field notesTransforming the world’s response to conflictNonviolent Peace force

Nyamuoh, 11, and Nyapuot, 9, were torn apart from their family when war erupted in South Sudan. Nyamuoh tells the story of their tumultuous journey—with help from her little sister, Nyapuot.

BEFORE THE WAR BROKE OUT, we lived with our parents and siblings in our village along with two uncles and our cousins. We both attended primary school. I was in second grade and Nyapuot was in first grade. I loved the packed lunch my mother prepared for us every day and I loved living with my mother. Only your own mother can prepare food that is just right for you.

Nyapuot —I also loved living with our family. I had many friends and we used to play ilu (skipping rope).

We were very happy together. We knew all our neighbors and the entire community.

Fleeing violenceWhen the war broke out, our mother was traveling to see her sister who had given birth to twins. Our uncle ran with us when shooting started and we scattered into the bush for safety. We ran with only the clothes on our back. We didn’t have shoes, food or a blanket. I remember my feet hurt from stepping on the grass and tree roots, but we had to keep running.

As we ran, I thought, “Where is my mother? Is she alive? Is she dead? Who will care for us? Will we survive this fighting? Will the wild animals come for us?” We walked all day and ran when

bullets flew past us. Many people were injured, some even died. We just kept running. I didn’t know if we would survive the night.

An unexpected rescueWhen I finally managed to sleep that night, I heard the gunshots in my dreams. We woke up the next morning to more fighting. My uncle took us toward an airstrip, hoping to keep us safe. When we made it there, we saw people boarding a cargo plane. We didn’t think, wait or ask where the plane was going,

December 2016

The strongest sistersSeparated from their family for two years, Nonviolent Peaceforce brought them home.

Sisters Nyapout and Nyamuoh in the Bentiu Protection of Civilians site.

we just boarded. The cargo plane had brought supplies from Juba and the pilot, witnessing the fighting, tried to fit people on to save them. Twenty other people escaped with us. None of us cared where we were going; we just wanted to be safe.

When the plane landed in Juba, we followed people with money to take a taxi to the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS). When we got to the Juba Protection of Civilians (PoC) site, I knew I was safe when I saw people in UN uniforms. I started to relax and my uncle began to comfort us saying, “We will survive and maybe there is another protection site in Bentiu near our village. Maybe our family will be safe there.” I was happy to hear that.

After two years, news of our familyOur life in the Juba protection site was calm— we lived with our uncle and another woman who was from the Nuer tribe like us. We went to school. We passed almost two years like this, not knowing about our family, though I worried about them every day. I felt so alone without my mother and father.

After a while, the woman we lived with began beating us. It made me miss my mother so much

more. One day, my sister and I were talking about missing our mother and wanting to go back. A woman who had been living in the Bentiu Protection of Civilians site overheard us. She asked some questions about our family and

then she said to me, “I know your mother, I know her. She was my neighbor in Bentiu.” She told us our father was killed when he left the protection site to see if it was safe to return to our village.

In my mind and my heart, I felt some of my distress melt away. All I could think was, “How can we get to her? Our mother is alive, how do we go to her?” We heard an announcement about Nonviolent Peaceforce reuniting families and we went to register. Waiting was hard, but I was so happy to know our mother was alive. Every night I dreamed about meeting my mom again, but every day I would tell myself, “These people are lying. Don’t believe them.” I didn’t want to be disappointed.

Are we really going home?Finally, the day came to go to Bentiu. We arrived to the airport in Juba with Nonviolent Peaceforce staff and waited five or six hours, only to find out the

flight was cancelled. At that moment, I really started to fear the NP staff were lying and I wouldn’t get to see my mom. I became fearful that they planned to take us away from our uncle and that they were going to kill us. I was scared that they would make us live alone without a caregiver. After two days, my fear went away when we finally got on a flight to Bentiu.

After getting off the plane, we traveled in a vehicle to the Bentiu protection site. As we arrived, I saw my

We didn’t think, wait or ask where the plane was going,

we just boarded.

The siblings and cousins with Leek, Nonviolent Peaceforce Child Protection Worker.

mother through the window. All my pain, all my difficulty, the distress—it was forgotten. I only felt happiness, pure happiness. I ran to my mother. We all cried, my mother, my sister and I. My sister and I yelled, “Mom, mom, mom, mom!” We hugged, laughed and cried. When we got to our house, my

The sisters overjoyed to be with their mother again.

siblings were sleeping. I didn’t recognize them, they had grown so much. The younger children didn’t remember us, but they were so happy when my mother told them that we were their missing sisters.

Our life, together with our mother againNow our life is so different from the misery we suffered before. We live with our family, together. Our mother is facing problems because our father has died. However, our misery is no longer about being alone. Now it is that we don’t have shoes or school fees. Collecting firewood is the only means of survival and now mother must be both parents.

Planning for the futureNyapuot and I want to return to school very much. I want people to know how happy and excited I feel. God has saved my life and I will work hard to make a difference. After I complete my studies, I want to be a teacher so I can share my knowledge with other children.

Nyapuot—I want to be a doctor so I can save the lives of innocent people. I want people to know that even though I am shy, I will also serve my community. It matters so much that people and organizations like Nonviolent Peaceforce are working to care for the lives of children like me.

900,000 internally displaced children [61% of people seeking protection in UN-controlled settlements are children]

13,000 children missing, separated from their families or unaccompanied

16,000 children recruited by armed groups on both sides of the conflict

Over half the country’s children out of school, the highest proportion in the world

helped reunite more than 600 children with their families in 2015, more than any other non-governmental organization.

has provided over 1,000 accompaniments for vulnerable people, primarily women and children, in the past year.

Protection Officers register lost children in a family reunification database, ensure they have a safe place to stay and work with local communities to ensure children aren’t recruited as child soldiers or sexually assaulted.

The impact of war on the children of South Sudan

Sources: UNICEF, OHCHR, World Vision and Nonviolent Peaceforce.

In response, Nonviolent Peaceforce

ON A PERSONAL NOTE

My hero is Kathy Kelly (peace activist, pacifist and author, one of the founding members of Voices in the Wilderness, and currently a co-coordinator of Voices for Creative Nonviolence)

I am passionate about Supporting local farmers/busi-nesses, nonviolence, organic foods and social justice

A book I would recommend reading Waging Nonviolence by David Hartsough

In my spare time I Go bouldering (rock climbing without ropes or harnessses), hike, play chess and crochet

Something else about me I will soon transition my profession into the environmental sector, focusing on chemical and toxic contamination with a network called IPEN.

I believe the reason the Nonviolent Peaceforce (NP) is such an effective organization is our integration into the local communities where we work. We hire and train highly capacitated national staff who have a strong understanding of the context where we work and speak the local languages.

Prior to NP, I worked with Peace Brigades International–Indonesia, an organization similar to NP, focusing on the protection of human rights defenders. It was natural to later transition to NP and broaden my skills to not only protect human rights defenders, but also women, children, the elderly—civilians vulnerable to the effects of armed conflict.

The value of field experienceWorking in the field solidified my commitment and understanding of the work of NP. One of the most important experiences I had with NP was in 2011, working to address tribal conflict in Western Equatoria State and Lakes State, South Sudan. Although the two affected communities were only 27 miles apart, there was no network to communicate between the villages, and traveling via road was very difficult. Conflict erupted when one community believed they had been attacked and revenge attacks ensued. NP spent months traveling between the communities, carrying letters back and forth while meeting with the local leaders. Because NP is non-partisan and was not seen as a party of the conflict, we were able to finally bring the communities together to discuss everyone’s wish for peace and a peace agreement was signed.

Although South Sudan spiraled into a civil war at the end of 2013, the peace agreement between these two communities still stands strong. Once in a while community members are able to get a message to me, if any of them travel to an area where communication networks exist. They send their continued love and thanks. They also tell me that over the past five years, their communities have grown even more committed to working together. This is more important than ever, especially in light of the violence that is currently tearing through the country.

What makes us differentI think what makes Nonviolent Peaceforce unique is how it immerses itself into the local communi-ties where it works. NP works with the youth, women’s groups, the government and tribal leaders to develop strategies on how to protect themselves. Communities are empowered to be in charge of their own protection, so they are not reliant on NP to remain within the communities. Our national staff are the ones who make the greatest impact and work the hardest. They are invested in their communities and work tirelessly for peaceful solutions.

In 2016, NP was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize; this recognition has opened the door to mainstreaming unarmed civilian protection (UCP) globally. As a former field staff and a current board member, I am very proud to be a part of Nonviolent Peaceforce. I am honored to have the ability to continue to contribute to NP’s growth and help spread awareness on the work that we do.

Speaking with Board Member Tiffany Tool

Tiffany Tool recently joined the board of Nonviolent Peaceforce after being a field staff member in South Sudan from January 2011 to March 2012, returning again in 2013 for a short consultancy. She currently works for the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees for the Yemen operation.

I grew up during a civil war that gripped Sri Lanka for 30 years. The conflict was hard on my parents. After all, it’s not easy to bring children into a world of violence. Growing up during the conflict played an instrumental role in shaping who I am today.

Why I do it War was a horrible thing to live through. I still recall the smell of death, the vivid colors of fire and blackness, the sounds of gunfire and all the destruction that oc-curred. The drive to help my people cope with the day-in, day-out struggle of life in a war zone stayed with me. I yearned to join the humanitarian sector to make a difference. I finally had the chance when I joined NP in Sri Lanka as an unarmed civilian peace-keeper. I currently serve in South Sudan and have worked here for over four years.

Since I worked with marginalized communities in Sri Lanka, I was able to transfer the skills and unarmed civilian strategies to South Sudan. I have been blessed to be able to support the most vulnerable people.

How it works NP is based on the idea that there is an alternative to war. I believe in the concept that strategic international presence can contribute to deterring violence and protect civilians.

Over the years what started out as protection through presence has

developed into comprehensive violence reduction and

protection programming. We work with conflict-affected communities to strengthen their capacity to protect themselves and to engage in nonviolent conflict reduction.

Colleagues have been able to protect civilians from attack-

ers with guns and knives simply because they are international,

well-trained and present.

Who gets hurt In 2012, a violent conflict erupted in Pibor County in Jonglei state, South Sudan. NP teams provided support to the affected communities. One day a 9-year-old girl who had been stabbed through the torso was brought to us. She spent 10 days in the bush before she was found and evacuated. She was in terrible shape and had been separated from her family. We were able to ensure medical attention,

From Sri Lanka to South Sudan

War was a horrible thing to live through. I still recall the smell of death,

the vivid colors of fire and blackness, the sounds of gunfire

and all the destruction that occurred.

Diary of a Peacekeeper

Aseervatham “Flori” Florington has been the Country Director for NP South Sudan since 2015. He oversees the coordination and well-being of roughly 150 peacekeepers.

Cofounder Mel Duncan (left) and Country Director Flori (right) in South Sudan.

safety and eventually reunite her with her family. The story of this little girl is one out of thousands. Civilians are often the most hurt and the most vulnerable in war. Every day we work hard for their safety. I will never forget having this little girl come into our care. To me, she is a reminder of why I work for NP.

Staying safe People always ask, how can you feel safe working in these situations? Community acceptance keeps you remarkably safe. However, we need all of the stake-holders, including the conflict parties to know who we are and understand the value of our work. In my experience, most parties do appreciate our work, particularly because we are non-partisan. I actually

feel safer working for Nonviolent Peaceforce than I think I would working for some other organizations. We concentrate on understanding the local context, conducting daily information gathering and building relationships. In turn, we have never received any threats and our relationships with local partners continues to provide the foundation to protect those in need.

Stand up for peace with your gift to Nonviolent Peaceforce

When you give to Nonviolent Peaceforce, you

prevent sexual assault of women and girls in South Sudan,

create space for dialogue between conflicting parties in the Philippines,

train civilians in Myanmar to speak out on ceasefire violations,

stand with the many people in the Middle East committed to lasting peace.

Together, we can show that peace is possible when we stand up to violence with nonviolence.

Nonviolent Peace force

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fieldnotes December 2016

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