May 19, 2021
with Janel B. Galvanek, James Suah Shilue, and Véronique Dudouet
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Webinar Content
Introduction of Speakers: 0:00 – 4:31
Presentation: 4:32 – 33:16
Panel Response: 33:17 – 42:40
Q&A: 42:41 – 1:12:02
Webinar Description
ICNC is pleased to host Janel B. Galvanek and James Suah Shilue as they discuss their newly published case study on the integration of peacebuilding and civil resistance in Liberia, Working Tirelessly for Peace and Equality: Civil Resistance and Peacebuilding in Liberia. Throughout years of dictatorship and civil war, many Liberians worked tirelessly and under great duress to bring peace to their country. This webinar outlines the complimentary strategies of peacebuilding and civil resistance that were employed by various actors over the years and showcases the courage of average Liberians in the face of violence.
About the Case Study
From the establishment of the Liberian state in 1848, the Americo-Liberian settlers—descendants of freed slaves from the USA—imposed a form of indirect rule over the indigenous Liberian population that oppressed, marginalized and exploited the majority of the population. This treatment of the native population became increasingly unsustainable, and in 1980 the settler government was overthrown. A 10-year dictatorship was followed by a violent civil war that lasted until 2003. Using the framework developed by Veronique Dudouet in her 2017 ICNC Special Report, Powering to Peace: Integrated Civil Resistance and Peacebuilding Strategies, this case study examines the methodologies and approaches of the various actors involved in civil resistance and peacebuilding throughout the various phases of conflict in Liberia, from a period of latent conflict to the post-settlement phase after 2003. Many different actors in Liberia pursued strategies of peacebuilding and civil resistance simultaneously, which led to the complementarity of their work and increased the impact they had on both political and civic reform, as well as on the ultimate peace process. The case study takes an in-depth look at the impact that the strategies had on each other in their common pursuit of peace and justice in Liberia.
Download the Special Report
About the Presenters
Janel B. Galvanek is the Head of the Sub-Saharan Africa Unit at the Berghof Foundation in Berlin, Germany. With its programming in Somalia, Ethiopia and Zimbabwe, the Unit supports the capacity-building of insider mediators and infrastructures for peace (I4P) and fosters multi-track dialogue among and between various communities. On a volunteer basis, Janel is the director of Growing Tree Liberia, an NGO based in Germany that supports programs for disadvantaged children in Liberia. She holds a Master’s degree in Peace Research and Security Policy from Hamburg University and an MA from Georgetown University in Washington, DC.
James Suah Shilue is Executive Director for Liberian NGO, Platform for Dialogue and Peace (P4DP) since June 2012. Prior to occupying this position, he served as Liberia’s Programme Coordinator for UN Joint Programme/Interpeace Initiative (2007-2012). He presently serves as chairman for CSOs Cluster on peacebuilding and national reconciliation. He is also an adjunct lecturer at the Department of Sociology & Anthropology at the University of Liberia. His professional areas of interest include social research, post war reconstruction & development, rule of law, peacebuilding and conflict prevention, youth, women peace and security and human security. He has enormous experience working with national and international stakeholders to communicate complex findings into policy relevant action plans. He holds a master’s degree in social and Community Studies (De Montfort University, UK) and an MA in Development Studies (Institute of Social Studies, The Netherlands).
Véronique Dudouet is a Senior Research Advisor at Berghof Foundation in Berlin (Germany). Since 2005, she has managed various collaborative research projects on non-state armed groups, inclusive peace processes, negotiation and mediation, post-war political/security transitions, protest movements and nonviolent transitions of power. She conducts regular policy advice, peer-to-peer advice and training seminars for/with conflict and peacebuilding stakeholders. She also carries out consultancy research for international agencies (e.g. UNDP, UNDPO, OECD-DAC, EEAS, GIZ). She is member of the French Research Institute for Nonviolent Conflict Resolution (IRNC), and steering committee member of the Politics After War (PAW) research network. In March-October 2019, she was a Jennings Randolph Senior Fellow at the U.S. Institute of Peace in Washington DC. She has authored numerous publications (including three books) in the fields of conflict transformation and nonviolent resistance. She holds an MA and a PhD in Conflict Resolution from the University of Bradford, UK, and a BA in political science and MPhil in International Relations and Security from the Institut d’Etudes Politiques, Toulouse, France.
Recommended Readings
Powering to Peace: Integrated Civil Resistance and Peacebuilding Strategies by Véronique Dudouet
Ending Liberia’s Second Civil War: Religious Women as Peacemakers by the Berkley Center for Religion, Peace & World Affairs
“Bringing Peace to Liberia” by Max Ahmadu Sesay
“Civic Initiatives in the Peace Process” by Samuel Kofi Woods II