Iman Al Ghafari’s career has long been centred around building peace in Syria. She has been involved with Initiatives of Change for a number of years, leading Creators of Peace Circles in her native Syria and in Lebanon with the support of IofC Canada and IofC Lebanon. She lives in Damascus, where she works as a teacher.

Iman had thought long and hard about how IofC’s Creators of Peace programme could affect Syria. 2018 was the first time that she had been involved in the Caux Dialogue on Land and Security (CDLS). Its emphasis on the connection between peace and land restoration gave Iman new ideas.

Listening to the speakers at CDLS, she was reminded of a question that has often bothered her: ‘Why does God allow wars and natural disasters to happen?’ The answer she came to was: in order for us to search for a solution. In Iman’s view, it is through searching for solutions that we grow, learn and realize God’s great creation.

She left the Caux Dialogue filled with enthusiasm and hope, and was able to share this with the women in Syria who attended her Peace Circles. These provide a forum for women to sit together, putting their political differences aside. Participants meet as human beings and learners who want to make a difference to their own and others’ lives. They try to have fun too! At the end of each programme, Iman hosts potluck dinners with music. She says: ‘Spending time together in quiet reflection is essential. We go deep into ourselves and pour out our emotions, freely and honestly. That really makes a big difference.’

Another result of CDLS was a youth group that Iman established with some young Syrians she met at Caux. Iman believes that if young people feel secure and hopeful they can learn how to apply their education in right ways, and to be peacebuilders rather than war provokers. The group meets every month, and has grown from seven members to fourteen. At each meeting, those who were at Caux practise quiet reflection together, and all bring and exchange their education experience.

Hope is fundamental to Iman’s work. She believes that in precarious geopolitical situations hope and security can lead to passion, the will to learn and creativity.

‘It is so hard to see your country suffering,’ says Iman. ‘It breaks my heart. But it is a blessing and honour that God has given me this chance of building peace. We have two choices: either we raise hatred and anger and excite people to go to war, or we build peace. I thank God every day that I can be used to heal people, to help people to find a safe zone where they can love each other and rebuild their lives. If we start from the person and help them build themselves, we will build Syria. That is my hope.’

ILLP aims to deepen understanding of links between land degradation and human security and to build the trust needed for effective collaboration on the ground and in ‘land-peace partnerships’. As a programme of Initiatives of Change International, it inspires, equips and connects people to address world needs, starting with themselves.

Among other activities, each year ILLP organizes the Caux Dialogue on Land and Security in the Swiss village of Caux, in collaboration with Initiatives of Change Switzerland, the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) and the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).

The CDLS is much more than an annual Dialogue. It is located at the centre of a growing network of practitioners working on every aspect of human security and ecosystem restoration. They support each other, inform each other, and collaborate with each other.

An adage that some people ignore these days is that mobility has shaped each human society, and a recent meeting of the Maison Internationale des Associations in Geneva focused on this. Many colours and flavours of humanity assembled on 7 April for a lively day of discussions and exchanges about human mobility where most views were celebrating the social phenomenon at an event titled “Tout d’ailleurs, tous d’ici” (All from elsewhere, all from here).

Among the highlights were a roundtable, testimonies from migrants, an intercultural aperitif, a music festival and discussion of some of the challenges related to migration.

The day started with a roundtable on migration routes, their challenges, and prospects.

Representatives from the International Organization for Migration, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, International Catholic Migration Commission, General Hospice in Geneva and the Bureau d’Intégration des Etrangers (Office for the integration of foreigners) shared their perspectives on migration.

Maurizio Busatti, head of the Multilateral Processes Division at International Organization for Migration, explained: “Human societies were formed by mobility. It is a natural phenomenon," as he added: “What are we afraid of?”

‘Politics fuels fears’

Nagette Belgacem, a senior legal advisor at the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, helped explain the saying, "politics fuels fears.” She said, “When we see the number of refugees in the European Union in comparison with the number of refugees in neighbouring countries, we [realize the] need to depoliticize the question of migration.”

Stéphane Jaquement, director of policy at the International Catholic Migration Commission, explained that the United Nation’s global compact for migration came from a willingness to involve all the countries in a discussion on migration.

“The pact was about cooperation, and there was no will to impose an agenda on nations. In a hostile political situation, it was difficult to speak positively about migrants. The big mistake was that the countries negotiated on their sides and did not inform their population about their international discussions,” said Jaquement.

At a local level, Ariane Daniel Merkelbach, director of migrants’ support at the General Hospice in Geneva, explained, “At the General Hospice, we first provide space to the migrants so that they can settle down.“ ‘Poser ses valises’ means to have a roof, something to eat, to feel secure and welcome and to be able to start thinking about something else than to flee his/her own country. It is very difficult, and we work with numerous partners,” she noted.

To help migrants in the process, different organizations offer forms of assistance.

Papyrus project

Nicolas Roguet, who is responsible for integration for the Canton of Geneva, explained about its Papyrus project. He said that in Geneva there is a group of people “without legal status”.

“There is a need for a real political will to normalize those people. We are living amidst enormous collective hypocrisy. When we hire people, we have rights, but also duties. Until now, 1,500 people received a [Swiss] B permit thanks to the Papyrus project, and we are expecting to have a total of 3,000 reaching a normalization of their situation by the end,” he said explaining the Swiss system for getting residence permits.

In the afternoon, a “Human Library” carried the voices migrants who shared their path to their integration in the canton of Geneva: among others, a couple from Chile.

They included two women from the “Associations des Femmes au service d’autres femmes (Association of Women for other Women)” and a Syrian who fled his country.

He explained: “We encountered Daesh at the border and were imprisoned for four days and then released. Once in Switzerland, part of our family that was already here helped us. We are now well integrated. Local civil society helped us a lot and music allowed me to meet with other musicians.”

In the hall, a photo exhibition depicted Senegalese families living in Greece, and other artwork represented immigrants’ stories. Dishes from around the world added colour and flavour to the event.

A music festival concluded the day. Between the traditional sound of a Swiss Alphorn and Albanian dances, Keren Esther brought the folk into the Judeo-Spanish universe.

The event was organized by an amalgam of institutions, associations and non-governmental organizations based in Geneva including the World Council of Churches, the Inter-religious Platform of Geneva, Albanian People’s University, the Initiatives et Changements, International Catholic Migration Commission, Inter-Knowing Foundation, the Fondation Islamique et Culturelle d’Ahl-El-Beit(S) and the Focolare Movement.

Click here for more photos.

Report: Camille Vianin, Communications Project Assistant at the World Council of Churches

Photo: Camille Vianin