Re-conceptualization of violence in the Northern Triangle

L' Heinrich Böll Foundation has formed the Network of Civil Society Organizations of the Northern Triangle of Central America, as a space for analysis, reflection and contribution among organizations in Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador, with specialized knowledge on the issue of violence and insecurity in the region.

The book "Re-conceptualization of violence in the Northern Triangle" was written to challenge traditional approaches with which the problem of violence is tackled. In this document, the Network helps to re-interpret and re-dimension the issues of violence. Otto Argueta from Interpeace, writes about the: Transformations of gangs in El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras.

The Network is made up of Interpeace, Interpeace’s Regional Office for Latin America, Myrna Mack Foundation, Cooperativa Otra R.L., Plaza Pública, IUDPAS-UNAH, IUDOP-UCA et un CIPRODEH.

Favoring technical training in “Boquerón” detention center in Guatemala

The “Boquerón” detention center is located in the district of Santa Rosa in Guatemala, less than an hour away from the capital. In 2015, Interpeace’s Regional Office for Latin America, began to implement a project to provide technical training for young inmates in this detention center. The project was made possible with the cooperation of the Spanish NGO International Youth Initiative and the financial support of Malaga’s City Hall.

For Interpeace, the implementation of treatment programmes in detention centers, is intended to promote rehabilitation processes and support the General Direction of the Penitentiary System in Guatemala. This is accomplished by providing inmates with social, educational, cultural and productive job training workshops.

As part of the project, technical training was provided for young inmates at “Boquerón” in graphic design, serigraphy and dye-sublimination; workshops in computer programming and maintenance, as well as diverse methods of craft elaborations. In addition to these workshops, the young inmates were also trained to develop skills in management and conflict transformation, psychology and personal motivation. Moreover, Interpeace provided them with a screen printing apparatus, as well as several supplies and equipment for dye-sublimination, which uses heat to transfer dye onto materials such as plastic, cards, paper, or fabric.

Workshop at Boquerón Detention Center in Guatemala. Photo credit: Interpeace.

The systematic nature of society requires interventions oriented toward generating synergies which favor interactions between different tracks or different sectors of society, which is why Interpeace also applied its approche Track 6 in this project. Interpeace officials performed several activities at the political level (Track 1) with the Vice Minister of Security and the Directives of the Penitentiary System, conducted activities with other organizations of civil society working in support of the prison system (Track 2) and implemented activities directly with the young inmates, who are the beneficiaries of the project (Track 3).

The ultimate goal of the project was to expand the social function of the prison system and to achieve specific objectives such as reducing leisure time in detention centers and provide methods of rehabilitation and social reintegration with respect to the inmates’ human dignity, human rights and laws.

Shirt elaborated by the participants of the Boquerón project in Guatemala. Photo credit: Interpeace.

Violence and insecurity in Central America: Failure of the hard-fisted policies and its democratic alternatives

On July 5th 2016, the Heinrich Böll Foundation invited Ana Glenda Tager, Interpeace’s Regional Director for Latin America, and José Luis Sanz, Director of the Salvadoran newspaper El Faro, to participate in a public debate entitled: “Violence and Insecurity in Central America: The Failure of the Hard-Fisted Policies and the Debate on Alternative Democratic Concepts.” Bernd Pickert, journalist of the German Newspaper Die Tageszeitung, moderated the debate, which took place in Berlin.

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Ana Glenda Tager, Interpeace’s Regional Director for Latin America; José Luis Sanz, Director of the Salvadoran newspaper El Faro; and Bernd Pickert, journalist of the German Newspaper Die Tageszeitung.

A third of the world’s overall homicides occur in Latin America. The Northern Triangle of Central America, conformed by Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador, have the highest murder rates in the world. The homicide rate in El Salvador in 2015, was of 116 for every 100,000 people. And in Guatemala and Honduras, the homicide rate was 60 for every 100,000. In contrast, the world’s average homicide rate is 6.2 for every 100,000 citizens.

According to the Organization of American States, victims are mostly men between the ages of 20 and 30. However, the number of femicides and homicides of members of the LGBT community are increasing.

These issues have led to a series of unfortunate consequences within society. They have generated mistrust, broken social cohesion and have imposed a social order, were violent reactions are encouraged in a vicious cycle. At the same time, they have raised social tolerance to violence, illegal forms of economy and the loss of thousands of lives.

So far the problem has been tackled through repressive means, using the so-called Mano Dura or Hard-Fisted policies. The State’s indifference to solve these social issues has led to an excessive involvement of the Army in public security. Interpeace’s experience shows that a preventive approach to these issues is necessary to transform violent dynamics, from a peacebuilding perspective. However, this preventive focus must be placed on all the actors involved in violence and not only on young vulnerable adults, as it is usually done.

At the same time a tertiary prevention is also pivotal, which would focus on the work done with prisoners, given the direct relation between the detention centers and criminal dynamics.

Through dialogue, Interpeace seeks to strengthen the bonds of trust, shorten the distance between all actors of society, including the most marginalized and stigmatized and therefore stimulate the development of non-violent and collaborative solutions to the challenges faced by society.

Parallel events to the Public Debate

As part of Ana Glenda Tager’s visit to Berlin, she participated in a series of meetings organized by the Heinrich Böll Foundation:

 

Ana Glenda Tager, Interpeace’s Regional Director for Latin America in Debate held in Berlin. Photo credit: Interpeace

Ana Glenda Tager, Interpeace’s Regional Director for Latin America in Debate held in Berlin. Photo credit: Interpeace

Citizens Capacities for Peace: The Guatemalan Post-Conflict Experience

From June 13 - 15 the National Democratic Institute – NDI – based in Colombia, organized a forum for dialogue and learning about the pedagogy and education of peacebuilding. This forum took place simultaneously with the historic moment Colombia is currently living, as a result of the negotiations developed between the National Government and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia – FARC.

From the lessons learned of several peace processes, especially the post-conflict experience in Guatemala, Ana Glenda Tager Rosado, Director of the Interpeace Regional Office in Latin America, was invited by NDI to participate in two activities with representatives of the Unit for Compensation to the Victims of the Armed Conflict and afterwards with several representatives of Political Parties.

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NDI activity in Colombia. Photo credit: Interpeace

In both activities, the Guatemalan post-conflict experience provided invaluable lessons to the Colombian peace process, outlining the obstacles that challenged the implementation of the 1996 Peace Agreements in Guatemala.

The Guatemalan experience demonstrates that the pedagogy for peace cannot only focus on the practice of teaching peace and informing people of the Peace Agreements, it must fundamentally transform the violent dynamics that are rooted in the social interactions of everyday life, which exist beyond the confines of the armed conflict. This approach needs an active involvement, ownership and overall participation of the different sectors of society, to ensure that peace becomes a part of their attitude and life.

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Ana Glenda Tager, Regional Office Director for Latin America. Photo credit: Andrea Fernández.

Therefore, pedagogy for peace must be understood as a permanent process, not an exceptional one. Pedagogy for peace must be implemented during the negotiation process, by bringing the negotiation table close to the citizens, in order for them to own the agreements. Moreover, during the implementation of the agreements, peace pedagogy must provide a comprehensive understanding and a constant social verification of these agreements, to ensure the implementation process; and during the peace consolidation process, peace pedagogy must provide justice and reconciliation.

Finally, an important lesson learned in Guatemala is the need to ensure through all means that peace will not be used for political competition, guaranteeing that the process will not lose its non-violent and conciliatory essence.

NDI meeting in Colombia. Photo credit: Interpeace

NDI meeting in Colombia. Photo credit: Interpeace

Strengthening peace through 'resilience' in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development

L' 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development is based on extensive work of states, multilateral organizations and civil society organizations, that will guide international development policies of the next fifteen years. The attention now shifts to the design and implementation of national level development plans and policies that will enable countries to meet these goals.

The inclusion of Goal 16, as well as the upholding of peace as a cross-cutting theme in the SDG framework, in principle represents the long awaited mainstream of peace into the development discourse. Goal 16 seeks to: “Promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels.” However, there is still little clarity on how this might be operationalized.

This brief proposes that a resilience orientation to peacebuilding can help countries meet the “peace goal” of the SDGs, as well as providing a vehicle for integrating this universal aspiration with the other Goals of the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda. It draws on evidence collected over the course of Interpeace’s Framework for Assessing Resilience (FAR) Programme including pilot research in Timor-Leste, Guatemala et un Liberia.

Peace among us - A population-based study about resilience for peace in Guatemala

Twenty years after the signing of the peace accords between the State of Guatemala and the National Revolutionary Unity of Guatemala (URNG) in 1996, Guatemala remains confronted to poverty, exclusion, violence and other conflicts and social issues. These are both roots and consequences of social and political polarization, lack of confidence in and legitimacy of public institutions and political leadership, and weakening of the social fabric. After twenty years of peacebuilding efforts, the need remains to better understand, assess and ultimately leverage the positive assets and attributes of individuals, communities, and institutions in the country.

This report represents the findings from a nationwide survey on resilience for peace that the Harvard Humanitarian Initiative (HHI), in collaboration with Interpeace’s Guatemala Regional Office, have undertaken in the context of Frameworks for Assessing Resilience (FAR). Programme. It seeks to contribute to the understanding of what makes Guatemalans able to anticipate risk, resolve conflicts collaboratively, and respond creatively to crisis – what we call resilience for peace.

The report has been authored by Phuong N. Pham and Patrick T. Vinck of HHI.

The results of the survey can also be viewed through an interactive map.