819) 568-7810
17. Anna Preto (416) 973-5704
18. Gérald Lavallée (613) 230-5442
19. John Blakney (604) 264-0235
20. Donna Clark (902) 832-9667
21. Christiane Boisjoly (867) 668-6794
22. Barbara Atlas (416) 954-7632
23. Mary Rozenberg (613) 224-0037
24. Suzanne Beaulieu (613) 733-5176
25. Brian Ross (613) 729-8363
26. Rebecca Dalton (519) 439-0874
27. Louise Owen (250) 385-0536
28. Walter Williams (613) 822-1738
29. Ken Petersen (705) 264-5321
30. Jean Benoit (418) 871-8928
31. Ginette Trottier (514) 283-2514
32. Joanne Archibald (780) 495-2271
33. Ross Landry (902) 485-1920
34. Maureen McKeown (519) 641-2264)
35. Blaine Donais (416) 979-2709 ext. 3007

The above named practitioners are registered with the Canadian International Institute of Applied Negotiation (CIIAN). Registration attests to the fact that they have successfully completed the Institute's 120 hour program and submitted a Practitioner's Portfolio which includes subscription to a code of practice. The Institute, however, is not a governing body and is not responsible for the practice of those listed. We do, however, provide these names to potential clients.

RPDR Faculty

Richard Moore (613) 230-8671
Rena Ramkay (613) 521-6591
Heidi N. Ruppert(613) 230-8671
Flaurie Storie (613) 769-7595