December 2001/
January 2002

Views expressed are those of the authors, not necessarily of the AFSC.

A Resource for Mediators, Researchers, and Activists

War Prevention Works: 50 Stories of People Resolving Conflict. Oxford: Oxford Research Group, 2001. Dylan Mathews, Editor; Forewords, Elise Boulding and Adam Curle; Introduction, Scilla Elworthy. 126 pp. Available from www.oxfordresearch group.org.uk

As is often the case after ethnic conflicts subside, survivors fear retaliation by neighbors and returning refugees. Such was the case in a region of Croatia with the most numerous mass graves and some of the most volatile communities, in 1999. Working in multi-ethic pairs, however, small peace teams trained in a variety of listening skills initiated conversations in small towns and communities, "helping people to begin to process the trauma of war," according to one evaluation. Eventually, Serbs and Croats began communicating through Peace Team members and community activities such as workshops for women and children

This is only one of the fifty cases, chosen from 240 examples and documented in this invaluable resource for mediators, activists, and researchers. They are stories of ordinary people intervening to produce significant if not always decisive change in violent contexts around the globe. Relying on their own courage, stamina, and imagination, such people dramatize what nonviolent direct action can do, in interventions in Nigeria, Serbia, India, El Salvador, Somalia, Lebanon, and other countries. Their peacemaking efforts took place amid varied conditions--before any violence, amid escalating, full-blown, and contained violence, or after the violence has subsided, as was the case in Croatia.

In brief, authoritative accounts, the anthology describes "the heroic work of those who have neither the time to tell their stories themselves nor in some cases the wherewithal to seek funds to extend their work." A staff member of the Oxford Research Group, the editor also provides maps, facts and figures on deaths and costs of involvement, as well as annotated lists of other case studies and organizations. As the noted British mediator and peace studies scholar Adam Curle notes in the preface, this great diversity of effort demonstrates "that there are no set answers to the problems that beset us. The historical setting, the culture, the character of the people involved, the nature of the issues concerned, demand wise and experienced, rather than textbook treatment."

Representative stories include accounts of initiatives "before the violence" by The Holy See in Chile and Argentina, 1978-84; amid "escalating violence" by the City Montessori School in Lucknow, India; in the midst of "full-blown violence" by Natal Chamber of Industries, South Africa, 1989-90; amid "contained violence," by Action-Aid, Burundi, 1993-2001; and "after the violence," by the Office of Human Rights of the Archdiocese of Guatemala, 1995-97. Among the better known initiatives recounted in the book are interventions by Las Madres de Plaza de Mayo, Argentina; Peace Brigades International, Colombia; Witness for Peace, Nicaragua; Christian Peacemaker Teams, Israel; and Amnesty International, Turkey.

For American readers, this anthology may serve as an introduction to the splendid work of the Oxford Research Group, a small, independent team of researchers in England. Since 1980, the Group has concentrated on nuclear weapons decision-making and the prevention of war, by (a) researching how and by whom policy decisions are made, (b) promoting accountability and transparency; and (c) providing information on current decisions for public debate. Its founder, Scilla Elworthy, provides an introduction to the collection, preceded by useful remarks by Elise Boulding and Adam Curle.

Boulding, for example, describes the common thread in the pattern of activities in conflict resolution: (1) the creation of listening spaces, (2) the rediscovery of traditional patterns of restitution and reconciliation, (3) training in the skills of dialogue by friendly outsiders, and (4) networking among an ever-widening circle of affected communities.

The cumulative effect of this anthology is to offer concrete suggestions about what can be done, in the essential work of paying attention and responding with care to each conflict across the spectrum, from family intervention to international negotiation. As Scilla Elworthy says, "the report shows that there are a multitude of effective ways to prevent and to resolve conflicts without the use of violence." Not surprisingly, even the English government recently allocated 110 million pounds to conflict resolution efforts coordinated through three government departments. Also not surprisingly, the US government still makes only a modest commitment to this effort.

Michael True will team-teach "The Practice of Nonviolence: A Radical Path for Healing in a Violent World"--on Gandhi, Dorothy Day, Thomas Merton, Martin Luther King, and Cesar Chavez--at Andover Newton Theological School, June 17-21, 2002.

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