British Columbia’s Syrian diaspora’s understanding of conflict, peacebuilding and reconciliation in post-peace accord Syria
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Date
2019-01-11
Authors
Maghnaoui, Nour-Eddine
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Abstract
This exploratory qualitative study recruited twelve members of the Syrian refugee diaspora living on Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada, to explore how they perceive conflict and peace in their homeland, what would constitute sustainable peace in Syria, and how do they intend to contribute to peacebuilding and reconciliation efforts in post-conflict Syria. Since conflict eruption in 2011, the study participants have lost close family members. They incurred various forms of hardships in their journeys of displacement. They expressed their desire to return to their communities in Syria upon the cessation of violence, and the restoration of peace and safety. The participants’ proposed path to sustainable peace and conflict transformation in Syria include a constructive role for regional and external powers in the peacebuilding efforts, and that democratization, the organization of free elections, freedom, the rule of law, equality, and inclusiveness must be embedded in a new peace architecture. Further, to transform the conflict they proposed the inclusion in the peacebuilding process of retribution, forgiveness, communal peacemaking and community trust-building, and educational system reform. The participants’ in-depth conflict analysis and their approaches to transform the conflict provide some interesting insights to build sustainable peace in this violent and divided society. This study contributes to the Peace and Conflict Studies (PACS) literature by highlighting the crucial role of diasporas in peacebuilding and reconciliation efforts, and informing the peacebuilding enterprise policymakers about the necessity to incorporate locals in conflict analysis and transformation processes.
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Keywords
Diaspora, Peacebuilding, Reconciliation, Syria, Grass-roots peacebuilding, Syrian conflict
Citation
APA