Women protecting their communities without guns
Organization information
NONVIOLENT PEACEFORCE
Location: Geneva, Switzerland
Summary
Even though it is mostly men who initiate armed conflict and participate in the fighting, women and children are often most affected. Besides direct physical harm, women in conflict affected regions are particularly threatened by displacement and sexual and gender-based violence.
But women are not just victims of violence. They also play a key role in solving conflicts and reducing violence. We work with women’s groups in areas of conflict and train them to protect themselves and their families without the use of weapons. We help them to get connected to people in power and to other women across ethnic and tribal divisions. Their actions interrupt cycles of violence and show communities there are nonviolent ways to keep each other safe.
More concretely: In our country programs in Myanmar and in South Sudan, groups of women who have been trained in unarmed civilian protection have successfully reduced violence by:
· Interpositioning themselves between clans that are ready to fight each other
· Organising and holding dialogues to stop revenge killings between their communities
· Providing physical accompaniment to displaced people searching for food and firewood
to stop armed actors from harassing them
Together we can fight violence peacefully – donate to protect civilians in armed conflicts with nonviolence
TGE Partner : Swiss Philanthropy Foundation
Project locations
Burma (Myanmar), Iraq, South Sudan, Sudan