Programmes - Centre for Peace and Conflict Studies

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Progammes

Myanmar

CPCS works predominantly in Myanmar towards democracy and a stable peace in conjunction with local practitioners belonging to the network.

CPCS works with its partners to strengthen the existing structures for peace inside Myanmar and to take forward their identified strategies.

A number of publications have been lauched in relation to Myanmar, the two most recent being; Listening to Voices From Inside: Ethnic People Speak and Listening to Voices From Inside: People's Perspectives on Mynmar's 2010 Election. For more information on these and more, see Publications.

Timor Leste

CPCS works predominantly in Timor Leste towards building a stable peace in conjunction with local practitioners belonging to the network.

CPCS through its Action Asia network alongside local partners HAK Association (Hukum - Law, Hak Asasi - Basic Rights, and Keadilan - Justice) and NGO Forum (FONGTIL) have developed a programme which has a number of complimentary components and is based on the analysis, sharing and learning drawn from the participants in Timor Leste during initial consultations (including Timorese leaders of martial and traditional arts, gangs, NGOs, youth, the Church and others).

The CPCS's Timor Leste programme components are specifically designed to respond to the key conflicts identified through ongoing analysis with local partners and to reach out horizontally as well as linking the different levels from the community to the top level. The Programme focuses on trust and capacity building for key change agents for peace (such as top- and mid-level actors); Peacebuilding training for martial arts groups and security forces; Processes for higher-level reconciliation and mediation; and Peace Journalism Training; and building strategies and networks. Through targeted aims CPCS, with its partners, are working towards making a difference in developing and empowering a proactive movement of people, towards building peace and democracy in Timor Leste.

A program called "Building Trust and Peace among Martial and Ritual Arts Leaders" has been completed. A recent publication entitiled "From Street Fighters to Peace Builders" has been launched. For free download, see Publications

Sri Lanka

CPCS has a longstanding relationship with local network partners working in peace in Sri Lanka. CPCS has supported various initiatives and is in the process of designing its current programme with partners.

Sri Lanka has been home to protracted violent conflict for over four decades. Recent analysis suggests a further escalation in the conflict, the impact of which is being keenly felt by the people of Sri Lanka. The Centre for Peace and Conflict Studies has been bringing together peace practitioners working directly on the conflict in Sri Lanka, to analyze the current situation and discuss potential strategies for intervention. These Sri Lankan based peace practitioners are experts on their context having worked at a multitude of levels: top; middle; and grass roots with communities most affected by the conflict. Sri Lankan participants will be accompanied in this process by peace practitioners from the Asian region, bringing experiences from situations like Nepal, Mindanao and Cambodia to generate a Sri Lankan owned conflict analysis, a foundation for Action Asia's future strategic intervention into the Sri Lankan conflict.

Orissa, India

: Nonviolence Role-Play during Module 2 Training in Orissa

CPCS aims to build the capacity for conflict transformation and peace building for Hindu and Christian development workers in Orissa, India through multiple programmes.

The Conflict Transformation Course creates a positive space for participants to interact; equipping the participants with skills and knowledge regarding peace building and conflict transformation, the Course also allows them to begin dialogue with each other about the challenges their respective communities face--both their individual communities and their interaction with other communities. The Centre seeks to extend the education of Conflict Transformation Course graduates through mediation training, in which individuals work to develop skills in handling tense situations, deep listening, and how to design peace training workshops--just to name a few.The second batch of the modular course of the Conflict Transformation course is currently being undertaken.

A workshop on RPP (Reflecting on Peace Practice) was offered to top NGO leaders, which challenged them to come up with their own theories of change and helped them to assess their current strategies. The workshop itself provides a framework for evaluating the effectiveness of peace programs and helps develop peace initiatives that will contribute to the peace-writ-large.

The Peace Research Methodology Course targets individuals without formal training in academic research in order to provide a basic understanding of the theoretical, conceptual, and empirical foundations for research in the social sciences and of foundational concepts and theories in peace studies and peace research. A PRMC course was conducted in May 2011, with a follow-up session in mid-September 2011 with CPCS staff members, Soth Plai Ngarm and Tania Miletic. Participants were expected to conduct research with the guidance of resource papers; these research projects are to be submitted in November 2011 to be published at a later date.

Finally, CPCS works with various civil society organisations in order to analyse individual programme experiences with the goal of improving international peacebuilding efforts.

Manipur, India

: RPP Participants in Manipur

On September 2010 CPCS finally carried out a context and conflict analysis in Manipur. During the visit, many organizations and individuals proposed that CPCS should conduct the following activities: conflict analysis integrating with the Reflecting on Peace Practice framework; Peace Journalism; Peace Research Methodology; and, documentation of peace initiatives that people have undertaken.

As a follow up, a training on Reflecting on Peace Practice (RPP) was conducted for senior staff of various organizations last 23 to 26 August 2011. The training was very well appreciated by the participants as it was the first time for them to thoroughly analyze the contextual conflict of Manipur using systems thinking analysis and it was also an opportunity for them to examine the gaps in peacebuilding work in their State.