Urban peace dialogue in Cuba

This post is also available in: Spanish

Participants at the Cuban Quaker Institute for Peace, Holguin, Cuba, June 2013

By Adrienne Wiebe, Policy Analyst, MCC Latin America

I recently had the wonderful opportunity to participate in a gathering of 25 people from different countries in Latin America to talk about their experience and learnings in the area of confronting urban violence and conflict. The dialogue was organized by the American Friends Service Committee (Quakers) and the Cuban Quaker Institute of Peace.

The meeting was held at the Quaker Institute of Peace in the province of Holguín on the eastern end of the island.

Each of the countries represented has a very different context and dynamic. One very unique aspect of the gathering was that Cuba and Haiti were present; often these two countries do not participate in regional Latin American gatherings due to political and language barriers respectively. Yet these two countries brought very different perspectives to the discussion.

To give you a bit of a flavour of the diversity and dialogue, here are some voices from the gathering:

“In Guatemala, we refer to “communities in dispute,” these are urban spaces in which control is violently contested by two or more groups, including criminal organizations, the State, police, gangs, the community, etc.” Marco Castillo, Guatemala

“How can “social vulnerability” be reduced? Is this similar to the risk equations used in disaster management planning and response? Risk = threat x vulnerability. Can we reduce the social vulnerability of residents in conflictive communities?” Ivan Monzon, Guatemala/Haiti

“While Cuba does not have nearly the same levels of violence as in other Latin American countries, domestic violence is a concern, as is the symbolic violence of emerging inequalities as a result of economic changes.” Kirenia Criado, Cuba

“It seems to be easier to leave a gang in Haiti than in Central America, because in Haiti participation is more related to economic need, while in Central America it is more organized with rituals of membership, etc. so it is more difficult to leave.” Louis Mars,  Haiti

“Civil society has strengthened but we need to establish public policy based on human rights. The State has less power than before, and civil society has the oppportunity to be part of the pressure for human rights.” Ximena Erazo, Chile

“We need to rethink the theory of change behind our interventions. The world has changed…[creating social change] is no longer about just providing workshops, but  about changing relationships and identities within a context of complexity.” Jorge Lafitte, Brazil

Here is a post about what the gathering meant for the Cuban participants by Jorge Luis Peña Reyes, a Cuban journalist and Quaker:

http://unvuelosinpasaje.blogspot.ca/2013/07/sin-dialogo-no-hay-paz-posible-el-dep.html