“The issue of trauma is something that is not addressed in Hela communities but it is something that we feel and see the effects of in our communities everyday,” Reverend Bola Magini of the Magarima District United Church made this statement following the completion of the “Together for Peace” workshop for Religious Representatives that was held under the “Gender Transformative Psychosocial Support for Peace and Community Resilience in Hela Province” last December..
“There is no training available to address the issue of trauma which is a major contributor to the increase of tribal conflicts and violence in the communities.”
Reverend Magini who has been with the Magarima District through the United Church for 4 years has witnessed conflicts in the area that he can confidently say is a direct result of unresolved trauma that often leads to violence.
Through the training, I understand now the cycle of intergenerational trauma and violence in families when not dealt with properly at that level can lead to young men participating in tribal fights and violence because that is the environment they grew up in and according to them, resorting to violence is the norm when solving conflict. “
Facilitated by the United Nations Population Fund, the 3-day Gender Transformative Training on Psychosocial Support for Peace and Community Resilience was conducted from the 5th-8th December had 20 Religious Leaders and 20 Community Mobilisers undergo this training.
This training through its Gender Transformative Project in the Hela Province focus’ on strengthening community based psychosocial support in Tari and surrounding areas with the aim of addressing the underlying causes of conflict responsible for the cycle of inter-group violence by creating multi-layered Mental Health and Psychosocial Support services in the area.
20 year old Johnathan James from Kupari in Tari is a community mobiliser with the Hela Orphans for Hope shared the similar sentiments and addressed trauma as a core factor in the increase of violence in the province.
“When you peel away at the violence in our community and really begin to address it, you will find that the root cause of all this violence is always trauma,” Johnathan stated.
“Education and awareness regarding this issue needs to be addressed and also, to start teaching children when they are still young that all forms of violence are wrong.. We can mold the mindset of the next generation and so I believe that we can start changing the behavior of children now. ”
According to the 40 participants, they found the training sessions to be very informative which also helped them identify simple activities that they can do in their communities and engage their people.
“This training helped me see that I can keep my community engaged with easy activities like sewing, carpentry or sport just so that our time is utilized so that we do not stray into doing other activities that may lead us to trouble or cause trouble. ”
