{"id":5975,"date":"2016-11-25T18:17:36","date_gmt":"2016-11-25T17:17:36","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.interpeace.org\/?p=5975"},"modified":"2017-05-04T18:41:05","modified_gmt":"2017-05-04T16:41:05","slug":"ideology-understanding-violence","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.interpeace.org\/fr\/2016\/11\/ideology-understanding-violence\/","title":{"rendered":"Beyond Ideology and Greed - Understanding new forms of violence in C\u00f4te d\u2019Ivoire and Mali"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u201cBeing forgotten, marginalized, not considered\u2026 that\u2019s what generates violence.\u201d Youth from Bouak\u00e9, C\u00f4te d\u2019Ivoire.<\/p>\n

Over the past few years, the Sahel region has faced rising levels of violence. Since 2012, Mali <\/a>has been greatly impacted by the reactivation of diverse armed groups, who claim to be inspired by a jihadist ideology. In C\u00f4te d\u2019Ivoire<\/a>, new forms of urban violence have started to emerge, despite the end\u00a0of the country\u2019s armed conflict. To cope with these crises, Interpeace\u2019s Regional Office for West Africa<\/a>, with its local partners IMRAP<\/a> et un Indigo C\u00f4te d\u2019Ivoire<\/a>, conducted participatory research to understand the trajectories of young people towards new forms of violence and more specifically the role of education in these dynamics. Over the course of seven months, with the support of UNICEF<\/a>, the researchers engaged with 741 people from a range of communities in C\u00f4te d\u2019Ivoire and Mali.<\/p>\n

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There is growing international interest and scrutiny of young people\u2019s engagement in new forms of violence. This phenomenon is generally analyzed through lenses of radicalization and violent extremism. As the international community desperately seeks to eradicate it, \u00a0the factors often described as \u201cstructural and root causes\u201d need to be revisited. It is widely believed that unemployment and religious ideologies are pivotal factors that contribute to radicalization and violent extremism in West Africa, but research findings show that these elements are, in fact, secondary. Contrary to common wisdom, young people do not\u00a0engage in violent activities for negative reasons - against something or for violence itself. Rather, they perceive their engagement as constructive. Elements, such as young people's need to find their place in society, to be recognized and valued in their communities are of \u00a0paramount importance in explaining their engagement in violence.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen youth doesn\u2019t recognize itself in society\u2019s values, it looks for landmarks elsewhere\u201d. High level civil servant, Bamako, Mali.<\/p>\n

Similar to research conducted in Latin America, \u00a0dynamics that push young people to join or remain in armed groups are often related to identity, opportunities for social mobility and the security of belonging that comes from being a part of a group. As a young man in the study described: \u201cSomeone who only knows how to use weapons. You dump him into the streets, what is he to become?\u201d The research therefore identified a phenomenon of \u201cprofessionalization of violence,\u201d which describes how young people use violence as a way to gain capital, but more significantly, how they accrue\u00a0social acceptance and value, through a positive recognition of the violence they perpetrate.<\/p>\n

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Photo credit: Aboubacar Traore<\/p><\/div>\n

The study also identified that the majority of the population in both countries believes that an educational crisis and a crisis of authority are at the heart of young people's path towards violence. It is widely recognized that family, school and the community are unable to provide young people with the guidance they need. As an older man explained: \u201cWe simply raise our children instead of educating them. Because we are more worried about the food and clothes of our children, than of their education.\u201d Therefore, for youth, joining \u00a0violent groups offers an opportunity to climb the social ladder and to build their identity and self-esteem.<\/p>\n

The report \u201cBeyond Ideology & Greed: Trajectories of Young People towards New Forms of Violence in C\u00f4te d\u2019Ivoire and Mali,\u201d has been launched in Abidjan on October 26, Bamako on November 2 and in Dakar on November 12. For \u00a0the regional launch in Dakar, Interpeace, IMRAP and Indigo, were joined by high-level UN officials from diverse agencies, including the DSRSG for the Sahel and West African region, Ms. Hiroute Guebre Sellassie. In her closing remarks, she stated: that the study \u201cexhorts all of us to humility and to challenge received wisdom when trying to understand such complex social issues\u201d.<\/p>\n

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Report launch in Dakar, Senegal. Photo credit: Interpeace<\/p><\/div>\n

To learn more about this study and read the recommendations at the social, economic and educational levels, please do refer to the following links:<\/p>\n

Full report (in French) Cliquez ici<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Executive summary (in French) Cliquez ici<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Executive summary (in English) Cliquez ici<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Watch documentary films with the findings of this research in French and English.<\/p>\n