Friday, January 29, 2010

Interpeace emphasizes local peacemaking in Somalia

The Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars in Washington hosted a session on Jan. 28, 2010, about local peace making in Somalia that highlighted the efforts of Interpeace, a non-governmental organization dedicated to local level peace making around the world. This organization has done some excellent work in Somalia. It operates on the assumption that peace is sustainable only if it is owned by the local people. Interpeace only works through local organizations. I recommend the organization’s most recent research concerning Somalia. You can access "A History of Mediation in Somalia since 1988" in PDF format here. In order to see "The Search for Peace: A Synthesis Report of the Peace Mapping Study" for Somalia, visit visit this link (PDF). Finally, Issue 21 of Accord: An International Review of Peace Initiatives edited by Mark Bradbury and Sally Healy is devoted to Somalia and titled "Whose Peace Is It Anyway? Connecting Somali and International Peacemaking." This issue contains an informative series of essays and interviews on the peace process in Somalia. You can access it here.