For the fourth time, the Basel Peace Forum on 9-10 January brought together experts and decision-makers from politics, business, civil society and academia to discuss innovative approaches to peacebuilding. This year's event, organized by swisspeace, was held under the motto "Cities of Peace"?. Numerous panels and workshops highlighted the role of cities as motors for innovation in peacebuilding.
In a workshop organized by KOFF on the links between peacebuilding and migration terre des hommes schweiz her experience of psychosocial support for young migrants in El Salvador. In the exchange with experts from Bangladesh, Colombia and Ethiopia it became clear how similar the fundamental challenge of social integration is in different contexts. All speakers emphasized the great importance of psychosocial support and trauma management for integration processes. The speakers confirmed the approaches of terre des hommes schweiz to focus more on the resources of young refugees. "Along the way, the fugitives have shown great resilience and stamina. It takes a great deal of strength to endure all this. It is fatal if they are condemned to inactivity and passivity due to the long asylum procedures in the host country. Because the young people want to be able to take their lives into their own hands." stressed Arancha Garcia del Soto of the Colombian Truth Commission, which documents stories of Colombian refugees. At the end of the workshop, recommendations on approaches to peacebuilding in the context of migration were submitted to the DFA. A central demand was to make the voice and perspectives of young migrants heard.
Cover photo: Joel Plattner © swisspeace
