Victims of Political Conflict

1
Victims of Political Conflict

• Neil Ferguson

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Introduction

• Over 160 wars and armed conflicts since 1945
• 22 million people killed and 3 times as many
  casualties.
• Currently over 30 conflicts occurring across the
  globe.
• Some have been active for over 50 years.
• For example Myanmar in Burma
• Others have only started in 2007.
• Such as the Ogaden conflict in Ethiopia
• All these conflicts vary in intensity and
  legality.

3
War or Conflict?

• To be a war a state must make an official
  declaration or war.
• Korea
• Vietnam
• Northern Ireland
• Current conflict in Iraq
• Soldiers are victims of crime not victims of
  war
• Asymmetric warfare or guerrilla campaigns make it
  difficult to distinguish official war from
  official peace

4
Human Cost of Political Conflict

• Since the beginning of the 20th Century more and
  more civilians become involved in conflict,
  usually as victims.
• World War I
• 10 of fatalities were civilian casualties.
• World War II
• 50 of fatalities were civilian casualties.
• Vietnam
• 80 of fatalities were civilian casualties.
• 21st Century conflicts
• On average 90 of fatalities are civilian
  casualties.
• These are the physical casualties, it is much
  more difficult to pinpoint the wider
  psychological harm involved in warfare.

5
Further Complexities

• Diversity across Conflicts
• Historical Factors
• Geographical Regions
• Economic Situations
• Political Structures
• Drivers behind the Conflict
• Duration and Intensity of the Conflict
• Multifaceted nature of warfare
• An Individuals role in their victimization

6
Psychological Trauma and Youth

• A traumatic event must be unexpected and it must
  overwhelm the individuals perceived ability to
  cope and it violates central psychological needs
  and beliefs.
• In psychological terms, trauma is a response to a
  traumatic event that is experienced through
  thoughts, feelings and senses.

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Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)

• An anxiety disorder that can develop after
  exposure to an event in which physical harm
  occurred or was threatened.
• Symptoms of PTSD include having persistent
  frightening thoughts and memories of their ordeal
  and feel emotionally numb, especially with people
  they were once close to. They may experience
  sleep problems, feel detached or numb, or be
  easily startled.

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Typical Reactions to Traumatic Events

• A sense of helplessness.
• Sadness and depression.
• Fear, confusion and anxiety.
• Relief at being alive.
• Guilt.
• Anger and irritability.
• Difficulty sleeping.
• Physical reactions.
• Heightened startle response.
• Difficulty concentrating.
• Boredom.
• Unpredictable emotional reactions, traumatic
  reminders.
• Additional Reaction Specific to children
• Pre-occupation with death.
• Decline in school performance.
• Regression. Post-traumatic play.

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Mediating Factors

• Age.
• Parental Reaction.
• Pre-morbid Conditions.

10
Legacies of ConflictA Case Study of Children in
Northern Ireland

• For many children, in many countries, political
  violence has been a defining characteristic of
  their lives.
• Northern Ireland has, for the past 35 years, been
  a country characterized by political violence and
  societal instability and it has a relatively
  youthful population.
• Therefore it would be pertinent to review over
  three decades of research exploring the legacies
  and impacts of exposure to political conflict on
  child mental health conducted in Northern
  Ireland.

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The Troubles in N. Ireland

• The Victims
• Over 3,700 killed since 1969.
• The dead have been predominantly male (91) and
  young (37 under 24, 53 under 29 74 under
  39).
• At least 8 of victims have been children.
• 10 of the 1.7 million population have had
  relatives killed as a result of the conflict.
• 50 of people know someone who has been killed.
• 40 to 50,00 physically injured.
• Each fatality is a heavy stone dropped into a
  pool of water, with ripples extending far and
  wide. (Bloomfield, 1998).
• Forced and voluntary internal migration and
  emigration.
• Psychological implications of the conflict.

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Exposure to Violence

• Muldoon Trew (2000).
• Studied 689 eight to eleven year olds in greater
  Belfast.
• 24 reported witnessing a riot.
• 23 had witnessed a shooting.
• 14 had been picked up by the police.
• 54 had been stopped at security checkpoints
• 60 had been in a bomb scare
• 70 has seen soldiers patrolling the streets of
  Belfast.

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Levels of Violence in N. Ireland

• The violence in N. Ireland is not static.
• It is dynamic and fluid, with temporal, spatial
  and differences in the form the violence takes.

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Differences in Levels of Exposure

• Not all children are exposed to the same quantity
  or quality of political violence.
• Psycholosocial factors modify levels of exposure
• Age
• Gender
• Social Class
• Religious Affiliation

• Children are not always passive victims of
  conflict

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Impact of Exposure to Political Violence

• Research from countries other than Northern
  Ireland has tended to confirm the common theory
  that when children are exposed to political
  violence, they will suffer some serious
  psychological consequence.
• However, even in these countries characterized by
  political violence, only 50 of the children
  exposed to the most acute stressors are
  psychologically affected, while the other 50
  appear to be highly resilient.

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Impact of the Conflict in N. Ireland

• Surveys of psychological well being among
  children in Northern Ireland have suggested that
• The levels PTSD among children from high violence
  and low violence locations is not significantly
  different and the majority of children exposed to
  violence do not go on to develop PTSD.
• Psychiatric referral rates lower in years
  characterized by high rates of political
  violence.
• Levels of emotional disturbance in Belfast in
  1975 and 1981 was similar to rates in London.
• Anxiety levels among NI children similar to
  Manchester sample and American norms.
• Mild increase in depression in comparison with UK
  sample, but no link to exposure to violence.
• Elevated levels of anti-social behaviour.
• Generally, children are coping well and not
  suffering major ill effects, why?

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Resilience

• Ideological Commitment
• Denial and Distancing
• Habituation
• Dissociation
• Vulnerability of the Parents
• Social Bonds and Strong Family Ties.

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Implications for the Peace Process

• Coping strategies may be protecting from trauma,
  but exacerbating and perpetuating division.
• However, the peace process can change out-look
  and increase the hope for peace.

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References

• Barenbaum, J., Ruchkin, V., Schwab-Stone, M.
  (2004). The Psycholosocial aspects of children
  exposed to war Practice and policy initiatives.
  Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 45,
  1, 41-62.
• Binks, E. Ferguson, N. (2007). Conflict, its
  legacies and adjustment among young children in
  Northern Ireland. In A. Hosin (Ed.), Responses to
  Traumatised Children (pp. 228-246). London
  Palgrave.
• Bonanno, G. A. (2004). Loss, trauma and human
  resilience Have we underestimated the human
  capacity to thrive after extremely adverse
  events. American Psychologist, 59, 20-28.
• Cairns, E. (1996). Children and Political
  Violence. Oxford Blackwell Publishing Inc.
• Connolly, P. Healy, J. (2004). The development
  of childrens attitudes towards The Troubles in
  Northern Ireland. In O. Hargie and D. Dickson,
  Researching the Troubles Social Science
  Perspectives on the Northern Ireland Conflict
  (pp.37-57). UK Mainstream Publishing Ltd.
• Costin, A. (2006). Developmental issues Children
  and adolescents. In H. H. Blumberg, A. P. Hare
  A. Costin (Eds). Peace Psychology A
  Comprehensive Introduction (pp. 55-70).
  Cambridge Cambridge University Pres..
• Ferguson, N. (2000). The Impact of Sectarian
  Injustice and the Paramilitary Ceasefires on
  Adolescent Just World Beliefs in Northern
  Ireland. Irish Journal of Psychology, 21, 1-2,
  70-77.
• Ferguson, N. Cairns, E. (1996). Political
  violence and moral maturity in Northern Ireland.
  Political Psychology, 17, 4, 713-725.
• Masten, A. (2001). Ordinary magic Resilience
  processes in development. American Psychologist,
  56, 3, 227-238.
• Muldoon, O. T., Trew, K. (2000). Childrens
  experience and adjustment to political conflict
  in Northern Ireland. Peace and Conflict Journal
  of Peace Psychology, 6, 2, 157-176.
• Muldoon, O., Wilson, R. (2001). Ideological
  commitment, experience of conflict and adjustment
  in Northern Irish adolescents. Medicine, Conflict
  and Survival, 17, 112-124.
• Muldoon, O., Trew, K., Kilpatrick, R. (2000).
  The legacy of the Troubles on the young people's
  psychological and social development and their
  school life. Youth and Society, 32, 1, 6-28.

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Refugees, Trauma and Victimhood

• The second population who receive the attention
  of academics and practitioners are the internally
  displaced persons and refugees displaced by
  conflict.
• The Office of the United Nations High
  Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) counted 8.4
  million refugees worldwide at the beginning of
  2006.
• Surprisingly this was the lowest number since
  1980, and some have argued that there are as many
  as 26 million refugees worldwide.
• It also should be remembered that half of all
  refugees are children.

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The War in Iraq

• The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees
  estimated on June 21, 2007 that 2.2 million
  Iraqis had fled to neighbouring countries and 2
  million were displaced internally, with nearly
  100,000 Iraqis fleeing to Syria and Jordan each
  month.
• Roughly 40 of Iraq's middle class is believed to
  have left Iraq.
• Iraqi refugees in Syria and Jordan live in
  impoverished communities with little
  international attention to their plight and
  little legal protection.
• Studies of Iraqi refugees in London suggested 53
  had wide ranging mental health problems, 44
  showed depression, 46.6 had symptoms of PTSD, 49
  suffered heart disease, while 24 suffered
  cancer. Iraqi asylum seekers are the largest
  group seeking refuge in the UK.

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Refugees Internally Displaced People

• Doubly Victimized
• Victims of violence and the migration process.
• Acculturation Problem
• Adjustment to identity, behaviour, cognition,
  attitude and emotion.
• Separation from family and friends.
• Guilt of having escaped.
• Language barriers.
• Employment difficulties.
• Additional Problems
• Pre-migration experiences.
• Malnutrition.
• Infectious disease.
• Poor sanitation.
• Mortality rates during displacement can be 60
  times higher than those expected for the
  population.
• Self-reported mental health problems are normally
  5 times the population norms for the successful
  migrant.
• Racism.

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References

• Hosin, A. (2007). Responses to Traumatised
  Children. London Palgrave.