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Introduction:
Angela Khaminwa and Sarah Peterson, of the Coexistence Initiative, explain the interrelationship between peacebuilding and coexistence work.
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This rough transcript provides a text alternative to audio. We apologize for occasional errors and unintelligible sections (which are marked with ???).
Coexistence vs. Peacebuilding
Angela Khaminwa and Sarah Peterson
Program Officer for Outreach and Communication, The Coexistence Initiative
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Q: Is coexistence distinct from the sort of larger notions of peacebuilding
that tend to encompass relationship building?
A: I think coexistence and peacebuilding differ. Coexistence
is about changing individual mindsets. Coexistence work is about changing the
way individuals think about those who are different from them. Peacebuilding
has that aspect to it but it also has a structural aspect to it. Peacebuilding
is about creating infrastructure in a country that supports development, that
supports peace, and that avoids conflict, violent conflict. Coexistence work as
it has been discussed today has been located primarily at the individual level
and at the community level.
So in many ways they kind of overlap in where they effect change because
there is some coexistence work that is moving towards making institutional
changes which is part of what our organization is trying to do. How do you move
from changing the way individuals think to creating policies that promote some types
of behavior? Peacebuilding comes from a different angle. I see it as top-bottom
and I see coexistence as bottom-up, in terms of the direction. You were going to
say something?
S: I was going to agree with you but also that you can add, the ideas that
you mainstreamed , the principles of coexistence, into the peace
building process. So if you are creating policies, you have a society, it is a
new society, it is going through some kind of political reform and it is forming
new policies and new government. Implicit within that new government, ideally,
you have the principles of coexistence present so that the policies accommodate
all groups equally; you have equal representation in their social practice too.
You also have the sense of coexistence that the community is open to all
groups no matter how diverse it is. That's sort of the ideal end; to actively
embrace diversity and the spectrum that we've been talking about, but that
coexistence, when you think about the spectrum, coexistence is most effective
probably when it is accompanied by the peacebuilding process. And the peacebuilding process is most benefited when it is accompanied by the coexistence.
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