Talking peace with Deputy Director-General Renée Larivière
Last week Renée Larivière, our Deputy Director-General for Development and Learning, was interviewed on Radio Télévision Suisse’s Geopolitis programme about the concept of peace in today’s world.
Renée discusses the complexity of peacebuilding, and the importance of Interpeace’s approach. “Twenty years of peacebuilding work have taught us that peace cannot be imposed from the outside, rather it must come from within and involve equality and local ownership of the process at all levels,” she says. She underlines that we work with local partners in the field and that by including individuals from all spectrums of society we can ensure that a stronger, and more durable peace can be built.
Renée uses the example of Rwanda to illustrate the difficulty of peacebuilding in a post-conflict scenario and to underline the essential ingredient that cannot be ignored – trust.
When asked to define peace Renée goes on to explain that there is no single definition, and that it cannot be reduced to the mere absence of violence. Contrary to what is perhaps common belief, peace and peacebuilding are as relevant in war-free countries as they are to those suffering through conflict.
