By Saa Matthias Bendu, FDID-SL
Civil society’s visibility and influence in conflict prevention and peace building has grownglobally. These actors have increasingly become vital forces in discourses, initiativesand programmes that foster peace and security across the world. Specifically, civil society hasbeen instrumental in the reconceptualization of security from a “state-centred” process to one that is“peoplecentered”. This focus on people-centred security emanates from the belief that fundamentally the sustainable security of states can only be attained through the security of its people. It is a belief that isshared in regions across the world that have experienced open conflicts and civil wars, which haveravaged communities and brought devastation to the lives of ordinary people. West Africa has witnessed a number of protracted civil wars and intra-state conflicts. Theseconflicts have resulted in millions of deaths, the displacement of communities, proliferation of small arms and light weapons (SALW), and the stagnation of growth and development in the region. Thenature of these conflicts exposes and draws in local populations: In West Africa, (like Sierra Leone) conflicts are intricate, multifaceted and multi-party, and as a result it is impossible for state actors to prevent, manage orresolve them without the assistance and involvement of non-state actors. Civil society in particular has been at the forefront of promoting localised peace buildinginitiatives, initiating reconciliation processes, advocating for adherence to peace agreements andbuilding capacities in peace education. In spite of playing such laudable roles, however, civil societystill faces a number of challenges, ranging from poor organisation among actors within the sector,poor funding for activities, governments’ mistrust and the often antagonistic interaction between civilsociety and government. In Sierra Leonecivil society, the media, the government and the international community have made significant contributions and or progress in rebuilding the country and securing peace. Especially after the nihilistic rebel war in 2002, key achievements to note include but not limited to: the peaceful conduct of democratic national elections. However, though the elections were generally peaceful, unresolved grievances and mistrust from the war and post elections violence still remain. Of great significance, it is fact that political violence and intimidation are increasingly becoming part of the electoral process, demanding post elections reconciliation.It was as a result of the post-election violence that the international committee asked for the signing of peace communiqué. One may ask, what is conflict prevention?Analogous to civil society, conflict prevention presents definitional challenges. It remains an ambiguous concept that has transformed over time. The former UN Secretary-General Boutros Boutros-Ghalidescribed conflict prevention as preventive diplomacy, an “action to prevent disputes from arising between parties, to prevent existing disputes from escalating into conflicts and limit the spread of the latter when they occur”. In West Africa, the Economic Community of West African States’ (ECOWAS) Conflict PreventionFramework (ECPF) defines conflict prevention as: activities designed to reduce tensions and prevent the outbreak, escalation, spread or recurrence of violence. Conflict prevention strategies may distinguish between operational prevention (measures applicable in the face of imminent crisis) and structural prevention (measures to ensure that crises do not arise in the first place or, if they do, that they do not re-occur). The emphasis is not on preventing conflict per se (conflict being a natural consequence of change), but in halting its descent into violence. Civil society has also been described as the arena outside the family, the state and the market, where people associate to advance common interests. The notion of an arena where people associate to advance common interests has strong resonance in Sierra Leone as it enables the definition of civil society to include formal and informal groupings such as, Queen Mother associations, youth movements, market women, religious groups and the media. As the political context in Sierra Leone evolved from post-independence era to autocratic (APC 26 years one party state), and military rule, to current endeavors to build democratic states, the role of civil society across Sierra Leone has been an important catalyst for end of the military rule, in case popular/celebrated NPRC government, and the sturdy resistance to the notorious AFRC/RUF junta, advocating for pluralistic and open societies, and promulgating democratic and good governance. Civil society have also filled a vital role as providers of basic social services during the rebel war in wartorn communities, where viable public institutions and state apparatus are non-existent or considerably weakened,( vivid examples are NMJD and CCSL). It is factual, that during our nations’ anarchical period, civil society become important actors in the process of mitigating conflict and building peace. I totally believe we should continue these good works. In Sierra Leone civil society must play a key role In promoting peace and preventing conflict, addressing socio-economic disparities in society, promoting Human and Women’s Rights, and contributing toward strengthening government organs,like the judiciary and the security sector, and because ofour (CSO’s) proximity to the local population, it gave us the added advantage to mediation, reconciliation and other peace building initiatives. These is what we should be doing, instead of joining politicians in their rhetoric’s, mouth linking and misquoting/misinterpreting international charters/ bias selection few lines to condemn other politicians to please our own political “god fathers/mothers”, or joining the chore of praise singers for project that have woefully failed and those that are just window dressing or white elephant just to collect few Leones especial so during our electioneering period. Any subtle campaign for any political party will be a disservice to the citizenry of this nation. The same goes for unconstructive criticisms and misinformation to the people. We should know by now that the peace communiqué signed by the major political parties in 2009, was a yellow card shown to our politicians by the international community. The writer believes that it will be prudent for us, civil society at this moment, to popularise the peace communiqué to the citizenry in all local languages if possible, and to constantly remind those who lust for power at all cost.The national and international watchdogs are on the alert, monitoring and analysing every utterance that comes from politicians or history will never forgive them. The same goes for us in the civil society family: journalists, religious leaders and whosoever must remember that ours is fragile peace. Conflict early warning responses have been described as the sine qua none of conflict prevention. They consists of the systematic collection and analysis of information coming from areas of crisis for the purposes of anticipating the escalation of violent conflict, developing strategic responses to crises, and the presentation of options to critical actors for decision-making. The development of early warning systems has gained popularity across Africa. Sierra Leone is not an exception. Against that backdrop, our country has just emerged from a nihilistic rebel war. Unfortunately, inciting statements and unhealthy political statements are unacceptable. Foundation for Democratic Imitative and Development (FDID-SL), abhors and condemns any act that has the potential to undermine and or derail the collective efforts of well-meaning citizens of this country. Together with the international community we can consolidate our hard earned peace. True, political debates must go on. FDID-SL strongly believes that it should be healthy and based on thematic issues around national development. The writer is of the opinion that government must implement the recommendations of Shears-Moses Commission of Inquiry to serve as a deterrent to impunity. Should they fail to do so, it will be a clear show of their insincerity in the fight against political intolerance and violence. Over to you
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