Quaker Peace Network -Africa. An evolving model for peace work

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Quaker Peace Network-Africa. An evolving model
for peace work

• Jeremy Routledge
• Phaphama Initiatives
• (formally QPC)

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Outline of presentation

• Quaker peace testimony
• Kosovo, QPN-Africa
• Elements
• AVP. Gender reconciliation, EAPPI
• Complexity
• Model
• Discussion

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George Fox 1651

• I told the Commonwealth Commissioners I lived
  in the virtue of that life and power that took
  away the occasion of all wars and I knew from
  whence all wars did rise, from the lust,
  according to James's doctrine... I told them I
  was come into the covenant of peace which was
  before wars and strifes were.

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• All bloody principles and practices we do utterly
  deny, with all outward wars, for any end, .
  That spirit of Christ by which we are guided is
  not changeable, so as once to command us from a
  thing as evil and again to move unto it and so
  testify to the world, that the spirit of Christ,
  which leads us into all Truth, will never move us
  to fight any war against any man with outward
  weapons, neither for the kingdom of Christ, nor
  for the kingdoms of this world.

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• The Peace Testimony is largely derived from the
  teachings of Jesus to love one's enemies and
  Friends' belief in the inner light. The Peace
  Testimony does not mean that Quakers believe in
  passive resignation in fact, they believe in and
  practice passionate activism. It does mean that
  Quakers believe that nonviolent confrontation of
  evil and peaceful reconciliation are always
  superior to violent measures.

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Quaker Peace Testimony

• The peace testimony has inspired Quakers to
  protest wars, refuse to serve in armed forces if
  drafted, to seek conscientious objector status
  when available, and even to participate in acts
  of civil disobedience.
• Not all Quakers embrace this testimony as an
  absolute for example, there were Friends that
  fought in World War I and World War II.

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Kosovo

• Breakup of Yugoslavia
• Suppression of Serbs
• Peace deals
• Escalating conflict
• NATO Intervention and bombing
• There were no alternatives

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• NATO issued a statement announcing that it was
  prepared to launch air strikes against Yugoslav
  targets "to compel compliance with the demands of
  the international community and to achieve a
  political settlement". In effect, NATO was saying
  to the Serbs "make peace or we'll bomb you" and
  to the Albanians "make peace or we'll abandon you
  to the Serbs

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Britain Yearly Meetingof Religious Society Of
Friends (Quakers)

• How do we respond. We have our peace testimony.
  Do we agree there were no alternatives?
• Passed minute to put funds aside for conference
  of Quaker Peace Projects around world and other
  experts

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Quaker Network for the Prevention of Violent
Conflict -QPN

• 2000 London
• 2001 US New York and Washington
• 2002 Burundi
• 2003 Rwanda. London
• 2004 Kenya QPN Africa
• 2005 Rwanda
• 2006 Burundi
• 2007
• 2008 Kenya

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• Africa- More wars than any other continent
• More Quakers than any other continent
  (Evangelical and silent)
• Peace Involve people at all levels and all
  sectors
• Projects- All used AVP to some extent
• Monitor elections
• Share experiences
• AGLI in response to Burundi and Rwanda
• AVP in response to Kenya

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Alternatives to Violence Project

• Greenhaven Prison in 1976
• Set of manuals, network of volunteer lay
  facilitators
• Adaptable to cultures and languages
• Spiritual but not religious
• Spread around the world and in different contexts
• Prisons the AVP universities

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AVP workshops

• Experiential all have experience of conflict
  and have solved a conflict non-violently
• Basic, Advanced, T4F, A Typically 16hrs
• Diversity and teamwork
• Affirmation, Cooperation, Community,
  Communication, Transforming Power
• Consensus decisions

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South Africa

• Prisons- Pollsmoor- male and female, Leeukop,
  Boksberg
• Schools
• Community- Burundi refugees, townships, churches,
  
• Namibia, Lesotho, Sudan, Palestine, Hong Kong
• Hosted International gathering 2006

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Gender Reconciliation-The power of
reconciliation between women and men

• Satyana Institute- Will Keepin and Cynthia Brix
• 6 day experiential workshops
• Preparation/invocation- create safe space
• Immersion and transformation- gender disharmony,
  silent witnessing, breathwork, womens and mens
  circles, truth circles
• Consecration, Integration and closure- honor and
  bless each other

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Gender Reconciliation in SA

• Workshops- QPC, parliament, Pollsmoor,AVP
  facilitators, SACC regional staff and leadership
• Overcome patriarchy- Declaration to our sisters
• 2009 Workshops and recruit, start training local
  facilitators and adapt to context

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EAPPIwww.eappi.org

• Ecumenical Accompaniment in Palestine and Israel
• Teams (20-70) live with nonviolent activists and
  vulnerable locals- 3 months
• SA involvement since 2004- Africa?
• Accompany, report and advocacy in home country
• Piloted by Quakers
• Based on ecumenical accompaniment in SA in 94

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Complexity

• Butterfly effect- weather
• Financial crash
• Religion
• Particle physics
• Human behaviour
• Flocks of birds and shoals of fish

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Low
Professional/social agreement on outcome
High
High
Low
Certainty of outcome
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Low
Professional/social agreement on outcome
Planning and control
High
High
Low
Certainty of outcome
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Low
Chaos
Professional/social agreement on outcome
Planning and control
High
High
Low
Certainty of outcome
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Low
Chaos
Professional/social agreement on outcome
Zone of complexity
Planning and control
High
High
Low
Certainty of outcome
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Complexity

• Small set of simple rules
• Direction, prohibitions and resources. eg
• Behaviour emerges- specially at edge of chaos.
  Evolutionary
• Nonlinear- Each element or person is important
  and can be the source of significant change
• Fractyl nature
• Often not either or but both

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Active peace

• 0 Surface- conformity, unaware, denial,
• Acquiescence
• Pacifism
• Passive nonviolent resistance
• Active nonviolent resistance
• Triad of active peace
• Peacemaking transforming conflict
• Peacekeeping nonviolent accompaniment
• Peacebuilding sustainable development

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Active peace

• Next stage only becomes visible and
  understandable once you have reached one before
• Peace education and education about stages
  important to gain firm purchase of stage and not
  regress

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Active peace and hope

• I saw an ocean of darkness and death, and an
  ocean of light and love. And the ocean of light
  and love, overcame the ocean of darkness and
  death.
• George Fox 1624-1691

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Discussion

• What other elements contribute to active peace?
• How can we provide education and experiences to
  help people move towards becoming active
  peacemakers?