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"It's a lot I am taking back"
Interview with course participants from Afghanistan and Ghana
Justin Bayor is from Ghana and held a scholarship from the State Chancellery of North Rhine Westphalia for participating in the qualification course. He holds a Master's degree in Conflict Resolution and another Master's degree in International Development from the University of Bradford in the UK. Justin works for the Ghana Network for Peacebuilding (WANEP Ghana) as the National Network Coordinator.
Taj Paiwand is from Afghanistan and works as a Peacebuilding and Human Rights Officer for the Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission. In cooperation with the German Development Service (DED), he works as a Peacebuilding trainer in several northern provinces of Afghanistan. Taj's participation in the qualification course was funded by the DED. He has a Bachelor's degree in Law and Political Science from the Balkh University in Mazar-e-Sharif.
Simon Tsike-Sossah is from Ghana and holds a scholarship from the State Chancellery of North Rhine Westphalia for the participation in the qualification course. He holds a Bachelor's degree in Social Science from the University of Cape Coast in Ghana. As the Executive Director of the Abusua Foundation which he founded in 2002. Simon develops and manages projects and programmes on youth development.
Justin, Taj and Simon participated in the 9-week Course in autumn 2010. The interview was conducted by Melanie Plöger in December 2010.
Question: Thank you for taking the time for an interview. First of all, I would like to know what led you to decide for applying for the 9-week qualification course and how do you evaluate the decision to participate in the course?
Taj: I am working for the Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission (AIHRC) which is a partner organisation of the German Development Service DED. We are working together as a peacebuilding team and in this team I am the local peacebuilding expert. So, this course and its topics are directly relating to the work that I do under these peacebuilding projects. I am so happy that I came to participate and the 7 weeks that have passed were very fruitful and informative.
Simon: I had expressed interest in looking at new areas of where I work in. I work with youth and dealing with conflicts is herewith an increasing issue. For example, in Ghana, very close to where I live, there is an oil field, and there are already problems and challenges coming up because of the oil. And I asked myself if peace and conflict is something I want to do? And when the GTZ told me about the programme of the Academy, I took the chance. So far, the seven weeks have been interesting and very fruitful. Personally, I had the opportunity for the first time in a long time to take some formal break from my work. And I also get to see a bit of Germany which is a plus to this programme.
Did you have any difficulties during the course?
Taj: Well, sometimes the trainers are giving examples which are easy to understand for the German participants. But for me, they are difficult to understand because I don't know the issue. For example, when they are talking about Kosovo.
Simon: For me, the language was quite a big issue, because in a lot of places everything is labeled in German and I didn't feel comfortable.
Do you think that the German or European perspective on Africa's or Afghanistan's crises can also have additional value?
Justin: The course basically deals with conflicts in which everybody in the state is affected. For example conflicts in Liberia, Burundi, or Uganda. But I am interested in inter-ethnic conflicts between two groups in their country, for instance, two religious bodies fighting. However, I would say that the tools that are given to us can also be applied to this kind of conflicts but that means I have to do that application.
Simon: I think that topics as DDR (Disarmarment, Demobilization, Reintegration) could be more interesting from a non-European perspective. For instance, how Africans or people from other regions rather than how the European see the problem.
Taj: I think that the trainers do not directly address the conflict in my country because they think that it's a sensitive and controversial issue. Maybe they intentionally avoid to address the conflicts in Afghanistan or Ghana because we might feel offended by their analysis and judgement.
And would you like to talk about Afghanistan?
Taj: It is okay for me if the trainers use examples not from my country, but from other countries. But it's up to me how I should compare that example with the reality in my country. And I find it easy to compare. For me, it's fine.
Justin: And on the whole, I think we can say that we've gained broad knowledge on the whole from all the perspectives. Now we are able to understand other types of conflicts which otherwise we would have never known. For example, about the conflict in Papua. So we can one day at least give an example of what an asymmetric conflict is, because in my area it's not about asymmetry. So this is helpful.
Do you think that the trainings in the Academy are practice-oriented enough?
Justin: Well, peace work – I found out – is not only theory, it's based on experience. If you just have theory, it doesn't work out. So you do experience-based sharing. For instance, the trainer who came in yesterday (Ursula Renner), you could see that she had enormous experience on the ground. That was very good.
Taj: The trainings are very practice-oriented. But there is a need for regular conflict analysing. If you start to build a project based on your one year's ago analysis results, the project will not be working because in this one year maybe the dynamics and the actors of the conflict have changed. And sometimes, we design projects based on outdated analysis. It is important what is going on in the field at the moment. We have to consider the reality at the moment.
Justin: I find it very useful to deal with the theory first and then look for a practical case study. And although these case studies sometimes do not relate to our background, it is practically useful. However, when it comes to my own area, the dynamics change, just a few things, and then I might face difficulties.
Do you think you will be able to apply the theories or lessons learnt from the other case studies to the conflict in Ghana?
Justin: To some extent yes, you can. But we have to do more.
Taj: Like to develop new tools?
Justin: Well, sometimes new tools have to be developed or given tools have to be modified to adapt to the specific situation.
Simon: My understanding of the programme is to be able to have general concepts to work with. And I think that has been done very well.
Do you think one can apply the experience from one conflict to another?
Taj: I think applying the experience from one conflict to another conflict without further consideration is absolutely wrong and impossible. We can use the tools but applying all what we did with one conflict to another conflict would be the same as if you don't know the person's height and figure and interest and then you go to to make clothes for this person. Maybe it's very tight, maybe it's very wide, maybe it's short, maybe if everything is fine the colour is not in the interest of that person... And I believe it is the same with conflicts. We can not apply our experience from one conflict to another: Every conflict has a different nature, different actors, different factors and that's why every conflict needs a separate and proper analysis. We can use the tools, but everything is new, an absolutely new start.
Okay, back to daily life. How was the close living together with the other participants?
Taj: The core group was very friendly and we have a very good relationship. So, I really enjoyed my time and I felt accepted as a guest in Germany.
Justin: I can't say that it was all smooth sailing. Being in the same place for a long time, definitely leads to challenges and conflicts within the group. What helped me in coping with it is the fact that we have been trained in peace building strategies. So I was able to apply some of these things to certain small relational problems.
Simon: On a very professional level I think everybody was very much respectful and civil to each other. And when it comes to the individual, there were individual problems because a lot of persons were in a transition process, for example they were seeking new jobs. Well, for me it has also been a good lesson learning process.
And in which way you think you can put the knowledge you gained into practice in your future work? What relevance does the course have for your work in your home country?
Simon: I think I have learned a lot and it's a lot that I am taking back. Although I don't do direct peace or development work, I see that whatever I do is part of a peace process.
So can you use the tools and skills for your youth work in Ghana?
Simon: Yes, in my youth work I am trying to understand what young people want. Because if their basic needs are not fulfilled, this is a potential for conflict. I think that the lessons I learnt can shape my programme very well. And I am happy that it's the end of the year, because we are beginning to develop a work plan for the next year. And everything I learned will feed into this plan. So it's been very useful.
Justin: Well, my organization WANEP Ghana receives a lot of invitations from institutions and other bodies to come and deliver lectures and presentations on peace building. And now, I can lecture on any of the topics we have treated in the course. And I will also shape an undergraduate course for peace building for the University for Development in Ghana. And I think I will be very comfortable doing it now, because I have all the tools, all the materials and also the contact to the trainers.
Taj, how will you use your gained knowledge in Afghanistan?
Taj: We have capacity building workshops in Afghanistan for the community elders who are responsible for arbitration. And we want to build their capacities how to mediate not arbitrate. Because in arbitration, most of the time they are marginalizing one party, especially the women. So what I learned in this course, I would like to apply. I would have to modify the tools and the concepts, of course. Then I can build their capacity in mediating between conflicting parties. The same is true for the programme in which we are working with the police. I can reintegrate or modify what I have learned in the course. I find it really fruitful and I am sure that we will practically be able to use it in our programme. I am optimistic.
What was your best moment in the last seven weeks, something you will always remember and tell your children or grandchildren?
Taj: The course break? (laughter) For me the best moment... I have to think about it.
Simon: For me, the five days with the peace activist Diana Francis were very interesting. And I also liked spending Halloween in an Irish Pub in town and a weekend in a small village near the Belgian border (Schoeneken). In this I village I felt like being in some village in Africa, where everybody knows everybody.
Justin: My best moment was when I went to my first coaching session with Karin Busch. When we were told we are going to have coaching, at first I wanted to decline because I didn't see anything good come out of it. I felt big pressure on me because my organization expects something back from me, not only in terms of the knowledge I've learned. We also need money to run the organization. And this was one issue I didn't know how to approach. But the coach has really helped me to relax. I would say that the coaching has put my expectations in line with the Academy's expectations and learning goals. So that was really helpful.
Taj, have you found your best moment?
Taj: I am still searching, because everything for me was best. From the very beginning until now. That's why I think I should not prioritize anything. Well, yesterday evening I was in Bonn at the Christmas market and I tasted Glühwein for the first time in my life... That was a very happy moment!
Justin: Yeah, the Glühwein is so good...