News and Insight

Our staff and partners draw on decades of experience, understanding and analysis to make peace possible. As well as news, see their latest thoughtful insights covering violent conflict, peacebuilding, and global events.

August 2011

The forced displacement of over 1 million people is a key legacy of the Nagorny Karabakh conflict in the South Caucasus.

July 2011
Insight

One of the pillars of the European Union’s external policy is the promotion of democracy. The EU conditions its assistance to the quality of democratic practice, the emblem of which is electoral behaviour and the institutions that support free and fair elections.

July 2011
Women from grassroots organisations across three countries affected by the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) have participated in a Conciliation Resources visit to formerly LRA-affected parts of northern Uganda. The women – from the Democratic Republic of Congo, South Sudan and Central African Republic – visited a rehabilitation centre for former abductees and the home village of the rebel leader, Joseph Kony.
July 2011
July saw a key meeting in Entebbe of cultural and religious leaders from the four countries affected by the presence of the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA). As a result of the two-day discussions, organised by Conciliation Resources, the leaders, as well as being better informed about the reality in each state, produced a plan of action to take back to their communities.
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July 2011
In Tbilisi, together with staff from the Caucasus Research Resource Centers, this July we launched a survey of people's attitudes towards internal displacement. By taking part in the survey, Georgians who were displaced from their homes by the 1992–93 war in Abkhazia had the opportunity to express their views on conflict, return and justice. The results provide some important new insights into an often overlooked community.
July 2011
Conciliation Resources staff took part in an all-day mediation simulation in July focusing on the current day Israel–Palestine process. Facilitated by TRACK4, we explored the issues and steps involved in negotiation. "It was a real eye opener," commented one participant, "In the simulation you can really see the pressures at play and how problems require trade-offs as well as creative and inclusive solutions."
July 2011

During spring 2011 we submitted reflections and recommendations ahead of the UK’s Building Stability Overseas Strategy. We now warmly welcome its publication.

June 2011
Conciliation Resources was one of six civil society organisations that took part in the International Dialogue on Peacebuilding and Statebuilding in Monrovia, Liberia in June. We took the opportunity to emphasize that participatory and inclusive political dialogue and planning should run through the objectives being developed.
June 2011
News

Conciliation Resources recently organised workshops in Senegal and Nigeria, which brought together civil society organisations, academics and state officials to examine key issues around several local conflicts.

June 2011

The views of local people living on either side of the River Nistru are reflected in a new report and briefing paper on the Transnistria conflict, produced by Saferworld as part of the People's Peacebuilding Perspectives (PPP) project.

June 2011
News

It is a year since the US Supreme Court ruled in the Holder vs. Humanitarian Law Project case. In doing so they upheld the constitutionality of a law that makes it illegal for US citizens or organisations to engage in many ways that are crucial to conflict transformation. Speaking at a seminar in Sweden, Andy Carl marked the ruling's anniversary by highlighting the serious implications for peacebuilding of anti-terrorist and material support laws.

May 2011
Tahir Aziz, Project Manager for Conciliation Resources’ Kashmir Programme, participated in an international conference entitled 'Kashmir in Emerging Global Perspectives', which was organised by the Azad Jammu and Kashmir University in Muzaffarabad. Significantly, he used the opportunity to bring two Kashmir programme partners from the Indian side on a rare visit to Islamabad and Muzaffarabad on the Pakistan side of Kashmir, to participate in the conference and partner meetings.