The Seed of the Conflict Transformation in the Middle East

1945 is considered by some authors as the year 0. For example, Michael Ignatieff points out that, events such as the accession to independence of many colonized countries, the United Nations building, the Marshall Plan to rebuild Europe, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights or the revision of the Geneva Conventions, are the starting points of a new era of collaboration.

Western institutions formed tenacious human rights defenders in the new generations and placed at their disposal all the machinery for international solidarity and mechanisms for direct influence on domestic and foreign policies of states. Meanwhile, Western media began to promote increased awareness and international solidarity through imagery like the massacres of civilians in Vietnam.

From the late sixties, thousands of new international aid workers rushed to work in conflict areas through international organizations. They believed to possess the necessary formulas to transform these societies and, above all, the moral authority to implement them. However, after decades of international cooperation, these magic recipes with a model for and from developed countries have not been as effective. The rift between developed and developing countries is higher and civilians continue to be military targets.

Now, new voices emphasize the need to strengthen cooperation model based on the development of internal change processes in the recipient population and the construction of stable structures that promote sustainable change. The role of international aid should be based on support and training of local people and, above all, political pressure on Western leaders to end the domination relations.

The capture of the new model

This new model of cooperation, with a direct north-south dialogue, is inspired the World Social Forum held in Porto Alegre in 2005. In that context, a delegation from Nova contacted nonviolent organizations in the Middle East. From the meeting came the idea of establishing an Arab network of trainers in nonviolence. This initiative included the identification of regional experts who have cultural, politic and social knowledge to interpret and, above all, imagine a nonviolent movement in those countries.

With this objective, Nova organized in 2006 the First Session of Amman, with support from the Spanish Agency for International Development. Around 50 Palestinian Syrian, Jordanian and Lebanese organizations participated in this Session. Also during the second Sessions, held a year later, came up the idea of creating a larger structure that also included the coordination of nonviolent campaigns. This proposal took the name of "Nonviolence Network in Arab Countries” (NNAC).

The strategy adopted by the NNAC is based on the formation and empowerment of community leaders, youth, non-violence experts and other stakeholders in the field of peace-building. Thus, it seeks to strengthen internal and external capacities for conflict resolution and nonviolent transformation. This strategy is currently being implemented at two levels: Training of trainers and youth training.

Training of trainers is an advanced model of training to increase the skills of experts and trainers. The main advantage of this type of training is the multiplier effect; trained instructors can replicate these trainings in their communities. The first training of trainers of NNAC was held in the Lebanese village of Broumana in the mountains near Beirut, in June 2009. 22 participants from throughout the Middle East were chosen based on their communication skills, community leadership and training. Parallel, we chose three Arab trainers, two Lebanese and a Jordanian. For one week, participants received lessons on skills and competencies for the design and organization of nonviolent campaigns, lobbying methods, tools for inter-mediation processes and conflict resolution, plus advanced theory of conflict and peace-building & communication tools for nonviolent action.

Training young people in nonviolence in the Arab world is an essential element of the NNAC strategy. Young Arabs are increasingly better prepared (dominate more than one language, master new information technologies, etc) and desire peace and hope to travel and discover new experiences. The NNAC believes that the formation of this sector is the seed of change in the region. On the one hand, 20-years-old (or older) young people formed in the university and / or with community leadership skills are selected. Valued in this case, are attitudes such as initiative, tolerance, volunteerism and commitment. On the other hand, trainers who participated in the training of trainers are selected.

The current NNAC training program for youth consists of five different trainings for young people in the Middle East. In 2009, there have been two formations in Jordan and Syria and now, three more are being prepared in Palestine, Iraq and Lebanon. The program consists of a core curriculum of all courses and a flexible portion that is adapted to the problems of each country. For example, the training in Palestine focuses on communication as a tool of nonviolent resistance (websites, commercials, documentaries, etc.) to educate youth so they are able to communicate at the international level their nonviolent actions and violations of human rights in their communities, while formations in Lebanon aim to reinforce the Community mediation skills to work on ethnic and religious conflict.

Strategic meetings of the Steering Committee of the NNAC made in November 2008 in Beirut, and in July 2009 in Barcelona stressed the importance of training in nonviolent methods and strategies. Specifically, we must continue building the nonviolent trainers network in the Arab world and training experts and trainees of nonviolence throughout the region. For this we have taken the strategic decision to cooperate with the new Academy for Peace Building in Lebanon. Thus, the nonviolent activists NNAC could increase their skills and knowledge with nonviolent and then put their new tools in the coordinated actions into practice across the network.

NOVA supports the decision of the NNAC with the backdrop of a well understood cooperation and a partnership between international civil society.

http:www.acnv.net