Click here to see an archive of stories featured: 29/06/2004 - 29/06/2005
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Click here to see an archive of stories featured: 01/01/2006 - 04/06/2006

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The fourth archive of news stories that have appeared on the CRN:UK

5th June 2006 - 31st December 2006

Read past news articles by clicking here or browse the index below:

Tenants who hurl racist abuse at their neighbours face eviction from their homes in a new crack-down.

Tenants of social landlords Whitefriars and Orbit who racially abuse neighbours will have to attend anti-racism courses as part of a purge on hate crime.

The course will become a requirement of their tenancy agreement, so if they fail to attend, or continue with their racist behaviour, they could be evicted.

People convicted of racist crimes will have to go on the course.

But people who have not been convicted, but have committed racial abuse, will also have to attend.

To read the story in full, please click here. (External Link)

Sucary and Awwad, who have built up an odd friendship in the few days they have known each other, bonded, Awwad tells me , over football - Awwad supports Liverpool, Sucary follows Leeds. There have been a lot of arguments too. "But we can talk, we can have a laugh," says Awwad. "We don't have to love each other. He is my enemy and I am his enemy, but that doesn't mean we can't talk and try to come up with a resolution."

To read the story in full, please click here. (External Link)

Swimming with Dolphins Raises Emotional Intelligence
Monday, 20 November 2006
Free Press Releases
Michael Salla   

Swimming with dolphins improves emotional intelligence by developing an individual’s capacity for ‘biophilia’ - the ability to love life and connect with nature. Increases in emotional intelligence - the ability to become aware of, to manage, to integrate emotions, and capacities such as biophilia - lead to improved communications and interactions with others in social settings.

Dr Michael Salla has taught and researched at the Australian National University (1994-1996), American University in Washington DC (1996-2004), and George Washington University (2002). His specialty was conflict resolution and his field research took him off to brave the dangers of ethnic conflicts in East Timor, Sri Lanka and Kosovo. During his research he discovered that emotional intelligence was critical for harmonious communications and interactions, and is a critical tool in conflict resolution.

To read the story in full, please click here. (External Link)

Helping Children Resolve Past Conflicts May Be Beneficial
18 November 2006
Medical News Today

When young children argue with their siblings, they are rarely counseled to address their conflicts after the fighting is over. Rather than encouraging children to forget past disagreements, it might be better for parents to use these quarrels to help their children develop useful skills in conflict resolution.

That's the conclusion of researchers at the Universities of Waterloo and Chicago, who asked 64 pairs of siblings ages 4 to 12 to try to solve an ongoing conflict between them. Their goals: to determine whether young children can negotiate with each other to resolve long-standing disagreements; to learn whether siblings can reach compromises that allow both children to meet at least some of their goals, and to identify strategies used when children agree and when they fail to resolve their differences.

To read the story in full, please click here. (External Link)

Commonwealth Special Envoys Discuss Conflict Resolution
17 November 2006
British Satellite News

Commonwealth Special Envoys from across the world, including Malaysia and Nigeria, meet in London to discuss conflict prevention and conflict resolution in the Commonwealth.

BSN has a full report including video. Click here to visit their website.
(External Link)

Comment: Face it, Paisley and Adams, you have to lose support to win peace
12 November 2006
The Times
Liam Clarke

Muwaffaq al-Rubaie, the Iraqi government’s national-security adviser, says he took one big idea home with him following a trip to Belfast last week. When you enter negotiations, you should have no preconditions; they only get in the way of settlement.

This is high on the standard “list of lessons from Northern Ireland” that British-government advisers and academic conflict-resolution experts pass on to visitors from trouble zones such as Iraq, the Balkans and Sri Lanka.

There is also a stricture, muttered sotto voce by the Brits, to keep lines of communication open with your opponents, no matter how difficult or violent the situation. Sun Tsu’s maxim — if your enemy looks like retreating, be prepared to build him a golden bridge — is sometimes added as a final flourish.

All sound advice, and it’s no wonder the Iraqis were so taken with it. The only pity is that the two parties now at the centre of the political process in Northern Ireland are doing the opposite. Friday was the deadline for local party assent to the St Andrews agreement. Instead, the DUP and Sinn Fein came up with a list of preconditions.

To read the story in full, please click here. (External Link)

Who says young people can’t make a difference?
9th November 2006
Deutsche Bank Spotlight Awards

Young campaigners are being urged to come forward to take part in the annual Deutsche Bank Spotlight Awards with the chance to pocket £1,000.

Nominations for the award scheme open on 9 November 2006 and close on 2 February 2007, so this is your opportunity to put forward the young campaigners you know into the Spotlight.

Many of the problems facing young people can be solved by the young people themselves and the annual Deutsche Bank Spotlight Award winners prove this. Last year’s winning campaigns included the creation of a safe, smoke and alcohol free café for young people, a text campaign to stop anti-social behaviours in a shopping centre and a campaign to promote personal safety awareness among young people.

Aimed at the 11 to 18 age group, the awards have nothing to do with academic achievement or exam grades, but everything to do with good citizenship and positive action. Last year’s awards involved more than 2,000 young people across the UK.

The Deutsche Bank Spotlight Awards began in 2001 and each year the awards have highlighted the extraordinary difference that young people can make. Now in its sixth year, the Deutsche Bank Spotlight Awards scheme is offering five £1,000 prizes to the winners, with all entrants receiving Certificates of Recognition. The winners will be announced at an awards ceremony in London on 15 May 2007, to which all nominees are invited.

For further information or to apply for the Deutsche Bank Spotlight Awards visit: www.commonpurpose.org.uk/spotlight.

Football comes together to celebrate: ‘One Game, One Community’
9 November 2006
Kick It Out

Footballers give racism the boot, Wakefield Today (08/11/06)
Racism on the run, Liverpool Echo (19/10/06)
Anti-racism team, MK News (25/10/06)
Red is the colour, The Scotsman (28/10/06)

To read about other One Game, One Community events, please visit the Kick It Out website by clicking here.

Iraqis turn to Ireland for advice on finding peace
5 November 2006
The Sunday Times
Liam Clarke and Marie Colvin

A delegation of Shi’ite and Sunni leaders from Iraq is due to arrive in Belfast tonight to learn the secrets of building peace out of seemingly intractable sectarian conflict.

For three days they will meet community, church, police and political leaders to discuss such subjects as the decommissioning of terrorists’ weapons, combating sectarianism and preventing the infiltration of the police by paramilitary gangs.

To read the story in full, please click here. (External Link)

Click here to see how the Belfast Telegraph covered the story. (External Link)

Creative Writing Competition for Holocaust Memorial Day 2007
5 November 2006
Conflict Resolution Network UK

The Holocaust Centre is working in conjunction with the Holocaust Memorial Day Trust to organise a creative writing competition for schools. The subject will reflect the 2007 HMD theme: The Dignity of Difference. The competition is open to all schools nationwide and to students of all abilities. Students are asked to submit an essay or a poem/lyric or other reflection on the atrocities committed during the Holocaust and the value of difference, as outlined in the 2007 theme. This theme considers the differences that exist within our society and how we should learn to appreciate and respect them. The piece of work must be original and reflect the theme, The Dignity of Difference. It must be based on one or more of the issues below:

• Reflection: Reflect upon your own feelings and thoughts (and the impact upon you) resulting from learning about the Holocaust or a direct experience such as visiting Holocaust sites, the national Holocaust Centre or meeting a survivor.
• Action: Think about the lives of people excluded in our own society or those who have suffered in other persecutions or genocides. What can we do in our own school, community or wider afield to prevent exclusion and celebrate The Dignity of Difference.

Please click here to download further information from the Aegis Trust.

A Competition for Discriminating Minds
4 November 2006
Catalyst Magazine

Catalyst Magazine is running a competition to select the best in student journalism, illustration and photography.

A winning article, photo essay and illustration on race, class, faith and education will each win a prize of £200 and be published in a future issue of Catalyst and here on the Catalyst website.

What do race, faith and class have to do with the way we learn and what we teach? Is the system racist or are we falling prey to a culture of victimhood?

Enter either:

1. an article of up to 1500 words, or
2. an illustration, or
3. a photo essay of 5-10 photographs

The competition is open to students anywhere in the world. The closing date is 31 December 2006. For more information or to download a poster, visit Catalyst Magazine's competition page.

NEW PUBLICATION: Hidden Voices; working creatively with conflict
A Collection of Personal Stories by Ann Jordan
3 November 2006
Conflict Resolution Network UK

This book contains a collection of stories of individual human endeavour; people in civil society working towards a culture of peace in diverse ways such as arts, music, storytelling, spirituality, education. They are heart-warming and inspiring accounts of individuals working creatively in the belief that lives can be transformed, and that collectively they can make a difference.

Their stories express the extraordinariness of ordinary people, and show the range of good peace building practice that contributes towards stability in diverse societies. The stories aim to uplift readers’ spirits, to inspire and encourage, and most of all to rekindle a confidence in our common humanity.

The author’s own contribution towards UNESCO’s developing concept of a Culture of Peace was to act as a channel for highlighting a range of creative peace building practice. This collection of transcribed oral accounts is the result of that work.

To order this book, please visit www.Virtualbookworm.com

The Science of Violence
20 October 2006
Conflict Resolution Network UK

On Thursday 19 October 2006 the Academy of Medical Sciences provided a rare opportunity to bring together biomedical scientists, policy-makers, legal professionals, the media, the general public and law enforcers to discuss ways in which the epidemiological, medical and public health sciences could contribute to the evidence-base underpinning policy making about violence.

The CRN: UK will notify subscribers to our free newsletter when the conference report becomes available. However, emergent themes at the conference included the importance of greater collaboration and sharing of data between medical and criminal justice communities and the need for a more long term approach to the funding of longitudinal studies into the risk factors of violence and interventions.

Click here to visit the Academy of Medical Sciences for more information.

Charities reach agreement with DFID over ‘conflict’
19 October 2006
National Council for Voluntary Organisations

The Department for International Development (DFID) has extended a public consultation on conflict in the developing world, thanks to pressure from the representative body for international charities in Britain, Bond, and the Compact Advocacy Programme.  DFID agreed to extend the consultation from four to eight weeks when the Compact Advocacy Programme wrote to Hilary Benn, on behalf of Bond, highlighting the fact that the consultation breeched an agreed minimum consultation period of eight weeks, set out in the Compact.

Saskia Daggett, Manager of the Compact Advocacy Programme, which advocates on behalf voluntary organisations when the Compact has been breached, said:

‘Four weeks simply isn’t enough time to consult on such a huge issue as international conflict.  The Compact says that, as an absolute minimum, eight weeks should be allowed for written consultations. 
‘We are delighted with the response that we have received from DFID, which shows that the Compact works, and is a real tool that voluntary organisations can use to influence government.’

The DFID consultation deals with three main areas:

• How DFID can bring a greater focus on preventing violent conflict
• How the effectiveness of its conflict work can be improved
• How DFID can consider conflict fully in its development work

DFID’s consultation will feed into a new policy paper on how it will address conflict more comprehensively within its own work, its work with partners and its work in the international system.

The Compact Advocacy Programme is based at the National Council for Voluntary Organisations (NCVO).

For more information, please visit the NCVO website by clicking here.

Bank for the poor wins Nobel Peace Prize
14 October 2006
The Scotsman
John Acher

Bangladeshi economist Muhammad Yunus - and the Grameen Bank he founded - won the 2006 Nobel Peace Prize yesterday in recognition of decades of work to lift millions out of poverty.

Yunus, 66, set up a new kind of bank in 1976 to lend to the neediest people in Bangladesh, enabling them to start up small businesses without collateral.

In doing so, he pioneered microcredit, a system copied in more than 100 nations from the US to Uganda, and earned the title "banker to the poor".

Kofi Annan, the UN secretary general, presidents and prime ministers hailed the award, the first Nobel Peace Prize to a Bangladeshi.

"Eradication of poverty can give you real peace," Yunus said from his home in the Bangla-deshi capital, Dhaka, after he won from a field of 191 candidates. "Now the war against poverty will be intensified across the world. It will consolidate the struggle against poverty through microcredit in most of the countries. There should be no poverty, anywhere."

To read the story in full, please click here. (External Link)

Happy Clampers in Short Supply
October 13, 2006
The Sun

Traffic wardens at a seaside resort could be sent on anger management courses to ease tensions with locals.

Council bosses have also suggested the parking police wear SHORTS to make them more popular.

Wardens have come under fire from residents in Torquay, Devon, after tickets soared 600 per cent in a year.

Traders banned the attendants from their shops, and residents have started walking round in specially-printed T-shirts taking the mickey out of them.

The huge increase in tickets took place after private firm NCP took over responsibility for policing the double yellows.

Now Torbay council's parking review panel has suggested that wardens could go on anger management courses.

They could also take lessons in "conflict resolution" - with role-playing sessions to help resolve disputes.

To read the story in full, please click here. (External Link)

Participation: Liverpool services rethink inclusion strategy
11 October 2006
Young People Now
Emily Rogers

Liverpool Youth Service will launch a participation strategy tomorrow, based on a rethink of how youth workers involve young people within their day-to-day work.

The strategy is grounded in the principle of "everyday participation", which involves youth clubs using incidents such as disputes or fights as "democratic moments" to develop participative skills including conflict resolution. It also means involving young people in the day-to-day running of youth clubs by making rules, contributing ideas and planning events.

To read the story in full, please click here. (External Link)

Mitchell: 'peace needs stability'
3 October 2006
U.TV

Lasting peace will not be achieved without a stable economy.

That is the view of one of the key figures from the Northern Ireland peace process, former US Senator George Mitchell, who played a major role in drawing up the Good Friday agreement.

And yesterday he warned that without economic growth, areas such as Ireland and the Middle East would not enjoy lasting peace.

Senator Mitchell, who has worked in the Middle East after spending several years in Northern Ireland, said: "There can not be sustainable peace and stability in any region without economic growth, job creation and opportunity."

The former politician spoke out during a visit to the Scottish Parliament, where he addressed a meeting of the Scotland`s Futures Forum.

The group was set up to allow MSPs and others the chance to look at the challenges facing the nation and seek ways of meeting those.

To read the story in full, please click here. (External Link)

Royal Seal of Approval
2 October 2006
Slough Observer
Magnus Vaughan

Volunteers and staff from Aik Saath were joined by politicians and teachers as they were given the Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service, presented on Her Majesty’s behalf by Philip Wroughton, Lord Lieutenant of Berkshire.

The group’s name means ‘Together as One’ in Urdu and was set up following a sustained period of Asian youth violence in 1996 and 1997.

Young people from the Sikh, Muslim and Hindu communities were taught conflict resolution. The group now assigns volunteers to schools where they run workshops to promote peace in Slough and its surrounding area.

To read the story in full, please click here. (External Link)

University of Ulster Expert Helps Push for Peace in Basque Region
2nd October 2006
University of Ulster

A University of Ulster academic is helping the search for peace in Spain’s Basque region.

Dull Lessons Fail to Teach Pupils How to be Good Citizens
28 September 2006
The Times
Alexandra Frean, Education Editor

Compulsory citizenship classes covering subjects such as the law, the electoral system, human rights and economics are unsatisfactory in a quarter of all secondary schools — often because teachers do not know what they are talking about, research suggests.

A devastating report from the schools watchdog Ofsted has found that gaps in teachers’ subject knowledge and an insecure grasp of what the lessons were supposed to achieve, led to dull or irrelevant classes that were counter-productive.
The report called for more training of specialist teachers and gave warning that the subject citizenship often strayed into areas such as immigration or racial, religious and ethnic diversity, “where little knowledge can be a dangerous thing”.

In one of the worst classes observed by inspectors, a lesson on the principles of decision-making in society drifted into a discussion of the bodily needs of people stranded on a desert island.

A more common failing was for lessons on conflict resolution — which should include discussions of the role of Parliament, the UN, nongovernmental organisations, and pressure groups — to turn into discussions on friendships and relationships.

To read the article in full, please click here. (External Link)

Conference Finds Common Cause
21 September 2006
IRR News Team

Over 250 individuals representing more than eighty organisations attended the Institute of Race Relations' one-day conference, Racism, Liberty and the 'War on Terror' on Saturday 16 September.

As keynote speaker A. Sivanandan explained, 'In fighting our specific causes we need also to be aware of the common cause they spring from and address ourselves to both at once'. If this were done, he said, we would forge the alliances we needed to win the battle.

To read the conference report in full and listen to MP3s of keynote speeches, please click here to visit the Institute of Race Relations (External Link)

Football comes together to celebrate: ‘One Game, One Community’
21 September 2006
Kick It Out

Communities of all backgrounds, races and religious beliefs will come together behind the message One Game, One Community during the Kick It Out Week of Action this October.
 
The message will supported by the biggest names in football who will join fans, clubs, schools, community groups and more than a million people between the 17th and 30th October. 

Lord Herman Ouseley, Kick It Out Chair, today commented,
 
“More than a million people will join hands during the week of action under the banner, ‘One Game, One Community’.
 
“The period will highlight football’s popularity amongst communities across the country and celebrate the power the game has in bringing people together.
 
“This show of unity will illustrate how football can lead the way in tackling racism, promoting inclusion and celebrating difference.”

To find out more about what's happening over the course of the week, visit the Kick It Out website, by clicking here. (External Link)

Mentoring Programme Turns One Life Around
20 September 2006
The Voice

By the time he was 15-years-old, Carl Tweedy had chosen sides

His friends were tough-talking white teenagers who, like him, regularly got into trouble with the police.

They also disliked anyone whose ethnicity was not white-British and who was not originally from their community in Oldham, a poor racially-tense area in north west England.

“I wasn’t welcoming them. I was against them. I thought that all of them were against us, so we had to be against them,” Mr. Tweedy told The Voice on September 12.

‘Them’ referred to immigrants, Asians and asylum seekers. Many of Mr. Tweedy’s friends often hurled racial abuse at them and threw stones at their cars. Many got into fights with youths of primarily Asian backgrounds and some even took part in the 2001 race riots. Mr. Tweedy said he did not participate but he had no urge then to stop racial tension.

These days, Mr. Tweedy, now 20, admits he is doing things differently.

To find out why, read the story in full by click here. (External Link)

To read more about Peacemaker on the CRN:UK, please click here.

Ashley Cole Kicks Off Anti-racism Campaign's 10th Anniversary
19 September 2006
24dash.com
Jon Land

Chelsea footballer Ashley Cole is kicking off a season of events to mark the 10th anniversary of a high-profile anti-racism campaign.

The England star will meet schoolchildren at the first of up to 100 "testimonial" events around Britain to honour the work of Show Racism The Red Card.

Cole will be joining a line-up of other players at Stamford Bridge in west London for a question-and-answer session about racism with 100 local schoolchildren.

The campaign was set up in 1996 to use high-profile players as anti-racist role models.

The group's teams work directly with young people to promote the anti-racist message, as well as producing DVDs, educational posters, magazines and other resources.

Click here for the story in full. (External Link)

Wars 'robbing youths of school'
12 September 2006
bbc.co.uk

At least 43 million children around the world are unable to go to primary school because of armed conflicts, according to a new report.

Save the Children organisation has launched a global campaign aimed at pressuring world leaders into helping deprived youths into formal education.

The charity wants to get three million children into education by 2010.

Universal primary education by 2015 was one of the Millennium Development Goals signed in 2000 by world leaders.

According to Save the Children, any efforts to increase opportunities for children's education will end in failure if the millions living in conflict zones are not given the same opportunities as those in more peaceful areas.

To read the story in full, please click here. (External Link)

The Aqualung Journey of Understanding
The Encompass Trust
6th September 2006

On Tuesday 12th September, one day after the fifth anniversary of 9/11, 12 Israelis and 12 Palestinians will be at St Ethelburgas Centre for reconciliation and Peace on Bishopsgate as the culmination of the latest ambitious project by Encompass- The Daniel Braden Reconciliation Trust.

The program in September will be Encompass’ ninth to date and arguably its most ambitious. Twelve Israelis including religious Jews from West Bank settlements and secular Israelis from Jerusalem and Tel Aviv will join twelve Palestinians from Hebron, Rammalah and Bethlehem on an Encompass program which will take them to the Outward Bound Centre at Aberdovey, Wales. There they will take part in the full range of Outward Bound activities as well as in depth discussions on the conflict which affects their lives so dramatically.

The group will then travel to Warrington to Children for Peace’s Peace Centre. There they will be taking part in a conference with young British and Irish people who have personal experiences of the Irish confict. The aim of the conference is for the all those attending to learn more about young people’s experiences of conflict and alternative responses to violence. Fittingly enough this conference will take place on September 11th.

Finally, the group will return to London to a welcoming reception at St Ethelburga’s Centre for Reconciliation and Peace. The reception will begin at 2pm and finish at 5:30pm. This will be an opportunity for the participants on the program to share with Encompass’ friends and the public in general their experiences and how they feel that the experience will shape their lives.

This reception is open to the public by invitation only, if you are interested in attending please contact Josh Cass on 020 7493 9739, or email josh@encompasstrust.org

To visit Encompass online, please click here.

Sinn Fein Leader in Peace Mission
3 September 2006
bbc.co.uk

Sinn Fein leader Gerry Adams is to embark on a peace mission to the Middle East, the party has said.

Mr Adams is heading to Israel and the Palestinian Authority territories at the invitation of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.

He said "genuine negotiation and dialogue" were imperative.

"While no two conflicts are identical there are key conflict resolution principles which can be applied in any situation," he said.

"While no two conflicts are identical there are key conflict resolution principles which can be applied in any situation," he said.

Click here for the story in full (External Link).

Balkens Bridges of Peace Summer Camp
29 August 2006
Reuters Foundation

Some 40 young people aged 13 to 18 from Kosovo, Albania and Bosnia and Herzegovina, attended a 'peer to peer' training youth summer camp in Montenegro this summer, aimed to promote reconciliation and conflict resolution among youth living in post conflict societies.

The young participants felt this method allowed a sense of achievement and ownership of the teachings among those who were able to share their personal experiences and apply them to the teachings of the camp.

Click here for the story in full (External Link).

Children's Festival- from East Midlands to the Middle East!
22nd August 2006
Conflict Resolution Network UK

This summer, ten artists, teachers, and youth workers from Loughborough, Leicester, Nottingham and Derby will be travelling to Palestine to take part in running the first of an annual Children's festival.
The UK volunteers will be joining forces with 'Tent of Nations', a Palestinian organisation, for the two-week festival for children from the Bethlehem area. The event will include Olympic games, World Cup football, treasure hunt, a production of Romeo and Juliet, and various other art projects.

Many of the children will be relieved from the suffocating life in the refugee camps where violence from the occupying soldiers is normal daily life. Tent of Nations hopes to be able to bring Israeli and Israeli settler children to the festivals in the future.

For more details, please visit www.linkpalestine.org

New Commission on Integration and Cohesion
24 August 2006
Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG)

Communities Secretary Ruth Kelly launched a new Commission on Integration and Cohesion on Thursday 24 August.

The independent Commission will consider innovative approaches looking at how communities across the country can be empowered to improve cohesion and tackle extremism.

Darra Singh was appointed chair of the Commission in June and at today’s launch the other 13 commissioners were announced. They are:

• Professor Michael Keith
• Nargis Khan
• Hamza Vayani
• Leonie McCarthy
• Frank Hont
• Harriet Crabtree
• Ed Cox
• Sam Tedcastle
• Ch Supt Steve Jordan
• Decima Francis
• Steve Douglas
• Dr Ebrahim Adia
• Ramesh Kallidai

The Commission will now undertake a significant programme of consultation and public meetings and events across the country. The first meeting of the Commission will be held in September.  Dates of further consultations will be posted on the Commission’s website.

Recommendations are expected in June 2007 and the Commission will report directly to Ruth Kelly. 

The terms of reference are:

• Examining the issues that raise tensions between different groups in different areas, and that lead to segregation and conflict;
• Suggesting how local community and political leadership can push further against perceived barriers to cohesion and integration;
• Looking at how local communities themselves can be empowered to tackle extremist ideologies;
• Developing approaches that build local areas’ own capacity to prevent problems, and ensure they have the structures in place to recover from periods of tension.

Copies of Ruth Kelly’s and Darra Singh’s speeches are available on the DCLG website:

    - Ruth Kelly speech (www.communities.gov.uk/index.asp?id=1502280)
    - Darra Singh speech (www.communities.gov.uk/index.asp?id=1502287)

RESPONSES

Cant on Cohesion, Arun Kundnani,
Institute of Race Relations (IRR) (24 August 2006)

Ruth Kelly's top-down integration debate doomed to failure,
Black Information Link (24 August 2006)

Archbishop Ends Fast With Call For New Efforts For A Sustainable Peace in Middle East
22nd August 2006
Anglican Communion News Service

The Archbishop of York has today ended his seven-day vigil for peace by calling for the international community to renew its efforts in working for a sustainable solution to conflict in the Middle East.

“The events of the past weeks, in the Lebanon, Israel, the United States and Britain have demonstrated that we cannot afford any longer to leave the issues of the Middle East in the pending tray of unresolved business. There is no greater recruiting sergeant for would be Jihadists than the conflict in the Middle East. Without urgent action on our part, for their sakes and our own, the spiral of violence that has lasted longer than the whole of my lifetime - and I am 57 - will continue unabated, as new generations become mired in the enmity of their forefathers.

“After seven days of fasting and praying I am more persuaded than ever that wars and violence cannot lead to a long lasting solution."

Click here for the story in full (External Link).

The War on Terror: Past, Present, Future
Open Democracy
24th August 2006
Paul Rogers

Five years on from 9/11 Paul Rogers reviews

The United States responded to the attacks of 11 September 2001 by declaring a global "war on terror". More recently, it has redefined the conflict as the "long war". In his 250th global security column, Paul Rogers assesses US strategy in the war's first five years, and looks ahead.

Over the past five years the columns have covered many different issues – among them the Israel / Palestine conflict, post-cold-war nuclear developments, the British defence posture, the security impact of climate change, and prospects for improved peacekeeping and conflict resolution. Inevitably, though, their main focus has been on the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, and more recently the conflict in Lebanon and the possibility of armed confrontation with Iran.

Click here for the story in full (External Link).

Anti-Racism Group Takes Play to the Fringe
Wednesday, 9 August 2006
Conflict Resolution Network UK

A Glasgow youth group set up to tackle racism has made its debut at the Edinburgh Fringe.

ShaRed Road is a unique project within the Prince’s Trust designed to discover the talents of and bring together young people from the asylum seeker, refugee and indigenous communities in northern Glasgow.They offer young people the chance to explore and develop that talent through smaller, special interest focus groups that will help build their talent and open doors to new opportunities. These groups are:

• Film
• Music
• Drama and dance
• Arts and design
• Sports and outdoor pursuits

Education and Conflict: Research, Policy and Practice
Monday, 7 August 2006
Conflict Resolution Network UK

Forced Migration Review (FMR) provides a free practice-oriented forum for debate on issues facing refugees and internally displaced people in order to improve policy and practice and to involve refugees and IDPs in programme design and implementation.

The latest issue of FMR focusses on Education and Conflict: Research, Policy and Practice.

To download this free resource, please click here (External Link).

Northern Ireland - Middle East Parallels Still Drawn
Friday, 4 August 2006
Mark Devenport
bbc.co.uk

Fourteen years ago when Northern Ireland's troubles still raged, Israeli and Palestinian negotiators were involved in the Oslo Process - an attempt to agree a solution under which two separate states could co-exist peacefully.

Israeli politician Ehud Olmert visited Londonderry to attend a conference on conflict resolution and spoke of the need for both sides in the Middle East to overcome their fears.
He told me he approved of the tentative talks which were then underway. "The most important thing is that they are taking place, no major breakthroughs, but the very fact that they still go on is very important," he said.

Now, Ehud Olmert is the prime minister of Israel and in charge of its military campaign in Lebanon.

Click here for the story in full (External Link).

New Initiatives from Mediation UK
Tuesday, August 01, 2006
Conflict Resolution Network UK

ApologyPlus and CommunicatingNeeds are two new initiatives from Mediation UK, launched at a special event with Dr Marshall Rosenberg, originator of Nonviolent Communication (NVC). Dr Rosenberg created the NVC model of compassionate communication more than 30 years ago in the USA, in response to the violence he witnessed in society. He now travels the world sowing the seeds for a nonviolent culture, teaching people from all walks of life. For a fuller introduction to NVC, from Marshall Rosenberg himself, log onto Peace Talks, an online radio station that spotlights peacemaking and nonviolent conflict resolution strategies, by clicking here. The event itself was an enormous success with 88% of respondents rating the event with very good or excellent.

Funding Boost for Community Groups to Tackle Problems
Tuesday, August 01, 2006
Conflict Resolution Network UK

Kick It Out, football’s anti-racism campaign, and the Football Foundation, the country’s largest sports charity, are coming together to offer cash to groups working within deprived communities.
  
The Community Chest grants of up to £1,000 are available to groups across the UK as part of this October’s Week of Action to help groups working in the most deprived areas to organise events and activities.

Piara Powar, Director of Kick It Out, today commented: 
  
“The Kick It Out  Week of Action is a unique coming together of professional and amateur football united behind a single message.
  
“The Community Chest grants can help enable community groups to celebrate the contributions and achievements of their communities and tackle specific problems they may be facing."

Click here for more details of the fund (External Link).

Diversity and Dialogue launch event – July 13th 2006
Tuesday, August 01, 2006
Conflict Resolution Network UK

Diversity and Dialogue launched its final report and educational resources at an event in Leeds on July 13th. The event brought together some of the many people across the country who are committed to creating strong relationships between young people from different faiths and backgrounds.

It was attended by a genuinely diverse range of participants. There were people from Scotland, London, Leeds, Manchester, Liverpool, Newcastle, Birmingham, Leicester and many more. There was an age range of almost literally 8-80 and participants came from all walks of life. There were policemen, priests, students, youth workers, museum curators, charity representatives, councillors, teachers, interfaith network members and other interested individuals. Representatives from all of the major faith groups were represented too!

Diversity and Dialogue launched resources that have been in development over the duration of the two-year project. All of these are available on the orgnaisation's website.

To visit the Diversity and Dialogue website, please click here.

New Websites for People Working with Asylum Seeking & Refugee Children
Tuesday, August 01, 2006
Conflict Resolution Network UK

Founded in 2000, the National Refugee Integration Forum (NRIF) provides a link between national, regional and local problem solving. Its primary role is to identify and propose solutions to the issues that refugees face. The NRIF has recently launched the Integration of Refugee Children: Good Practice in Educational Settings website. This website provides information, guidance and examples of good practice to support the integration of refugee children. It should be of interest to all professionals working in educational settings.

To visit the Integration of Refugee Children: Good Practice in Educational Settings website, please click here.

To visit the Asylum Seeking and Refugee Children: Developing Good Practice Project website, please click here.

26 pupils. 26 languages. One lesson for Britain
Outstanding: official verdict on school that shows the success of immigration
26 July 2006
The Independent
By Richard Garner, Sarah Cassidy and Louise Jack

They know all about assimilation at Uphall primary school in Ilford, and working together to achieve great results. And they know that immigration into Britain need not represent a crisis.

Click here for the story in full (External Link).

Teachers Get Conflict-Resolution Training
July 21, 2006
The Guardian
By Nahal Toosi

NEW YORK (AP) - Mercedes Muller wasn't quite sure how to deal with the lovestruck teen who obsessed about his girlfriend's fidelity. But she knew enough to listen.

Learning how to deal with such situations was one reason Muller recently joined other New York City teachers in conflict-resolution training. The sessions teach them how to deal with classroom conflicts ranging from name-calling to complaints about other students' odors.

Click here for the story in full (External Link).

Why Crime is on the Curriculum
10 July 2006
Luton Today

Youngsters at a Luton school have been learning all about crime – and how to avoid it.

Pupils at South Luton High have been taking part in crime awareness workshops, presentations and even meeting prisoners past and present in an innovative new scheme.

The school was one of only a handful across the country chosen to run the special pilot Restorative Justice project, but other Luton schools could soon be doing the same.

Click here for the story in full (External Link).

Sinn Fein leader mediates between LTTE, Sri Lanka
7th July 2006
LankaEverything.com

Martin McGuinness, the most visible face of Sinn Fein in Northern Ireland after President Gerry Adams, has met leaders of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) in Sri Lanka and urged them to embark on the path to peace.

McGuinness this week flew in a military helicopter over the jungles of Sri Lanka into LTTE-controlled territory and sought to persuade the rebels to return to the negotiating table.

He said he was in Sri Lanka to try to persuade both sides to return to negotiations that collapsed earlier this year.

Click here for the story in full (External Link).

The Threads of War
6th July 2006
Open Democracy
Paul Rogers

Paul Rogers sees a single thread connecting London and Baghdad in this impressive review on the eve of the anniversary of the London bombings.

The British government remains in denial about the connection between its foreign policies and the London bomb attacks of 7 July 2005.

A year since the London bombings of 7 July 2005, the British government remains resolute in its insistence that the country's foreign policy had no connection with the motivation of the bombers. This judgment was reflected in the content of two reports published within days of each other in May 2006: the home office's "narrative" of the sequence of events leading up to the bombings, and the report of parliament's select committee on intelligence and security.

Click here for the article in full (external link).

Roma group launches film to challenge racism
3rd July 2006
Roma Support Group

The Roma Support Group, a charity working with London's East European Roma (Gypsy) community, launches an eagerly-awaited DVD today entitled Be Roma or Die Tryin'.

The short documentary is co-produced by the Roma Support Group and Hi8us South and has been created by young Polish Roma refugees from East London. It is a journey through their heritage and across their city, examining Britain's ignorance of Roma culture while celebrating the new life they have made for themselves.The film is funded by the Changemakers Foundation's `Y SPEAK' Consultation Fund and the European Social Fund and is aimed at both school students and professionals working with the Roma community.

The Co-ordinator of the Roma Support Group, Sylwia Ingmire, said today "We have been overwhelmed by the positive response to this film and I'm thrilled that the DVD is now available to teachers, community groups and the general public. The film is entertaining and funny without trivialising the serious issues involved and, most importantly, it allows young Roma to speak for themselves."

One of the creators of the film, 15-year-old Patryk, said "The myths about Roma people used to make it difficult to say who I really was. But making this film has shown me that I should be proud of who I am."

The DVD of the film, costing £13, is accompanied by a Class Discussion and Activity Pack reflecting UK Key Stage 3 National Curriculum components. It can be ordered through the film's website: www.beromadvd.net

Mubarek inquiry
29th June 2006
Various

The Zahid Mubarek Inquiry took almost two years to complete and reported six years after the 19-year-old's murder in Feltham Young Offenders' Institution.

Its conclusions fall into three main categories:

• Individuals who failed in their duty
• Other key failings that contributed to death
• Mr Justice Keith's recommendations

Click here for a summary of these categories by BBC online news.

Click here for a timeline of events. (bbc.co.uk)

Click here for the official website of the Zahid Mubarek Inquiry (external link).

"Kids welcome asylum seekers. When will grown-ups catch up?"
27th June 2006
Oxfam - UK

What do primary-school children think of asylum seekers and refugees?

Campaign Profile: No Place for a Child
27th June 2006
NPC

A campaign is fighting to end the incarceration of children in detention centres.

The UK government currently detains more than 2,000 children, including babies, in immigration detention centres every year. That's equivalent to the number of pupils at a large inner-city secondary school.

These children have not committed any crime but are held behind locked doors and high barbed wire fences. Five years ago it was rare for families and children to be detained for immigration purposes. Now, members of the No Place for a Child coalition have documented detentions lasting anything from 7 to 268 days.

Why detention is wrong

Children can be held for long periods of time. One child was held for 268 days.

Children feel that they are being punished and do not understand why. Many are left traumatised by the experience with a negative impact on their health, well-being and education.

Detention can be particularly traumatic for families who have already fled from conflict and torture in their own country to seek safety in the UK.

The UK government’s use of detention for children and families is in contravention of international human rights standards.

"Detention is like a cage, and I was like a small bird with no food in it. I wished I could fly..."

Navid (7), spent 32 days at
Yarl's Wood Detention Centre

"I want to tell the world that detention centres are bad for children like me because we will never forget the way they treated us, like we meant nothing to them."

Valentina (11)

The No Place for a Child coalition demands that the UK government:

• Ends the detention of these vulnerable children and babies.
• Trials more viable alternatives to detention, examples of which can be found in other countries

To find out about how you can get involved in the campaign, please click on the link below:

New Free Online Media Tool for Charities Launched
27th June 2006
Conflict Resolution Network UK

The Voluntary Action Media Unit (VAMU) at Time Bank have set up a free online service alled askCHARITY. It's a database which lets media professionals have fast access to charity PR contact details.

Media user feedback has been encouragingly positive:

"The website is great - just what it says on the tin. Can see everyone using it in this office" 
Producer, BBC Current Affairs

All you have to do is register your organisation on the website and put in a short profile of your organisation so journalists can carry out a search using key words. Please click here to visit the askCHARITY website.

New help for young people in conflict
27th June 2006
ResponseSource.com

A major initiative to help young people resolve situations which can result in bullying, fights or even gang disputes launches nationally in London this Thursday (29th June 2006).

Young people and charity workers from UK charity Leap Confronting Conflict will gather to encourage policy makers to invest in more conflict resolution training programmes. The Big Lottery Fund is already backing the initiatives with a £1.3 million grant.

This week also sees the publication of Leap’s new guidelines on Working with Gangs and the roll out of the PeerLink programme which trains young people in mediation skills.

Says Leap chief executive Jenny Rogers, “Leap’s work has a major impact on young people. Ofsted recognised we give young people more control over their lives, while one young person told us that after they’d been involved with a Leap programme that they’d become a thinker, instead of a bully.”

Read more about Leap Confronting Conflict on the CRN:UK by clicking here.

To visit the Leap Confronting Conflict website, please click here.

Click here for ordering information (Working with Gangs).

Tackle racism young, says report
26 June 2006
The Guardian
Rebecca Smithers

The government must make it a priority to tackle racism in early years education if it is to encourage young people to appreciate ethnic diversity, according to a report out today.

The report, Right from the Start, calls for the adoption of "a national strategic approach" across all levels of the government to foster racial equality in early years services and settings.

Click here for the story in full (external link)

Stockholm International Peace Research Institute Yearbook 2006 Released
22 June 2006
SIPRI

Armaments, Disarmament and International Security

SIPRI’s annual compendium of data and analysis of developments in security and conflicts, military spending and armaments and non-proliferation, arms control and disarmament was launched today

Military expenditure, arms production and international arms transfers all on the rise.

SIPRI reports that world military expenditure in 2005 reached $1118 billion in current dollars, a 34 per cent rise in the 10 years since 1996. This increase has been accompanied by a 15 per cent rise in the combined arms sales of the 100 largest arms-producing companies.

SIPRI data on both the volume and financial value of international arms transfers show a sustained increase since 2000–2001. The volume of arms transferred in 2005 was 30 per cent higher than in 2000. Meanwhile, the financial value of the international arms trade has risen from $27–34 billion in 2001 to $44–53 billion in 2004.

“The continuing rising trend in all aspects of the defence economy shows that defence and security policies have not been adapted to the real challenges of the new security environment”, says SIPRI Researcher Petter Stålenheim

No simple solution to conflicts in Iraq and Darfur

In its study of contemporary conflict and multilateral peace operations, the SIPRI Yearbook highlights the complexity of current peace-building operations, particularly in Africa. Meanwhile, developments in Iraq and Darfur ( Sudan) show, in their different ways, how the growth of non-state groups prepared to engage in violence is complicating efforts to manage and resolve some of the key conflicts in the world today.

England Fans Pay their Respects at Dachau
22nd June 2006
Kick It Out

England fans travelled to a former concentration camp outside of Munich to pay their respects to those who lost their lives during the holocaust on 23 June 2006.

The initiative was organised by Maccabi GB, a UK based Jewish community sports group, and LondonEnglandFans, supported by football's anti- racism campaign in the UK, Kick It Out.
  
Maccabi GB Chief Executive Martin Berliner said, “Over the past year, Maccabi GB has shown it’s commitment to dealing with the issues of Anti Semitism in football by working closely with The FA and Kick it Out.
  
“This project provides a great platform to reach a large audience, both Jewish and non-Jewish, at one of the biggest sporting events in the world. The slogan, ‘NEVER FORGET, NEVER AGAIN’ is the key to this initiative and credit should go to Mark Perryman of the England Fans for the initial drive to create this initiative."
  
Piara Powar, Director of Kick It Out, commented, “The trip shows how football can play a role in engaging and educating people on wider issues that transcend the game.
   
“We hope that in raising awareness of anti- Semitism we can help to enhance football fans understanding of the problem.”

MBE for Irish Peace Campaigner
22nd June 2006
UTV News

An Irish peace campaigner is to be officially recognised by Queen Elizabeth for his cross-community work.

Colin William Murphy, former Chairman of the Glencree Centre for Reconciliation (left) and current Co-ordinator of the Glencree Churches Programme, is to be awarded an MBE.

Based in Co Wicklow, the Glencree centre is devoted to peace-building and reconciliation throughout the Ireland and Britain.

Born in Belfast in 1936, Mr Murphy became chairman of the peace organisation in 1987 and remained in the post for ten years.

He has been working on peace and conflict resolution issues in Ireland for over 30 years.

Click here for the story in full (external link).

Children and Young People Given a Voice in England-wide Competition
19th June 2006
Conflict Resolution Network UK

Children and young people are being invited to “Shout! Turn up the volume!” on the issues that affect them in a new competition that will drive the work of the Office of the Children’s commissioner for England (OCC).

There are some great prizes up for grabs, including gift vouchers for Hamleys and HMV, Nintendo games, Sony PSP Consoles, tickets to the Zoo and Legoland, backstage passes to the ballet and iPods! The top prize winners from each of the four age categories will also be invited to an exclusive Winners’ Workshop at a secret London location on Saturday 12 August. They will work with top London design agency The Team to create OCC’s new brandidentity, which will be unveiled at a special event in September.

Lauren Blake, who plays lead singer Tasha in Channel 4 drama Totally Frank, is officially endorsing the project. She commented: “This is a great chance for children and young people across the country to tell us what’s important to them. So, if you have something to say, or you know someone who does, then let us know about it!”

The OCC is an independent organisation created by the Children Act 2004 to represent the views of children and young people in England. It is almost a year since the Children’s Commissioner, Professor Al Aynsley-Green took up the post in July 2005.

Professor Al Aynsley-Green added: “It’s our job to try and do something about the issues that really matter to children and young people. The competition puts children and young people at the very heart of our organisation – it’s a chance to drive our work and our look!“

To enter the competition, go to www.shoutmyentry.org