Peace​ Quartet

1. Describe a need that you see on the local level that you would like your Individual Project to address.

 

Following the demise of the Soviet Union we have witnessed outbreaks of various forms of violence across the former Soviet republics. One of them was 1992 war in Moldova – Transnistria which has transformed into a protracted conflict over the years. Even though the direct violence has since stopped to a large extent, the only conflict management mechanism is the high level negotiation format which seems to be rather unproductive/fruitless. Apart from it the population living on both sides of the river Nistru (especially youth) wasn’t involved in a genuine, honest dialogue about the root causes of the conflict. The trauma and the grievances were largely left unaddressed and no attention was given to the feelings, perceptions, hopes and prospects of the people living in these territories.

The result is a growing generation with skewed versions and perceptions about their history, identity and moral values fueled by their education systems, political propaganda and biased media. Some young people have developed entrenched positions, stereotypes and unfounded fears about the other. This project is therefore an attempt at starting a reconciliation process among young people living territories on those territories.   

 

1. Explain how addressing this need relates to IFOR’s mission of addressing active nonviolence and justice issues in the personal, political, economic, social, and environmental spheres.

 

A reconciliation process starts from common points of pain and similar values and ideas shared by the people involved.

At the personal level it means a firm belief in nonviolence. No matter how hard the past has been and no matter how personal violence may have affected the family, relatives and the people close to us, only by engaging in honest, respectful conversations with each other, we could look for and grow the seed of forgiveness in ourselves.

 

At the political level, this youth-led reconciliation process is meant to offer an alternative channel of conflict transformation and prevention of violence in Moldova-Transnistria. The high level diplomatic negotiations have resulted in repeated deadlocks/stalemates and have proved rather inefficient in addressing peoples’ needs on the ground. This process would also be aimed at holding the political leaders accountable and responsible for their agendas and attitudes with regards to conflict settlement. Finally, it encourages the young people to look for solutions and develop their own approaches to conflict transformation in parallel to the already existing ones.

 

At the economic level, a successful process of reconciliation could result in better opportunities for youth in building cross-river collaborations, as well as better chances for the mobility of people, products and services in the long term.

 

At the social level, it would mean the process of replacing the backward mentality of fear and hatred towards ‘the other’. The reconciliation process is directed towards re-establishing the connections of trust, kinship and solidarity. These in turn, could serve as building blocks in a larger infrastructure for peacebuilding and development cooperation in the region. By giving a voice to the young people affected by conflict, they are be encouraged to engage in issues that they are passionate and excited about. This way, young people can get involved in building and leading a peace process from the grassroots by joining forces with other students, artists, sportsmen, journalists, civic activists, hacktivists, civil engineers, among others.

 

At the environmental level, this means taking care of our common natural resources. In this case, cleaning and preserving the river basin of the Nistru is quintessential for the wellbeing of the people in Moldova-Transnistria. Ultimately, the reconciliation process, calls for a complete demilitarization of the region, due to the devastating potential of the arms stockpiles.      

 

1. Describe the approach you would like to utilize to address this need in terms of actions, events, activities, etc. and why you chose this approach. 

 

A social platform for interaction (both on and offline) for youth from Moldova-Transnistria. It would be trilingual – English, Russian and Romanian. The platform is centered around 6 themes:

a. Peace and development education and learning

b. Youth building peace/Local Action heroes

c. Building local resilience and stronger communities

d. Living together/Peaceful coexistence

e. Artists for Peace

 

Bi-monthly “Peace Forums” – 1-2 day meetings in a barcamp / unconference format where everyone is welcome to share and discuss in a nonviolent manner issues of interest, current events, develop common projects, start parallel actions, learn and exchange ideas, insights, goods and services. The meetings would be held interchangeably in the left and right bank of the Nistru river.

 

Training sessions on:

• nonviolent methods and actions to transform conflicts

• youth leadership

• the sharing and collaborative consumption as a tool to bring various people together.

 

The Nistru International Marathon – Starting point: Anenii Noi. Finish line: Tiraspol. The marathon would cross the security zone and the border checkpoints.  Its aim would be to convey a feeling of safety, peace and healthy lifestyle. It would serve as a signal that the presence of peacekeeping forces is obsolete (and illegitimate) and that they should be replaced by an international civilian peacebuilding mission.

 

1. Describe the change you wish to see on the local level following the implementation of your Individual Project.

 

• An increased knowledge/awareness about the complexities of conflict, and the efforts to (re)build trust, mediate opposing views, and build common ground for future collaborations.

• A continuation of the interactions by the participants in the social platform after the end of the project cycle, both on and offline (August 2014)

• The creation of a core group of committed individuals that would like to start an NGO with participants from both banks of the Nistru river, that would be dedicated to working in peacebuilding and collaborative development in Moldova-Transnistria.