What’s Next for Nepal: AfP Roundtable Discussion

Many challenges remain on Nepal’s path to peace and stability following the signing of the peace agreement in 2006, which is why 3P, the Alliance for Peacebuilding, and the Asia Foundation hosted today’s roundtable discussion, “Continuing a Path toward Stability: What’s Next for Nepal.” Dr. Hari Bansh Jha attended the event as the featured presenter.  The meeting brought together cross-sector practitioners and policymakers involved in work in Nepal, and identified crucial areas that must be addressed for Nepal to move forward on a path toward sustainable peace. Some of the critical issues discussed included the political process, the rule of law and access to justice, and equitable economic development.

A "Collaboration Connections" event on stability and peace in Nepal.

Today’s roundtable was the latest in a series of “Collaboration Connections” events facilitated by the Alliance for Peacebuilding. The purpose is to push forward important dialogue about a region or issue from a peacebuilding lens, and draw upon the unique expertise across multiple sectors of stakeholders to identify opportunities to support peacebuilding goals and explore areas of potential collaboration.

Dr. Hari Bansh Jha (center) shares his thoughts on peace in Nepal.

Dr. Hari Bansh Jha is Professor of Economics and Executive Director of the research organization, Centre for Economic and Technical Studies (CETS) at Lalitpur, Kathmandu, Nepal since 1989.  He was senior ICCR Fellow at Institute for Defense Studies and Analyses (IDSA) in New Delhi from 2011-2012.  He was also Visiting Scholar at The Institute of Asian Studies, German Institute of Global and Area Studies in Hamburg Germany in 2011.  Jha has a M.A. in Economics from Banaras Hindu University and Ph.D. from University of Bihar in India.  He taught economics in Nepal’s Tribhuvan University between 1976 and 1998.  He also worked as Economic Advisor in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Nepal in 1989-90.  In his academic life, Jha has to his credit 27 published books.  He worked on 55 research projects sponsored by different organizations, including the UNDP, UNICEF, UNCTAD, ILO, WHO, World Bank, USAID, the Asian Development Bank, etc.  His interests are wide ranging and include: spirituality, climate change and security, border studies, Nepal-India relations, peace and conflict, Nepal’s relations with Tibet/China, migration, and more.

3P in Mexico: Shaping a Regional Lens to Address Cross-Border Violence

In November 3P Program Manager John Filson took part in a national conference in Chiapas, Mexico organized by the Mexican network of GPPAC (Global Partnership for the Prevention of Armed Conflict), made of local NGOs working in violence prevention and human rights at the community level throughout Mexico. Participants were peacebuilding practitioners from every region, working in the thick of violence and personal threats in Mexico’s general state of insecurity and impunity related to the Drug War, poor governance systems, and chronic poverty and inequality.

 

Mexican community leaders meet to share stories of violence and peacebuilding efforts throughout Mexico.



The conference was an opportunity for Mexican peacebuilders, activists, and human rights defenders to step back from the heat and pressure of their daily work to share stories of struggles and successes with counterparts from other parts of the country. It helped further strengthen relationships and collaborations among Mexican civil society organizations as part of an on-going robust citizen movement in Mexico that has stood up to demand an end to the violence, impunity, and abuses that have increased drastically in recent years, not only by organized criminal networks but also by government and paramilitary security forces.

 

Regional representatives discuss potential strategies for addressing systemic violence, corruption, and impunity in Mexico.

John also met with Mexican counterparts to discuss strategies for regional collaboration in response to these complex problems. What Mexico is experiencing today is often understood, especially outside of Mexico, as a power struggle between the Mexican government and the long-standing system of black markets and organized crime. But in reality, problems related to the trade in narcotics, arms and human trafficking, criminal gangs, and the culture of violence with impunity are directly and specifically linked across national borders. Guns made and sold in the U.S. supply drug cartels with the means to kill and extort. Drugs bolstering illegal markets in Mexico fuel gang violence and drug addiction in U.S. cities. Those same profits return to illicit economies in Mexico and continue the cycle. 


Members of GPPAC’s North America regional network focus on cross-border strategies to pursue change in U.S. and Mexican communities and at the policy level.

In 2013, 3P, the Alliance for Peacebuilding, and partners in Mexico, the U.S., and Canada will work to support on-going change efforts both at the community and policy levels through strategies that recognize the cross-border nature of the problems of drug consumption, arms trade, and violence that impact vulnerable communities throughout North America. Watch for a bi-national civil society delegation in Washington in Spring, 2013 to help policymakers understand the direct cross-border links and recommendations for cross-border policy solutions.

Event: CPRF Human Security in Practice

May  8, 2012

This month's Conflict Prevention & Resolution Forum (CPRF) organized by Search for Common Ground (SFCG) and 3P took place on May 8th at Johns Hopkins SAIS.  The forum addressed the evolving concepts of human security, civilian protection, community safety, and citizen security which are taking shape in various contexts.

(L to R): Lisa Schirch, Director, 3P Human Security; Ambassador Takasu, Special Advisor on Human Security to the UN Secretary General; Mary Kaldor, Director Civil Society & Human Security Research Unit at the London School of Economics; Sean McFate, Asst. Professor, Department of International Security Studies at the National Defense University; William Tsuma, Program Manager for Preventive Action and Human Security, GPPAC.

Panelists described how the United Nations, the U.S. government and civil society organizations (CSOs) are operationalizing "human security" and related terms in their work and structures. The panel also discussed various terminologies emerging from each context and examined the similarities and differences between approaches. 

 This event is a part of the Conflict Prevention and Resolution Forum (CPRF) series.


Speakers:
Ambassador Yukio Takasu
Special Adviser on Human Security to the United Nations Secretary-General

Mary Kaldor, London School of Economics

Mary Kaldor
Director, Civil Society and Human Security Research Unit at the London School of Economics

Sean McFate
Assistant Professor, Department of International Security Studies at the National Defense University

William Tsuma
Program Manager, Preventive Action and Human Security at the Global Partnership for the Prevention of Armed Conflict (GPPAC)

Moderator:
Lisa Schirch
Director, 3P Human Security
 

William Tsuma, GPPAC

High-Level Roundtable on Human Security 

An afternoon rountable discussion was hosted by the Connect U.S. Fund and co-sponsored by 3P Human Security, the Global Partnership for the Prevention of Armed Conflict (GPPAC), the Alliance for Peacebuilding (AfP), and the Prevention and Protection Working Group (PPWG).  The discussion featured panelists from the morning event as well as  representatives from the State Department, CIVIC Worldwide and the World Bank. The high level meeting provided an opportunity for representatives from diverse sectors to see how other institutions are operationalizing human security frameworks, in some cases for the first time. 3P will publish a report later this summer based on the outcomes of this conversation, laying out the different conceptions being used by different parts of the U.S. government, inter-governmental institutions like the U.N. and World Bank, and international civil society organizations.

 

(Left to right): Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Population, Refugees, and Migration (PRM), Nancy Jackson; U.N. Secretary General Special Adviser on Human Security, Ambassador Yukio Takasu; GPPAC Program Manager for Preventive Action and Human Security, William Tsuma

Event: Afghanistan's National Solidarity Program

Afghanistan's National Solidarity Program:
Lessons Learned on NGOs and Government Partnerships in Development

 May 9, 2012

2:30 to 4:00pm

InterAction

 1400 16th Street, NW, Suite 210

Washington, DC 20036

 Speakers:

Clare Lockhart, Institute for State Effectiveness

Karim Merchant, former National Solidarity Program Operational Director

Topic: The National Solidarity Program provides a model for coordinating and aligning efforts of the Afghan government, international assistance, international NGOs, Afghan civil society organizations and local Afghan communities in governance and development. In light of the upcoming Tokyo Conference on International Assistance in Afghanistan in July, as well as broader discussions about Aid Effectiveness in Washington and through the Busan Process, this discussion will examine lessons learned about how to coordinate diverse stakeholders to support both governance and development.

RSVP: Lisa Schirch, 3P Human Security at schirchl@emu.edu

Co-sponsored by the Institute for State Effectiveness, 3P Human Security and InterAction

"Whole of Government" Meets "Whole of Society"

April 30, 2012

Where does "Whole of Government" meet "Whole of Society"?

Challenges in Afghanistan and Iraq, Somalia and Colombia lead top US military and political leaders to call for a "whole of government" approach to security including strengthened civilian capacities and civil-military cooperation. But civil society perspectives on what is driving and mitigating conflict are often left out of important policy discussions. A "whole of society" approach would include the interests and perspectives of diverse and independent sectors of civil society.

3P Human Security regularly teaches at West Point Military Academy, Quantico Marine Center, US Army War College and elsewhere to train military personnel on how to relate to an independent civil society that can best contribute to long-term human security when not forced or pressured to integrate with short-term national interests or counterinsurgency plans.In a new US army book Conflict Management and Whole of Government, 3P's chapter From Whole of Government to Whole of Society takes a look at how to walk the line of communicating with governments and military forces while maintaining independence to ensure civil society safety and access in challenging conflict-affected regions.