Non-violence is not only the morally and ethically right thing to do; it is also the strategic thing to do. A growing body of evidence shows that non-violent action leads to more peaceful and long-term results compared to violent action. That’s why we will only support work that is aligned with the principles of non-violence. Non-violence is also not the easy option. Rather than being regarded as ‘soft’ we believe that those who choose non-violence are extraordinarily courageous.
Building peace has for too long been regarded as the ‘soft’ option by policymakers and the military, as if making and building peace represents weakness. We believe this is wrong, and that building and sustaining peace takes courage.
Peacebuilders risk their lives every day. To honour their courage, we try to be courageous in our work. This means speaking truth to power when we see rights being violated or dignity being diminished. It means turning down funding if we believe it will not support local peacebuilding efforts in a responsible and sustainable way. It means arguing robustly but respectfully with those in the sector who believe that local capacity doesn’t exist in some countries, or that local people ‘can’t be trusted’.
And it means taking risks for our partners when others won’t, whether this is through establishing radically flexible funding mechanisms when others won’t, or investing in peacebuilding efforts in high-risk areas.
Within Peace Direct, we treat all our colleagues with dignity and respect. But we also work to tackle the ways the current system of international assistance diminishes the dignity of local people, reducing them to passive victims with no agency or ability to change their own lives.
We do everything in our power to uphold and defend the dignity of local people. This means being extremely mindful of the language we use internally and externally, so that we can avoid perpetuating stereotypes and instead radically change the way people think about those affected by conflict. We will also call out behaviours and language that we see in our work, within the sector and with policymakers, which diminishes agency and dignity of local people.
A core principle underpinning our work since we were founded was the inclusion of local peacebuilders in all peacebuilding efforts. Their exclusion from most policy discussions, peace processes and externally led peacebuilding initiatives, was – and is – one of the biggest failures of global peacebuilding.
We will redouble our efforts to promote and advocate genuinely inclusive peacebuilding. We will not be afraid to speak out when we see peace processes and initiatives that exclude those most affected by violence, who should be leading efforts to build peace.
We also look at our own internal practice, work culture and communication to ensure that our commitment to inclusion is reflected in how we work with our colleagues, volunteers and peers. Being committed to diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) means ensuring that Peace Direct is a welcoming, diverse and inclusive organisation, willing to explore its own unconscious biases so that we can become the best organisation we can be for our partners and for the communities we serve. Our DEI policy and strategy are available upon request.
One of the unspoken reasons why international policies and practices do not support local efforts is because there is a lack of trust in local people.
Sometimes this is dressed up as a lack of evidence for the effectiveness of local peacebuilding, its ability to scale its impact to national levels, a lack of visibility of peacebuilding, or a problem of fiduciary risk.
However, more often than not, it’s because local people simply aren’t trusted by the international community. This lack of trust is often based on prejudice and racism, and this must be tackled.
We will call out language and behaviour that reinforces existing stereotypes about the lack of agency of local actors and we will ensure that our advocacy activities include recommendations that build trust in local peacebuilders.
